I'm Spartacus

The pattern becomes clearer when you look at what I'm Spartacus prefers. On normal ground conditions, the horse has won 5 races from 24 attempts—a 21% win rate, nearly double its overall average. Strip away the wet days and the rock-hard surfaces, and this becomes a very different proposition. It also shows genuine class when stepping down in grade. In races at Class 5 level, I'm Spartacus has won 2 from 6, a 33% win rate that suggests it belongs at that level and can compete with horses at that standard. Trainer Adrian McGuinness, based at Lusk in Dublin, has fashioned a decent season with 45 winners already, and his partnership with jockey Adam Caffrey has produced four victories from 24 races together—a 17% return, respectable enough to suggest they understand the horse.

The three-month gap since its last win at Fairyhouse in June is concerning, and the recent sequence of placings without a breakthrough shows the horse has run into tougher ground or stiffer competition. But I'm Spartacus is still racing and still competitive, as its fourth-place finish just six days ago proves. For a horse that thrives on normal ground at a track it clearly loves, a return to Newcastle on a good day could unlock another win.