Hopeless Dancer
Hopeless Dancer has never won a race, but the 4-year-old horse keeps showing up and finishing in the money—a modest but honest record that tells you something about its consistency if not its speed. Across five career starts, it has picked up five placings, meaning it has finished in the frame every single time it has run. That is genuinely unusual. Most horses that don't win do so because they get beaten badly; Hopeless Dancer simply gets beaten by slightly better horses, again and again, without embarrassment. Its recent form reads 2-3-2-2-3 (second, third, second, second, third), which is the racing equivalent of someone who always shows up to work on time but never gets the promotion. It has not won in those last five races, but it has not finished out of the placings either.Based on TrackLab's analysis
📊 Key numbers
Career totals for this horse
🔍 Full analysis
Our model's view, based on this horse's career and recent runs
The horse has been away for 116 days—roughly three months—and returns to racing now. Nigel and Willy Twiston-Davies, who train Hopeless Dancer at their Naunton yard in Gloucestershire, have had a productive season with 57 winners overall, so the horse will be returning into a yard in good form. At Class 5 level—the lowest tier of competitive racing—Hopeless Dancer has managed zero wins from three attempts, which suggests it may be operating near the limit of what it can achieve on the racecourse. But there is something to be said for a horse that turns up consistently, does its job, and brings back a check. Not every horse is built to win; some are just reliable, and Hopeless Dancer appears to be one of those.
⚡ Strengths and risks
What helps this horse and what to watch out for
⚠ What to watch out for
⚠ Returning from a 116-day absence
🎯 Where this horse runs best
Results split by ground, distance, race level and track shape
🌧 Ground
Good (a little give)
Unknown
Good to soft (some give)
Unknown
📏 Race distance
Long Distance (2M+)
Unknown
🏅 Race level
Class 3 (mid-level)
Unknown
Class 4 (standard)
Unknown
Class 5 (entry-level)
Unknown
🏟 Track shape
Left-handed, long straights
Unknown
Right-handed, hilly
Unknown
Left-handed, tight turns
Unknown
📅 Recent runs
The last 10 races, most recent first
3 Dec
2nd
Ludlow
1m6f – 2m · Good_To_Soft · 6 runners
6 Nov
3rd
Ludlow
Long Distance (2m+) · Good · 3 runners
28 Oct
2nd
Ffos Las
1m6f – 2m · Soft · 10 runners
1 Oct
2nd
Warwick
Long Distance (2m+) · Good · 9 runners
15 Sep
3rd
Worcester
Long Distance (2m+) · Good_To_Soft · 10 runners
🏇 Jockeys
Every jockey who has ridden this horse, most rides first
🏟 Course record
Win rate at each course this horse has visited
| Course | Races | Results | Last run | Win rate |
|---|
| Ludlow Undulating |
2 |
1 second, 1 third |
3 Dec |
0% |
| Ffos Las Galloping |
1 |
1 second |
28 Oct |
0% |
| Worcester Galloping |
1 |
1 third |
15 Sep |
0% |
| Warwick Sharp |
1 |
1 second |
1 Oct |
0% |