Five Ways

The record tells a mixed story. From 12 races overall, the horse has won twice and placed four times, giving it a win rate of roughly 1 in every 6 attempts. More telling is the shape of its recent form: in its last six outings it has finished 17th, 9th, 11th, 6th, 4th and 13th. That 4th place represents its best effort in a while, but the overall drift downwards is hard to ignore. Where Five Ways does show genuine strength is over shorter distances between 5 furlongs and 6½ furlongs, where it has won 2 of 7 races (29% win rate) — double its career average. Jason Watson, who has ridden the horse for most of its races, has managed to steer it to the winners' circle twice from six mounts together (33%), suggesting the partnership works when conditions align.

Balding's powerhouse yard at Kingsclere has sent out 202 winners this season alone, so Five Ways is part of a genuinely top-class operation. But it remains a horse still searching for a way back to victory after a long barren spell. At this stage, whether it can rediscover the spark that lit up Kempton thirteen months ago, or whether that was the peak, is the question that matters.