Palamon

That recent form is genuinely interesting. Looking at his last six outings — fifth, fourth, sixth, ninth, sixth — you might think he was going nowhere fast. Then he went and won at Bangor-on-Dee just this week, turning that modest sequence on its head. It's the kind of form reversal that reminds you why racing is worth following: horses don't always telegraph what's coming.

The conditions at Bangor almost certainly helped. Palamon has won 2 of his 10 races on normal ground — that's a 20% win rate, or 1 in every 5, which is a strong return for any horse at this level. On other surfaces those numbers drop off sharply, so when the ground is right, he's worth paying attention to. Similarly, he tends to show his best form when the trip stretches out to between a mile and three and a mile and four furlongs — he's won 1 from 4 at those distances, a 25% clip, suggesting he wants time and space to get into his rhythm.

His jockey, Sean Flanagan, has been in the saddle for 9 of his races and has ridden him to 1 win — a win rate of around 1 in 9 together. That's a partnership still building, but Flanagan clearly knows the horse well by now. Behind them both is trainer Dan Skelton, who operates out of Alcester in Warwickshire and has been in outstanding form this season — 185 winners and counting. That's not a trainer who puts horses in races without a reason.

Palamon isn't a horse who dominates at the top level — his first win came at York in September 2023, and he generally competes at Class 4, a solid mid-tier level of racing. But a horse that wins this week, at the right distance, on the right ground, with a top yard behind him, is one worth keeping an eye on as the season rolls on.