Burdett Road

The overall numbers are impressive: 7 wins from 30 races, which works out at winning roughly 1 in every 4 or 5 times out. But the quality of those wins is what sets him apart. Three Class 1 victories — the highest grade of race in Britain — including back-to-back wins at Cheltenham in November 2023 and November 2024, and a top-level win at Newmarket in September 2024. His record at Cheltenham specifically stands at 2 wins from 5 visits, which is the kind of course form that gets people very excited around festival time.

The trainer, James Owen, has shed some light on what makes this horse tick. He's described him as an explosive jumper with a high cruising speed — essentially a horse that goes fast and clears obstacles with ease. James Owen also discovered, partly thanks to a tip from another jockey, that Burdett Road performs best when allowed to bowl along at the front rather than being held up in a pack. Once the team switched tactics, the results improved noticeably. It's also worth knowing that wet or muddy ground doesn't suit him — his trainer noted that a recent below-par run came on exactly that kind of surface, and that giving weight away to the winner that day looks far less embarrassing in hindsight.

His most regular jockey is Harry Cobden, who has won 3 of the 5 times they've raced together — that's 3 wins from 5 rides, a remarkable 60% success rate as a partnership. The yard itself, based in Newmarket, has sent out 201 winners this season alone, so Burdett Road is operating in excellent hands.

He hasn't won in his last six races, and his most recent victory was 17 months ago, so the question is whether he can recapture that top-level form. His trainer is pointing him towards the Cheltenham Festival, the sport's biggest meeting of the year — the track where he's already won twice. With the right conditions underfoot and Harry Cobden in the saddle, it would be unwise to write him off.