Great d'Ange

The picture grows clearer when you look at the ground. Great d'Ange thrives on normal conditions, winning 4 of 23 races on such ground — a respectable 17% win rate — but falls away dramatically at other times of year. On faster, drier ground or in wet conditions, the horse has managed just the two remaining wins from 13 races. This is a meaningful clue: trainers who work with Great d'Ange know exactly what they are dealing with, and planning around ground conditions matters. Sadly, recent form suggests even that advantage has faded. The horse has not won in its last six races, returning places at its last two outings but struggling before that, and while it raced just a day ago, suggesting it remains actively campaigned by trainer Alexander Gibbons at Broad Hinton in Wiltshire, the pattern is one of gentle decline. Jockey Tom Broughton, who has ridden Great d'Ange nine times, has never tasted a winner aboard, a small detail that may or may not matter but which underscores the difficulty of squeezing wins from this horse in the modern game.