Kantagua Du Large

The recent run of form makes for tough reading: a sequence of 5th, 9th, 6th, 6th, 4th and 4th in the last six races shows a horse that occasionally creeps into contention without ever quite converting. The pair of fourth-place finishes earlier in that sequence were at least competitive — fourth means beaten, but not embarrassed — while the ninth suggests there are days when things simply don't click at all.

Jockey Richard Patrick has had six attempts to unlock a win on the horse and drawn a blank on every occasion. That is not necessarily a criticism of either horse or rider — some combinations just take time, and others never quite find the magic. Trainer Clive Boultbee-Brooks, based at Woolhope in Herefordshire, has sent out nine winners this season, so the yard clearly knows how to get horses winning. Kantagua Du Large, however, has yet to benefit from that knack. The horse typically races at Class 4 level — comfortably mid-tier racing in Britain — and has gone 0 from 4 at that grade, which suggests even at this level the competition is proving too stiff.

With a race just yesterday, this is very much an active campaign, and there is always the chance that the first win is just around the corner. Every horse that has ever won has also, at some point, been winless — though eleven races in, the wait is becoming a long one.