Calandagan

The overall numbers tell the same story. From just 8 races, Calandagan has won 3 and placed in 7 of them — that is a win rate of 38%, or roughly 2 in every 5 races, which is extraordinary at the top level where the margins are razor-thin and the competition ferocious. His recent form reads 4-1-1-2-2-2, meaning his last six outings have produced two wins and four runner-up spots. He is a horse who is almost never out of contention.

What makes this even more striking is the comment from Graffard after a race in Meydan, where he described it as Calandagan's "fifth Group 1 in a row" — a sequence that put enormous pressure on everyone around the horse. Graffard admitted he felt that weight keenly, and jockey Mickael Barzalona spoke of knowing the horse's personality intimately. That kind of bond, between a trainer who acknowledges the pressure publicly and a jockey who speaks of the horse almost as an individual, tells you this is not just a talented animal — it is one that carries genuine expectation everywhere it goes.

On ground conditions, Calandagan has shown his best form on normal going, winning 2 of his 3 races in those conditions. Graffard has always described him as easy-actioned and light-footed, a horse who covers ground efficiently rather than grinding through it. That natural fluency over good ground is part of why Ascot, which tends to ride on the quicker side in summer, suits him so well. He last won there in October 2025, eight months ago, and with the yard having already sent out 6 winners this season, a return to the track where he has been near-unstoppable feels like an occasion worth watching.