Belvedere Blast

The horse races most often at Class 4, where he has won 4 of his 32 races, and he thrives at Hexham, his home track, where he has won 3 of just 6 races—a 50% win rate that marks him as a genuine course specialist. Normal ground is his preference, with 6 wins from 28 races when conditions are standard rather than fast or soft. His trainer, Adrian Keatley at Ryedale in North Yorkshire, understands him well. Keatley says Belvedere Blast will rack up two or three wins when his official rating dips to around 100, but as soon as the handicapper pushes him up to 115, the gaps close and the victories dry up. It is the eternal rhythm of handicap racing: win consistently, get rated higher, race against better horses, and stop winning.

The best version of Belvedere Blast shows up when pace and ground align. He last won at Market Rasen on 16 August 2025—thirteen months ago now—and Keatley noted that the slower pace of that race seemed to suit him, letting him find a rhythm late on. With Henry Brooke in the saddle, they have clicked together well, winning 3 of 9 races as a partnership—a 33% return, much stronger than the horse's overall average. Recently, though, the form has slipped. In his last six races he has finished outside the places five times, with just a third and a pair of thirds as consolation. He raced just a day ago and is still active, still turning up, still trying. For a horse of his age and experience, that says something about his temperament. He may be a long way from his last win, but he has not given up the game.