Falaise Blanc

That one win came at Newcastle on 29 August last year, and it remains the only time Falaise Blanc has beaten a field outright across two seasons of trying. The horse has finished in the places ten times since — second, third, close but not quite — which suggests it is competitive enough to run with decent rivals, just not yet able to get its head in front. The recent form backs that up: the last six runs read 2-2-5-2-8-6, which means four of those six races ended in a place finish. Frustratingly consistent, in the way that only racehorses can manage.

Scott, who trains out of Galashiels in the Scottish Borders and has sent out 17 winners already this season, has had Falaise Blanc in her yard for a year. She's candid about what she has: not a worldbeater, she admits, but a horse that shows bits of promise and might yet have more to offer over a longer trip. The evidence supports her thinking. Over a mile and three to a mile and four furlongs, Falaise Blanc has won 1 from 6 races — that's a 17% win rate at those distances, compared to just 8% across its 13 races at the lowest tier of British racing. For context, 17% means winning roughly 1 in every 6 races, which would be a genuinely respectable figure if the horse can find its way into those trips more regularly.

The main jockey partnership has been with Greg Fairley, who has ridden Falaise Blanc eight times without a win between them — though the places suggest the pair haven't been disgraced. Scott's plan, it seems, is to be patient, wait for the right opportunities over the longer distances, and avoid unnecessary long trips from the Borders unless the race is worth the journey. Falaise Blanc raced just one day ago and is very much in active training. Whether the step up in trip delivers what Scott is hoping for is the question the next few months will answer.