Mr Globalist

His recent form tells a similar story. In his last six races he has finished fourth, third, fifth, fifth, sixth, and fifth — competitive enough to suggest he belongs on a racecourse, but consistently just short of where the prize money runs out. He raced just yesterday, which means the yard — sorry, which means the yard clearly believes there is still something to aim at, and Lizzie Quinlan's team at Bolton Mill in Cumbria has kept him busy. Quinlan has sent out four winners this season, so the yard is capable of getting horses to win; Mr Globalist simply has not been one of them.

Peter Kavanagh has ridden him six times and the pair have not yet found the winner's enclosure together — zero from six. That is not necessarily a criticism of either horse or jockey; some partnerships just never quite click, and some horses find a way to finish second seemingly by instinct. Mr Globalist has made a habit of racing at Class 5, which is the entry level of British racing, the division where most horses eventually find their level. He has run nine times at that grade and won none of them, which suggests that even at the easiest level available to him, he has not been able to force his way to the front when it matters.

Whether he ever wins a race is an open question, but at seven years old the window is not getting wider. The five places on his record are proof he tries — he is not a horse who trails in last every week. He just has an almost artistic ability to finish just outside the places that pay out, or just inside them without ever going one better. Racing has plenty of horses like this, and they tend to inspire a peculiar affection. You keep watching, half-expecting today to be the day. It never quite is.