God The Highness

The last six races make for mixed reading. A third-place finish sits in there, which shows God The Highness can be competitive, but either side of it the results have been modest — including a fifth, a sixth, and two further finishes back in the pack, as well as one race where no finishing position was recorded. It hasn't won in any of its last six outings, and the overall pattern is of a horse that occasionally threatens without ever delivering.

The most regular partnership in the saddle has been with Shane Foley, who has ridden God The Highness seven times without a win between them. That's a significant chunk of the horse's career spent with the same jockey and still nothing to show for it — though it's worth saying that finding the winner's enclosure has simply been elusive for this horse regardless of who's aboard.

On the positive side, God The Highness is trained by Mrs John Harrington at her yard in Moone, Co Kildare — and that is genuinely good news. The operation has fired out 54 winners already this season, which is a serious number and marks it as one of the more productive yards in Irish racing right now. Being in a winning environment matters. Horses improve, circumstances change, and the fact that the team keeps running God The Highness suggests they see potential worth persisting with. A first win may not be far away — though this horse has made a habit of keeping everyone waiting.