Persica

The career arc is genuinely impressive. Persica broke through at Salisbury in August 2023, then spent 2024 collecting wins at Sandown and twice at Epsom — one of racing's most demanding courses, with its tight turns and punishing downhill section — before adding a Class 1 at Ayr in the autumn. Then came a difficult winter. Trainer Richard Hannon has been candid about it: the team set Persica against competition that was arguably too tough on a couple of occasions, and a poor run in Bahrain prompted a surgical intervention. Hannon had Persica gelded, and the results have been striking. A strong return at Newmarket in April 2025 — Hannon called it the best race the horse had run in ten months — was followed by a second Class 1 win at Epsom in June 2025. The bounce-back has been real.

Epsom is where Persica looks most at home. Two wins from three visits, including that June 2025 Class 1, is a remarkable record on a track that humbles plenty of good horses. Jockey Ryan Moore noted after the win that Persica seemed to find the notorious downhill section a touch tricky — which made Hannon smile, given the horse had already won there. On normal or slightly soft ground, Persica is even more potent: 3 wins from 6 races on a normal surface and 2 from 3 when the ground softens a little. Ground, it seems, matters enormously here, and the team's plan is simply to follow it wherever it leads.

The partnership with jockey Sean Levey — 4 wins from 12 races together, winning 1 in every 3 they've shared — has been central to the story, though Moore has also been aboard for the big days. Hannon trains out of Herridge in Wiltshire and his yard has sent out 118 winners already this season, so Persica is operating within one of British racing's most productive setups. The owners have already turned down significant money for the horse, which tells you something about the belief in what comes next. With the Lockinge at Newbury potentially on the horizon — and a Group 2 at Sandown also under consideration — the big races aren't getting smaller for Persica. They're getting bigger.