Kayla's Friend

The recent form tells an interesting story, though. A finishing position of 12 in the earliest of these four runs was followed by a third, then a sixth, and most recently a fifth. That's not a clean upward curve, but it does suggest a horse that has at least shown it can mix it with others at this level — the third-place finish proves there's something there, even if it hasn't translated into a win yet. With a race just yesterday, Kayla's Friend is right in the thick of an active campaign.

What gives the team genuine cause for optimism is who is doing the training. Olly Murphy, based at Wilmcote in Warwickshire, has sent out 146 winners already this season — that's a yard firing on all cylinders, and horses in that kind of environment tend to improve. Murphy has a strong reputation for patient development, so the fact that Kayla's Friend hasn't won yet doesn't necessarily mean the ceiling has been reached. Sometimes it just means the right opportunity hasn't come along yet.