Catalina Delcarpio

The breakthrough came at Leopardstown in April last year, and she added a second win at the same track in May. What makes those victories notable is that they came after a period of adjustment. Twomey has been candid about stretching her to longer distances—the Ribblesdale Stakes at Ascot, for instance—and recognizing that she is naturally a sharp, speedy horse rather than a grinder. He describes her as having "pace for a mile" despite carrying the frame to run further, and the plan going forward seems to be finding races that suit her natural talents rather than forcing her into the wrong mold. Her jockey of choice, W J Lee, has ridden her in five races and won twice from those five, a 40 percent win rate that suggests a good partnership.

The last four months have seen mixed results—a third, a fourth, a second-place finish, and a tenth—but Twomey's comments suggest he views this period as part of her education rather than a step backward. He mentions she has been in good form since a run at Navan and hints that the team is thinking about races at around a mile to ten furlongs where her speed and improving fitness might converge. She is still learning what she is, essentially, and at four years old there is time for that education to pay off.