Graecia

What stands out is that Graecia clearly has a preferred surface. On normal ground it has won 2 of 9 races — a 22% win rate — compared to just 1 win from the rest of its outings. It also seems to appreciate a distance between 7 furlongs and a mile, where it has won 1 of 4 races (25%). At Class 4 level, where it typically competes, the win rate drops to 1 in 10. Charlie Longsdon's Oxfordshire yard has sent out 31 winners this season, so the horse is part of an operation that knows how to find opportunities, yet Graecia has not been among the winners for over a year.

Recent form shows why the drought has continued. In its last six outings it has been twelfth, second, sixth, second, and third — respectable finishes but no wins. There was promise in that second place two runs ago, and another just before that, yet neither developed into a victory. Daire McConville has ridden it six times, winning once (a 17% rate), slightly better than the horse's overall record. At five years old and having raced 23 times, Graecia knows the game well. The challenge now is whether it can rediscover that Worcester magic on normal ground and in its preferred trip, or whether the long drought is simply what this horse's level is.