Decem Starr

Trained by Jack Jones at Newmarket — one of the most competitive training bases in Britain, where horses are surrounded by serious talent every single morning — Decem Starr is operating in a yard that clearly knows how to get results. Jones has sent out 33 winners already this season, so this is not a yard that struggles to win races. The fact that Decem Starr has not broken through yet probably says more about where she is in her development than the quality of the operation behind her. She raced just yesterday, so she is very much a horse in the middle of her campaign rather than one being quietly put away for the season.

The honest truth is that 0 from 7 is a tough ledger to defend. But for a three-year-old still learning the job, with a trainer firing winners at a healthy rate and recent form trending upward rather than downward, there is at least a reason to keep watching. The second place suggests she can compete — the question is whether she can find that final gear when it matters.