Nightime Dancer

That single win came at Southwell in April 2025, in one of the better races on the card — a Class 2, which sits just one level below the very top tier in Britain. It's the kind of race that tells you a horse has genuine ability rather than just beating the weekend stragglers. Since then, Nightime Dancer has been absent for around eight months, which is a significant chunk of time for a young horse. The break, it turns out, was partly by design: the horse has been gelded, a surgical procedure that often helps a young, excitable horse settle and focus rather than getting distracted on the track. Hannon is direct about it — he believes it will keep Nightime Dancer's mind on the job.

What's especially striking is where Hannon sees this horse heading. He mentions an eighth-place finish in the Derby, one of the most famous horse races in the world, and frames it as a solid run rather than a disappointment. That's not false modesty — finishing in the top ten in a Derby tells you the horse is operating at the highest level, even if the results sheet shows zero wins from four races at Class 1. Hannon's eye is trained on what are known as Cup races — the long-distance prestige events that suit horses who thrive over a mile and a half or further. Over that kind of distance, Nightime Dancer has won 1 from 4, a 25% win rate, which is considerably better than his overall record.

He's been away for eight months, he's had an operation, and he's stepping back into Listed company — the level just below the very best races. For a horse that's only had six runs and already mixed it in a Derby, that's not a comeback story, it's more like a chapter two.