Cinquenta

The progress has been sharp and recent. Cinquenta broke through for a first win at Market Rasen in February 2026, and Snowden was candid about what had taken so long — the horse had simply been a big, backward youngster still growing into himself. Since then, the penny has clearly dropped. A second win followed at Ffos Las just this week, meaning Cinquenta has won 2 of its last 6 races and is very much in form right now. On slightly wet or muddy ground, the record reads 2 wins from 4 races — that is a 50% win rate, which is extraordinary. Finding the right conditions is half the battle with some horses, and Cinquenta's team appear to have found theirs.

Snowden has drawn a telling comparison to Laurens Bay, a previous horse from the same yard who won the EBF Final and has since developed into a serious staying chaser. The implication is that Cinquenta is being groomed for a similar path — longer distances, bigger fences, grander occasions. At this early stage of that journey, winning roughly 1 in every 4 races at Class 4 level and placing almost constantly, the signs are encouraging. Jockey Gavin Sheehan has been in the saddle for 6 of those 8 races, winning 1 of them — a partnership that will likely matter more as the horse steps up in class.

At 6 years old and still described by his own trainer as a "big, backward baby" who is learning all the time, there is a strong sense that Cinquenta's best racing is still ahead of him. For a horse whose career is only just beginning to take shape, the foundations look rather solid.