The recent form makes for difficult reading. Going back through the last six runs, the best result is a second place — the rest are finishes in the middle to back of the field, including an eighth. There is no obvious upward curve here, no sign that something is clicking into place. The horse raced just yesterday, which means the yard are clearly still trying, still looking for that elusive first win.
What makes the situation a little surprising is the trainer. Fergal O'Brien, based in Withington in Gloucestershire, is having a genuinely strong season — 90 winners already this term is a serious number and marks him out as one of the more productive yards in the country right now. When a trainer is firing in winners at that rate, it tends to mean the horses in the yard are well-prepared and ready to run. Never Told Me, despite that backing, has still not broken through.
At Class 4 — a fairly modest level of racing, sitting in the lower half of the sport's ladder — the horse is 0 from 3. That is the tier where you might expect a horse of this experience to pick up a win eventually. It hasn't happened yet. At seven years old, with this much racing behind it and no wins on the board, the window for a breakthrough is getting narrower. But the yard keeps running it, and yesterday's race shows the door hasn't been closed. Sometimes one good day is all it takes.
| Course | Races | Results | Last visited | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newton Abbot Sharp |
1 | 1 second | 30 Aug | 0% |
| Fakenham Tight |
1 | 1 other | 31 May | 0% |
| Stratford-on-Avon Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 29 Jun | 0% |
| Wincanton Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 30 Jan | 0% |
| Cheltenham Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 17 Apr | 0% |
| Uttoxeter Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 16 Jul | 0% |
| Worcester Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 20 Aug | 0% |