Garde Des Champs

Both of those wins have come at Perth, out of 16 races run there. That might sound modest on paper, but consider what it means in practice: Garde Des Champs has shown up at its home track again and again, and when the stars have aligned, it has delivered. The most recent win came on 13 July 2025 — nine months ago — on normal ground, which is clearly where this horse operates best. On normal conditions it has won 2 of 21 races, a 10% win rate that tells a simple story: give it dry, standard ground and it becomes a genuine contender at its level.

That level is predominantly Class 4, the bread-and-butter tier of jump racing rather than the top shelf, and in those races it has won 2 of 20, again hitting that 10% mark. It is a horse that knows exactly what it is and where it belongs, and there is something almost admirable about that kind of self-awareness over a long career.

The training operation behind the horse is worth noting. Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore, based at Milnathort in Perth and Kinross, have sent out 49 winners this season alone — a yard clearly in fine form. Regular jockey Derek Fox has partnered Garde Des Champs in 10 races without a win together, but given the horse's overall win rate, that is more a reflection of the horse's nature than any shortcoming in the saddle.

Most tellingly, Garde Des Champs raced just one day ago and remains active at ten years old. The recent form reads 8-4-4-3-2-1, meaning it has climbed steadily up the placings before landing that July win. A horse still competing, still placing, and still threatening at a decade old — that is a career in itself.