Great David

The breakthrough came at Brighton in October 2024, but the run that really turned heads arrived at Nottingham this April, when Great David bolted up on its seasonal return. That kind of decisive win on a comeback outing is the sort of thing that makes trainers sit up and start thinking bigger. Tate did exactly that, pitching the horse into the Dee Stakes at Chester — one of the more prestigious spring contests for horses of this age — where Great David finished a highly creditable third despite being drawn in the widest stall on the track, a serious disadvantage at that tight circuit. Finishing third from there is not a consolation; it is genuinely impressive.

The team then took the next logical step and ran at Royal Ascot, finishing fifth in a Group 3 race — one of the top tier contests in British racing — behind Trinity College. Tate is candid that the fast, dry ground that week was far from ideal and that Great David essentially ran against conditions that did not suit him at all. Given that context, fifth place at Royal Ascot looks considerably better than it reads on paper.

What stands out is how well the horse performs at distances between seven furlongs and a mile — winning 1 from 3 races at those trips, a rate of 33%, which is strong. And at Class 4 level, the bread-and-butter tier where he has spent much of his career, the record reads 2 wins from 5 races, meaning he wins 40% of the time he competes there — almost 2 in every 5. That is a horse who takes full advantage when the occasion fits him. The question now, with Group-level ambitions clearly on the table, is whether the yard can find him the right conditions — softer, wetter ground and a fair draw — to show just how good he might really be.