Blue Wonder

Hughie Morrison, who trains her at his yard in East Ilsley, Berkshire — a team that has already sent out 20 winners this season — is quietly confident. He points out that Blue Wonder has been second on two occasions and that her most recent run at Haydock, around six months ago, saw her beaten by only a short margin behind a horse called Previse. In other words, she hasn't been embarrassed; she simply hasn't had the luck fall her way yet. Morrison's phrase — "she just needs the rub of the green" — is the racing equivalent of saying she's been the nearly-woman, close enough to smell victory without quite grabbing it.

That said, her recent form figures do give some pause. Reading from her most recent race backwards, the sequence goes 13-11-6-8-2-4, which means after that promising runner-up finish, she has drifted steadily toward the back of the field. The two most recent runs — finishing 13th and 11th — suggest something hasn't been quite right, which may well explain the six-month break she has had since. Horses are often given time away to sort out a niggle or simply to regroup, and Morrison seems to believe the freshener has done her good.

She has largely competed at Class 5 level, which is the bread-and-butter end of British racing — competitive enough, but not the glamour end. Winning 0 from 4 races at that level underlines that she hasn't yet found a race she can dominate, but Morrison is reportedly eyeing a return to Haydock, the track where she ran her best race. That detail matters: some horses simply click with certain venues, and if Blue Wonder has unfinished business at Haydock, the team clearly believes this is where her luck might finally turn. Whether she can convert promise into that elusive first win remains to be seen, but the trainer's optimism appears to be more than just routine positivity.