Country Artiste

The recent form makes for tough reading. Over the last six races the finishing positions read 5-6-7-7-9-10, a sequence that shows a gradual slide rather than any encouraging uptick. At the level Country Artiste typically competes at — Class 4, which sits comfortably in the middle tier of British racing — the horse has run five times without winning once. That isn't unusual for a young horse still learning its trade, but it does suggest that at this level, at least for now, the winning post feels a long way away.

What gives the picture some colour is the yard behind the horse. Trainer Craig Lidster, based in Norton, North Yorkshire, has sent out 20 winners already this season — a healthy return that shows the stable knows how to get a horse ready to perform. That makes Country Artiste something of an outlier in the string, a horse that the team clearly persists with despite the results. The fact that Lidster keeps running it — and that it raced just yesterday — suggests there's belief that something is there to be unlocked.

At three years old, there is genuine time on Country Artiste's side. Horses this age are still developing physically and mentally, and plenty have taken until their fourth or even fifth year to work out what racing is actually about. Two placed finishes from twelve races means it has at least shown it can get near the front — just not close enough. For now, Country Artiste is a work in progress from a yard that clearly hasn't given up on it. Whether that patience eventually pays off is the interesting question.