Holbache

What makes Holbache genuinely interesting is his versatility when it comes to ground conditions. He has won 2 from 5 on fast, dry ground and 2 from 5 on wet, slow ground — a 40% win rate on both ends of the spectrum. Most horses have a clear preference; Holbache simply turns up and finds a way. He is also a course specialist at Pontefract, winning 2 of his 3 races there, which is the kind of record that makes the yard sit up and take note every time that track comes around.

Tom Kiely-Marshall has ridden him in 12 races and won 3 of them — winning 1 in every 4 times they have partnered — and that familiarity clearly matters. But it was jockey Tom Marquand who offered one of the more revealing glimpses into the horse's character after a race at Haydock, noting that Holbache was "pretty tough" on difficult ground and that things were moving in the right direction mentally as well as physically.

Camacho is in fine form this season — the yard has sent out 46 winners — and she is clearly thinking strategically about Holbache's next steps. He won at Catterick Bridge as recently as this week, and his trainer has been open about targeting a specific apprentice race at Newmarket on August 1st, the last date before a weight rise kicks in and makes things harder. The fact that she is timing his campaign around a deadline tells you this is a horse with a live chance, not one just making up the numbers.

He first won back in October 2022 at Kempton Park, and nearly four years on he is still winning races and still being pointed at specific targets. For a horse of his age and level, that kind of longevity and consistency is worth appreciating.