Lunar Eclipse

The recent form makes for uncomfortable reading. The last six races read 6-12-14-2-3-7, which means that aside from a second and a third in there, Lunar Eclipse has been finishing mid-pack or worse. A horse finishing 12th or 14th is not just losing — it is being left behind, and that kind of performance at this stage of a career raises real questions about where the winning form has gone.

Part of the puzzle might be the level at which the horse is running. Lunar Eclipse has had four races at Class 3, which sits in the middle tier of British racing — not the very top, but competitive enough to expose any weakness. The record there is zero wins from four attempts, and that is the kind of blank return that suggests the horse may be finding life harder than the single Newmarket victory implied it would.

Tom Eaves has been in the saddle for six of those races and has yet to find the combination that unlocks a win — zero from six together. That is not necessarily a criticism of either horse or jockey; sometimes a partnership just does not click, or the horse simply is not producing its best at the moment. Kevin Ryan's yard at Hambleton in North Yorkshire is clearly in fine form this season, having sent out 45 winners, so the platform is there. Lunar Eclipse, who raced just yesterday and remains an active runner, is not short of opportunities. The question is whether, at five years old, another moment like that November afternoon at Newmarket is still in there somewhere.