Evaluation

The problem is that Evaluation has gravitated upward into the tougher Class 2 races, where he has never won in thirteen attempts. His last victory came at Ayr on 13 November 2024, nearly two years ago now, and his recent form tells a story of a horse treading water. In his last six races — finishing third, second, eighth, thirteenth, fourth, and second again — he has shown enough to suggest he is not yet finished, particularly that recent second place, but he has drifted away from the winning post. Adam Nicol's yard at Seahouses in Northumberland is sending out winners at a steady clip this season, but Evaluation has not been one of them for a while.

What makes Evaluation interesting is not what he is doing now, but what the trainer believes he might become. Nicol ran him close as a second-place finisher in the Northumberland Plate earlier this year and has spoken about stepping him up to jump racing, suggesting there is still a plan, still a purpose. For a horse of Evaluation's age, that is remarkable in itself. Whether he finds another win in flat racing or makes a second career over jumps, something has clearly caught his trainer's eye.