Paragon

The recent form makes for interesting reading. A third-place finish three races ago showed genuine promise, but since then Paragon has drifted back through the field — ninth, then sixth, then a couple of fourths — suggesting it can produce a decent effort and then go quiet again. That kind of inconsistency is one of the more frustrating puzzles in racing: the horse clearly has something, otherwise it wouldn't be placing at all, but it hasn't yet found a way to string everything together when it counts.

Most of Paragon's racing has come at Class 6, which is the entry-level tier of British flat racing — the bread-and-butter contests where less exposed horses find their feet. Eight races at that level and still no win is a tough record to defend, though five places from 14 races overall tells you this isn't a horse that simply trails in at the back. It's just stuck in that frustrating middle ground between nearly and actually.

Pam Sly is a respected small-yard trainer who has sent out seven winners already this season, so the knowhow is clearly there. Paragon remains active — it raced just today — which suggests the team still believe there's a win in the horse somewhere. Whether that moment comes soon is the question every racing stable with a horse like this keeps asking itself.