Not Simple

And yet there is one number worth holding onto. Over distances of seven furlongs to a mile, Not Simple has won 1 of its 5 races — a 20% win rate, which is genuinely decent at this level. That suggests the horse is not without ability, just that it needs the right conditions to show it. Pitch it outside that range and it tends to disappear into the pack. Keep it in that sweet spot and there is at least a conversation to be had.

The partnership with jockey Luke McAteer is the one that matters most here. They have raced together seven times, producing that one Cork win — roughly 1 win in every 7 rides together, a 14% win rate. That is not spectacular, but it is the most productive relationship Not Simple has had in the saddle, and the Cork win came with McAteer aboard. The trainer, James M Barrett, operates out of Goresbridge in County Kilkenny and has sent out two winners this season — a small yard where each runner counts, and where a horse like this represents a genuine project rather than a piece of routine machinery.

Not Simple raced just yesterday, which means it is very much in active campaigning. Whether that recent run was a stepping stone or another frustrating afternoon is the question hanging over its next entry. For now, this is a horse that has shown it can win — once, at Cork, over the right distance — and whose team will be hoping that the right day comes around again sooner rather than later.