Muhib

His recent form tells a familiar story. In his last six races he has finished third, third, fifth, fifth, third, and fourth — reading those results in reverse, you can see a horse that is almost always in the conversation but perpetually running out of road. He raced just yesterday, so there is no question of him having gone quiet; Muhib is very much an active runner.

The majority of his races have come at Class 6, which is the lowest tier of British racing — the entry level, where horses are supposed to find things easier. Muhib has run 12 times at that level without winning once. That is a telling detail. It suggests that even in the softest company available, something is preventing him from closing the deal, whether that is his attitude in the final furlong, his physique, or simply a ceiling on his ability that has not yet been broken through.

Jockey Cian Horgan has partnered him five times and is yet to ride him to a win, while trainer Olly Williams, based in Market Rasen in Lincolnshire, has managed just one winner from his yard so far this season. This is not a big powerful operation throwing resources at the problem — it is a small team working with what they have, and Muhib remains a work in progress.

What makes Muhib mildly fascinating rather than simply frustrating is that consistency of placing. Horses that finish in the frame repeatedly without winning are sometimes described as "honest" — they try, they compete, they just fall short. Whether he eventually breaks through or simply keeps collecting minor cheques is the question that brings his the yard back to the track week after week. Racing is full of horses like this, and following one is its own particular kind of suspense.