Gunlock

Both of Gunlock's wins have come at a very specific distance: seven furlongs to a mile. In those conditions, the record reads 1 win from 3 races, which works out at around 1 in 3 — a completely different horse from the one that plods around without threatening over other distances. That kind of sharp improvement at a particular trip often tells you something real about how a horse is built. Gunlock apparently wants a proper test but not a marathon.

The training operation behind Gunlock is Ross Burdon's yard at Newmarket, which is one of the sport's great headquarters towns — a place where serious trainers set up for a reason. Burdon's team has sent out 12 winners already this season, so this is not a yard going through the motions. The hope is clearly that Gunlock can add to that tally. The most recent win came at Kempton Park in December 2025, which was four months ago now, and the horse raced again just yesterday, so the team are clearly keeping Gunlock busy and looking for the right opportunity.

The one note of caution in the record is what happens at Class 4 level — which is roughly the middle tier of British racing, not the glamour events but not the entry level either. Gunlock has run 8 times at that level and won precisely none of them. Zero wins from 8 races at the class it most often competes at is the kind of stat that makes you tilt your head. It suggests Gunlock is competitive enough to keep getting entries at that level but has yet to fully crack it there. The two wins have come elsewhere, which means the team may be searching for a race at a slightly different level or distance combination where everything clicks again. With recent form showing a fourth, an eighth, and a fifth in the last few runs, a win is not out of sight — but Gunlock will need the right race to find it.