Donnie Devito

What those two wins do share is worth noting. Both came on normal ground — and on normal ground specifically, Donnie Devito has won 2 from 8, which is 25%, or one in every four. That is a meaningful pattern. Wet or very dry conditions appear to blunt the horse's best qualities, while a standard surface seems to bring out something extra. Trainer Ross O'Sullivan, who has sent out an impressive 40 winners already this season from his Kildare base, will know exactly what conditions to target.

The partnership with jockey Tom Harney is the other thread worth pulling on. In nine races together, Harney has partnered Donnie Devito to both of its career wins — a win rate of 22%, or roughly 1 in every 4-and-a-half rides. That is considerably better than the horse's overall record suggests, and it points to a genuine working relationship between horse and rider. When Harney is in the saddle on a normal surface, Donnie Devito becomes a noticeably different proposition.

The last win came at Galway in August 2024 — almost two years ago now. That is a long wait, and the recent form of 3-3-2-3-4-3 paints a picture of a horse hovering just outside the frame without ever quite breaking through. Raced just yesterday and still active, Donnie Devito is not being wrapped in cotton wool, which suggests O'Sullivan still believes there is something to work with. Whether that belief gets rewarded any time soon may well depend on finding the right day, the right ground, and Tom Harney in the saddle.