Definite

The Moore yard is in fine form this season, having sent out 94 winners, so the infrastructure and knowhow is clearly there. The puzzle is why Definite hasn't been able to tap into it. Recent form offers little encouragement: the last six races have produced two fourth-place finishes, a tenth, and three runs where the horse didn't even register a finishing position — a sequence that suggests a horse who turns up without quite being able to deliver. Rob Hornby, who has ridden Definite five times, is still waiting for his first win on the horse, making them an 0-from-5 partnership so far.

What the record does hint at, though, is a horse with a preferred profile. At distances of a mile and three furlongs to a mile and four furlongs, Definite has won 1 from 4 — that's 25%, which is a genuinely strong ratio compared to the rest of its career. In other words, get the trip right and there's at least a version of this horse that can compete. The problem is that at Class 4 level — the grade it races most often — it has drawn a complete blank, zero wins from seven attempts, which suggests it keeps finding a few rivals just slightly better on the day.

After a short break of around a month, Definite returns with something to prove but also something to build on: that one win at Haydock, at the right distance, shows the ability is in there somewhere. Whether it can finally find it again is the question its the yard — and anyone watching — will be hoping gets answered soon.