Makinbecon

The overall record of 1 win from 6 races tells a straightforward story: this is a horse that has been competitive without quite finding the winning formula, finishing in the top four on three of those six outings. Recent form of 1-5-9-4 shows a horse that can go close but also has its inconsistent days, which is fairly typical of a young horse still finding its feet at this level.

Barry John Murphy trains Makinbecon from his yard in Caerfyrddin, Carmarthenshire, a small Welsh operation that has sent out one winner this season — this being it. Murphy is not a trainer whose name regularly appears in the big results columns, which makes landing a winner all the sweeter when it comes. Newton Abbot, tucked away in Devon, is a tight, turning track that often suits horses with a sharp jumping style, and clearly it suited Makinbecon well enough to finally get the job done. Having raced just yesterday, the horse is bang in form right now, and it will be interesting to see where Murphy aims next to try and build on this momentum.