Kocktail Bleu

The partnership between horse and jockey tells its own story. Freddie Gordon has ridden Kocktail Bleu seven times, winning on two occasions—a 29% win rate that stands well above the horse's overall average. Their most recent success came at Newbury on 21 March, a win that sent the horse into a quiet spell; he hasn't found his way back into the winner's enclosure in the seven months since. His latest outing came just a day ago, a fourth-place finish that suggests he remains a useful, if unspectacular, prospect. Gordon sees something worth nurturing. When discussing the horse's potential, the trainer mentioned the Sandown mud—the kind of soft, testing ground that turns up reliably on major race days—as ground where Kocktail Bleu would feel at home. There's a thought, too, of entry into the EBF Final, one of the season's big opportunities for horses of this grade. For now, though, this is a horse whose best days may require a little patience and the right conditions.