Highland Olly

The recent record is striking. Three wins from the last six races, with the most recent coming at Beverley just this week. That kind of purple patch is rare, and it matters because it suggests a horse that has genuinely improved rather than simply getting lucky. Tuer noted after a particularly impressive win at Musselburgh that Highland Olly put in a career-best performance, winning by quite a distance after a wide draw actually worked in its favour — the horse dislikes being crowded, so having room to breathe on its own suited it perfectly. The trainer also flagged that a mile suits it better than seven furlongs, which is an encouraging sign that there may still be more to come.

The numbers point to some clear patterns worth knowing about. On normal ground, Highland Olly wins 5 from 14 races — that is 36%, or more than 1 in every 3, which is genuinely excellent. Stretch the trip out to between a mile and a mile and two furlongs and it wins 3 from 8 races, a 38% rate. At Musselburgh specifically, it has won 2 of its 5 visits — a course it clearly knows how to handle. Jockey Harrison Shaw has been on board for 15 of those 30 races and has won 3 of them, a 1-in-5 rate that mirrors the horse's overall record.

One oddity stands out. Despite all these wins, Highland Olly has not yet managed to win at Class 5, the level it most commonly races at — zero wins from 12 attempts there. All six career victories have come in different circumstances, which suggests this is a horse that perhaps rises to the occasion when conditions suit rather than grinding out results week after week. With the handicapper likely to take notice after the recent run of form, the next few months will be a proper test. But Tuer believes the horse ran through the line hard and has a bit more progress in it yet — and right now, that is a difficult argument to dismiss.