Miss Maverick

The nine-year-old is trained by Gary Hanmer at his yard in Tattenhall, Cheshire — a small operation that has quietly sent out 19 winners already this season, which tells you Hanmer knows what he is doing. He described Miss Maverick earlier this spring as "a cracking little mare," and the results back that up. He has also been smart about where she runs, keeping her over hurdles after an experiment over fences did not go to plan. Good trainers know when to change course, and Hanmer did exactly that.

Her regular jockey James Davies has ridden her nine times and won four of those — winning roughly 4 in every 9 rides together, which is a strong partnership by any measure. After this week's win at Uttoxeter, Davies was candid on Sky Sports Racing: he admitted he did not have much left in reserve, but Miss Maverick had already done the hard work, putting the race to bed from a long way out. That kind of racehorse — one who does not need to be asked twice — tends to be popular with jockeys for good reason.

Her overall record reads six wins and eleven places from seventeen races, a 35% win rate, meaning she wins roughly 1 in every 3 races she enters. On normal ground she is even better — three wins from just five races on those conditions, a 60% win rate that borders on remarkable. She is currently in the form of her life, winning three of her last six races with finishes of 1-1-3-2-5-1 in reverse, and she is active right now. Hanmer has mentioned Hexham as a likely next target, so it will be interesting to see whether the Uttoxeter magic travels north.