Five Star Getaway

The problem is that day was over four years ago. Fifty-two months, to be precise. Since that Kempton win, Five Star Getaway has gone six races without winning, with a recent run of finishes that reads 4-6-2-11-5-4 — competitive enough at times, but no cigar. And now there's an even bigger question hanging over the horse: it hasn't raced in 517 days, roughly 17 months off the track. That's a long time for any athlete, let alone a 10-year-old. When a horse this age disappears for that long, the yard are usually managing something — whether that's injury, recovery, or simply waiting for the right moment. The profile doesn't tell us which, but the absence is impossible to ignore.

The partnership with jockey Jack Tudor hasn't clicked either. In five races together, the pair have yet to win — not a single victory from five attempts. That's not necessarily anyone's fault; sometimes a combination just doesn't fire, and Tudor is a talented young jockey by any measure. But it adds another layer of uncertainty heading into whatever comes next.

Trainer Christian Williams runs his yard out of Ogmore-By-Sea in Glamorgan, and it's been a productive season — 24 winners sent out, which shows the operation is in good health. If anyone can find the right spot to bring Five Star Getaway back, a trainer firing on all cylinders at least offers some cause for hope. Whether a 10-year-old returning from 17 months off can recapture the form that won a top race on Boxing Day weekend three years ago is the real question. It's a long shot — but then again, so was that December afternoon at Kempton, and Five Star Getaway answered that one just fine.