Masekela

James Moffatt's Cartmel yard took him on from the sales last autumn with genuine optimism. The plan was patient and deliberate: a winter break to recover, then a careful return from midsummer onwards aimed at top-tier meetings. The trainer thought he had a horse well handicapped and suited to a mile and a half, suggesting a runner with the physical tools to compete. That belief was echoed by the owner, Mick Mariscotti, whose description of Masekela as a big horse with potential suggested genuine potential—the kind that doesn't always translate into results, but was there to see for those who believed. Yet the track record tells a different story. In Class 1 races, the highest level, Masekela has zero wins from eight attempts. His last six runs have yielded finishes of eleventh, eighth, ninth, third, third, and sixth—glimpses of competitiveness followed by disappointment. He raced just a day ago and remains active, still being campaigned despite the long wait for that first victory. For a seven-year-old, time is running out.