Opal Storm

The six-year-old is trained by Brian Rothwell at his yard in Oswaldkirk, North Yorkshire, and is most often ridden by Aiden Brookes, who has been in the saddle for all three of the horse's career wins across 29 races together — winning roughly 1 in every 10 rides. The yard has had just one winner so far this season, which puts into context how much Opal Storm has been carrying the flag.

The overall career record — 3 wins and 8 places from 34 races, a win rate of around 1 in every 11 outings — might not look glamorous at first glance. But dig into the conditions and a clearer picture emerges. On fast, dry ground, Opal Storm transforms: 3 wins from 11 races on that surface, meaning it wins roughly 1 in every 3 times when conditions suit. That is a completely different horse to the one that struggles on wet or muddy ground. Ground conditions are not a minor detail here — they are close to the whole story.

The last win came at Carlisle on 19 May 2025, so it has been about 11 months without a victory, and the last six runs have produced nothing better than a fourth place. The recent form figures — 9, 7, 13, 5, 8, 4 — show a horse that has been competitive without threatening the line. At the level Opal Storm typically races — Class 5, the bread-and-butter tier of British racing — it has won 3 of its 19 races at that grade, or roughly 1 in 6, which is a respectable return.

This is not a horse chasing glory at the biggest meetings. It is a specialist — specific track, specific ground — and when those two things align at Carlisle on a dry summer afternoon, the yard have every reason to be optimistic.