Musical Times

What makes that record particularly interesting is the context behind it. Musical Times is trained by Charlie Appleby at Newmarket, one of the most productive yards in the country right now — 121 winners already this season, which is a remarkable volume by any standard. When a yard is firing on that kind of cylinder, you pay close attention to the horses they choose to run, and a two-year-old sent out twice in a fortnight and beaten on neither occasion is clearly one they believe in.

At two years old, horses are still learning the job. They have never raced before their debut season, and plenty of them take several outings just to work out what is being asked of them. The fact that Musical Times has handled two different racecourses, won on both, and done it all within a two-week window suggests a horse that is mentally sharp and physically ahead of schedule. Whether that translates into something bigger as the season develops remains to be seen, but right now, the record speaks for itself: two races, two wins, no question marks.