Newmill Getaway

That solitary win came at Worcester back in September 2023, now more than 33 months ago, and it remains the only time Newmill Getaway has made it to the front. What keeps the horse relevant, though, is the sheer volume of placed finishes — 10 of them in total, meaning it has finished in the top three in more than half its career races. Look at its last six outings and the pattern becomes almost hypnotic: second, second, fifth, third, second, third. Close, close, close, and then close again. It is the kind of form that keeps a horse in work and keeps a trainer quietly hopeful, even if the winning photo feels like it belongs to another era.

Jockey Connor Brace is the regular partner, having ridden Newmill Getaway in 11 of its 16 races. Together they have that one win to show for it — roughly 1 in every 11 rides — which is a modest return, though the placing record suggests the pair are rarely out of the picture. Trainer Fergal O'Brien, whose yard at Withington in Gloucestershire has been in exceptional form this season with 90 winners sent out, clearly has faith in the horse. A trainer firing at that rate knows which horses to keep running and which to quietly retire, so Newmill Getaway earning its place on the roster says something.

Racing mainly at Class 5 — the bread-and-butter level of the sport — the horse has won just 1 of its 10 races at that grade. Given that Class 5 is already the accessible end of the ladder, that record tells you this is not a horse building toward anything bigger. But it raced just yesterday, which means it is fit, active, and apparently still enjoying itself. Sometimes a horse's value is simply in the consistency, in giving the team something to work with week after week. Newmill Getaway may never win again, but it will almost certainly finish second.