Hostelry

The partnership with jockey Kaiya Fraser is where Hostelry really comes alive. Together they have won 5 of their 18 races — that is 28%, or better than 1 in every 4 times they line up together. In racing, finding a jockey who clicks with a particular horse is genuinely valuable, and these two clearly suit each other. Ground conditions matter too: Hostelry is at her best on normal or slightly soft ground, winning 5 from 23 races (22%) on the former and 2 from 8 (25%) when conditions turn a little softer underfoot. She is not a horse who wants extremes.

Then there is Carlisle. Three wins from just 8 races at that track is a remarkable record — it means she has won there more than 1 in every 3 times she has turned up. Her last victory came there on 4 August last year, and her very first career win was also at Carlisle back in July 2022. Some horses simply love a particular track, and Hostelry has made it her home.

Her trainer is candid about the challenge ahead. After a brilliant season that included five wins, Carr acknowledges that horses who win heavily one year can find life harder the next — the sport's rating system makes sure of it, nudging them into slightly tougher company. Her last six runs have all been placed finishes rather than victories, and that sequence of 4-5-5-5-4-6 suggests she is still running well without quite getting her nose in front.

The good news is that Carr already has a target in mind: a race at Beverley on 23 April, a track where Hostelry has won before. She raced just yesterday and is clearly still very much in training. For a nine-year-old with 10 wins to her name and a course she loves within striking distance, the story is far from finished.