King Kodiak

His recent form tells a familiar story. In his last six races he has finished seventh, second, seventh, ninth, third, and fifth. That second and third place show there are days when he runs well and puts himself in the conversation, but the wins simply haven't followed. He raced just yesterday, so this is a horse very much in active training and being kept busy by George Bewley's yard in Colby, Cumbria.

Bewley is the trainer, and it is his son Jonathon who most often does the steering — the pair have teamed up 11 times together without a winner between them. That is a tough run of luck for any combination, and at this point the first win would mean a great deal to both of them. The yard itself is not short of winners this season, having sent out seven, which makes King Kodiak something of an exception rather than a reflection of the stable's overall form.

At Class 4, the level where he most often competes, he has run six times without winning. Class 4 sits in the middle of the racing ladder — not the elite end, but not the very bottom either. The fact that he has not been able to break through even here is what makes his record genuinely puzzling rather than simply unlucky. He has the experience of a seasoned campaigner, he clearly has enough ability to place, but something about putting it all together on the day has so far been beyond him. Whether that changes remains one of the small, persistent questions that keeps racing interesting.