Gweedore

The horse's spiritual home appears to be Ayr, where he has won 3 times from just 8 races. That is a 37% win rate at a single track, which tells you everything — this is not a horse that happens to have won there, it is a horse that genuinely thrives on the place. His trainer Katie Scott, based in the Scottish Borders, has spoken about Gweedore's connection to the Ayr Gold Cup, one of the most prestigious sprint races in the British calendar. He finished third in the race two years ago, and it remains the big target. The fact that a small yard in Galashiels is training a horse serious enough to challenge for a race of that stature is a story in itself. Scott's team has already sent out 17 winners this season, so the ambition is clearly backed by results.

Gweedore's best form tends to come on slightly wet or soft ground — he has won 3 times from 9 races in those conditions, a 33% rate — and he is particularly effective over distances of around a mile to a mile and a quarter, winning 3 of just 6 races at those trips. That is a 50% win rate, meaning he is as likely to win as not when the distance and conditions align. His trainer has noted that the further he goes, the better he tends to run, and that rising ground suits him well — a detail that proved decisive when he won a Class 2 at Newmarket's July course in August 2023.

His regular partner is jockey Jason Hart, who has ridden him to 3 wins from 13 races together — roughly 1 win every 4 rides, which is a strong return at this level. Gweedore has had a frustrating time of it lately, missing time with a sore fetlock and then throwing a splint — essentially a bony growth that causes temporary lameness rather than any lasting damage — but he last raced just yesterday and has been back competing since the spring. With the autumn festival at Ayr on the horizon, a horse who has already come within a whisker of winning its biggest race will have his supporters watching closely.