Marhaba Ghaiyyath

The trainer Charlie Johnston, whose yard at Middleham Moor in North Yorkshire has sent out an impressive 131 winners already this season, is candid about what went wrong. A gelding operation last year knocked the horse sideways, and Johnston admits he probably ran him too soon afterwards in the Cambridgeshire — one of the most competitive ten-furlong races of the autumn — when the horse simply was not ready. That sort of honesty from a trainer is actually reassuring. It means there is a clear explanation for the dip, not just a horse who has quietly gone off the boil.

When conditions suit him, Marhaba Ghaiyyath is a different animal. On normal ground he has won 2 of just 3 races — that is two-thirds of his opportunities — which is a remarkable conversion rate and tells you that when everything lines up, he delivers. The problem has been stepping up into Class 2 company, the higher end of the racing ladder: four attempts at that level, zero wins. He has the ability to place at that grade, but winning is a different ask.

Jockey Billy Loughnane offered a telling observation after one run, noting that the horse still felt quite raw and was doing things the hard way — leading throughout without anything to chase down, which is not ideal for a horse who may yet need to find a higher gear. Johnston sees enough to keep the ambitions ticking over, targeting the summer festival ten-furlong races and possibly a step into Listed company — one rung below the very top — when the moment feels right. A horse who wins two-thirds of his races on good ground, trained by one of the most productive yards in the country, is not one to write off. He just needs the stars to align again.