Miss Pearl

Her recent form tells a curious tale. Looking at her last six races in reverse order, she finished fifth, then eighth, then seventh — three races where things clearly weren't clicking. But then something shifted. She came back with a fourth, then a third, then most recently a second place finish just one day ago. That is a horse running into form at exactly the right moment, and it makes her next race genuinely interesting to watch.

Jockey Tabitha Worsley has been the one in the saddle for six of those races and has yet to ride her to a win, but the partnership clearly has momentum given that recent second place. Trainer David Rees runs his operation out of Clarbeston in Pembrokeshire, and his yard has notched five winners already this season, so he clearly knows how to get a horse ready to win. Miss Pearl, racing predominantly at Class 5 level — the entry-level tier of British racing — has yet to break through in seven attempts at that grade, but a horse finishing second one day ago, in improving form, with a trainer in decent shape, is one that deserves a second look.

The honest truth is that a horse with zero wins from eighteen races and a career built largely at the lowest level of the sport is not a star. But racing is full of people who follow horses not because they always win, but because they believe the win is coming. With Miss Pearl heading into her next race on the back of her best recent run in months, that belief might not be misplaced for much longer.