Ndaawi

The horse shows clear preferences that point to how he should be campaigned. He thrives on normal ground, winning half his races (4 from 8) when conditions are neither wet nor rock-hard—the sweet spot for many horses. At distances between a mile and a furlong and a mile and two furlongs, he has won half his races too (2 from 4), suggesting he is at his best when asked for a little more than a straight mile. But there is a hard ceiling: at the very top tier of racing, in Class 1 events, he has managed nothing in five attempts. This tells you where Ndaawi belongs—he is a horse for solid, competitive races, not the championship level.

Gordon Elliott trains him from Longwood in County Meath, and the stable has been prolific this season with 210 winners. Jack Kennedy, his most frequent jockey, has ridden him nine times and won twice (22% win rate together). His last victory came at Listowel three months ago, in May, and while his recent form has been patchy—two wins from his last six races—he remains a horse capable of finding the frame regularly. Ndaawi is the kind of runner who will always have something left to prove at a slightly lower rung, a reliable campaigner rather than a star, but one whose the yard clearly believe there may yet be more to come if the right opportunity presents itself.