Billyjoh

Nowhere is that clearer than at Southwell, where Billyjoh has won 2 of just 5 races. That might sound modest, but winning 2 in 5 at any single track is the kind of record that makes trainers circle a date in the calendar. Appleby's yard has been in ripping form this season — 79 winners and counting — so they clearly know when and where to place this horse to best effect. Billyjoh also has a strong preference for normal ground conditions, winning 2 of 9 races on a standard surface, a win rate of 22%, or roughly 1 in every 4 runs when the ground is right.

The horse opened its account at Doncaster back in July 2023, and has kept adding to the tally since. Most of those runs have come in some of the better races in Britain — Class 2 contests, which sit right near the top of the racing pyramid — and at that level Billyjoh is yet to win in 16 attempts. That is a tough ask for any horse, and the fact it keeps being entered at that level tells you the team believes it belongs there, even if the winner's enclosure at the top end has so far stayed out of reach.

The most eye-catching detail, though, is the most recent one. Billyjoh won at Newmarket just this week, on 1 May 2026, and raced again only yesterday. That is a punishing schedule, and yet the horse arrives here on the back of a winning performance at one of the most famous tracks in the country. Frederick Larson, who has ridden Billyjoh in 16 of its 33 races, was aboard for 2 of those 4 wins — a partnership that clearly has some chemistry. Recent form of a win followed by placed efforts suggests this is a horse in decent shape right now, and one worth keeping an eye on while the momentum lasts.