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Heart Of Darkness

There is something quietly stubborn about a horse that keeps showing up. Heart Of Darkness is a 5-year-old with a modest career record — 1 win and 4 places from 22 races, which works out to a win rate of roughly 1 in every 22 outings — but it raced just yesterday, which tells you everything about its current workload. This is a horse very much in the thick of it.Based on TrackLab's AI analysis
Quick Facts
Age
5 years old
Sex
Mare
Colour
Bay
Father
Mehmas
Mother
One Kiss
Owner
B O'Sullivan/D Whyte/Exors of the Late D McHugh/M O'Loghlen
Rating
48

📊 Key Numbers

Career statistics for this horse
22
Career races
1
Wins
4.5%
Win rate
avg ~10%
18.2%
Place rate (top 3)
avg ~30%
1 days
Since last race

🔍 Full Analysis

TrackLab's AI-generated assessment based on career data and recent form
TrackLab's Detailed Breakdown
Auto-Generated

That single career win came at Dundalk in April 2024, now 26 months ago, and it remains the high-water mark of an honest but limited career. Since then, Heart Of Darkness has gone six races without finding the winner's enclosure, though the recent form figures of 2 and 1 buried in that sequence are worth a second look — a runner-up finish and, crucially, a win suggest there have been flashes of real ability mixed in with some quieter days. The most recent visible form reads 11-5-10-10-2 going back from yesterday's run, which paints a picture of a horse that can go close but has struggled to put a complete performance together at the right moment.

Adrian McGuinness trains the yard from Lusk in County Dublin, and it has been a productive season — 39 winners sent out, which is a healthy return for any training operation. The team clearly knows what they are doing, even if Heart Of Darkness has not been the one adding to the tally lately. Regular partner Adam Caffrey has ridden the horse seven times without a win between them, though that may say more about circumstance than chemistry.

Where Heart Of Darkness gives its best is over the shorter distances — 5 furlongs to 6 and a half furlongs. In 6 races at those trips, it has won once, a rate of roughly 1 in 6, which is actually well above its overall career average. That is a meaningful distinction. Keep it short and sharp, and this horse is a different proposition to the one that disappears into the pack over longer distances. For a horse still racing actively at this stage of its career, that kind of specific knowledge is exactly what the team will be leaning on as they search for win number two.

Strengths & Risks

What the data says works for and against this horse
✓ What works in their favour
Excellent record on standard ground: 1 wins from 11 starts (9%)
Well suited by 5f – 6½f distances: 17% win rate
⚠ What to watch out for
Poor record on good ground: 0 wins from 3 starts
Struggles on RH Galloping tracks: 0 wins from 6 starts

🎯 Where This Horse Thrives

Performance broken down by ground, distance, class, and track type
🌧 Ground Conditions
Standard (all-weather)
Loves
Yielding (slightly soft)
Unknown
Heavy (very wet)
Unknown
Soft (muddy)
Unknown
Good to firm (drying out)
Unknown
Good to yielding (mild give)
Unknown
Soft to heavy (wet)
Unknown
Good (firm-ish)
Avoids
📏 Race Distance
5F – 6½F
Loves
1M3F – 1M4F
Unknown
7F – 1M
Avoids
1M1F – 1M2F
Avoids
🏟 Track Shape
Left-handed, long straights
Loves
Right-handed, hilly
Unknown
Left-handed, tight turns
Unknown
Right-handed, long straights
Avoids

📅 Recent Runs

The last 10 races, most recent first
1 Jun
DNF
Gowran Park
1m1f – 1m2f · Good · 16 runners
12 Apr
11th
Leopardstown
1m1f – 1m2f · Good_To_Yielding · 23 runners
6 Mar
5th
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 17 runners
6 Feb
10th
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 17 runners
23 Jan
10th
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 17 runners
9 Jan
2nd
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 15 runners
10 Dec
9th
Dundalk
1m3f – 1m4f · Standard · 14 runners
26 Nov
4th
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 17 runners
12 Nov
7th
Dundalk
1m1f – 1m2f · Standard · 14 runners
29 Oct
9th
Dundalk
7f – 1m · Standard · 15 runners

🏇 Jockey Partnerships

Every jockey who has ridden this horse, sorted by rides together
0%
Win rate
0/7
Won / Rode
25%
Win rate
1/4
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/3
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode

🏟 Track Record

Win rate at each course this horse has visited
CourseRacesResultsLast visitedWin rate
Dundalk
Galloping
11 1 win, 1 second, 1 third, 8 other 6 Mar 9.1%
Cork
Galloping
3 3 other 11 Sep 0%
Gowran Park
Undulating
2 2 other 1 Jun 0%
The Curragh
Galloping
2 2 other 16 Oct 0%
Leopardstown
Galloping
1 1 other 12 Apr 0%
Bellewstown
Sharp
1 1 other 1 Oct 0%
Fairyhouse
Galloping
1 1 other 22 Sep 0%
Naas
Galloping
1 1 other 23 Mar 0%