Open Secret

His breakthrough came at Redcar in early October 2024, and he followed that with a second victory at Naas before Christmas. Since then, silence: his last ten months have been fruitless, and he did not race again until just yesterday. His recent form tells the story of a horse struggling to recapture that earlier sparkle—his last six outings read 8-12-14-2-4-1, a mixed bag that includes a couple of minor placings but no winners. That return to action after such a layoff, though, may yet prove significant: horses sometimes need time away to refresh, and Open Secret is at least active again.

What is striking about him is his record in Class 4 races, the smaller, lower-level contests where he competes most often. At that level he has won 1 from 6 races—a rate of roughly 17 per cent—which is considerably sharper than his career average. That suggests he has genuine ability when matching skills with horses at his own level, even if he cannot cut it in bigger races. Gordon Elliott's yard, which has already sent out 210 winners this season alone, will be hoping that time away has done Open Secret some good, and that he can rediscover the form that took him into the winner's enclosure twice inside three months last winter.