Pilgrim's Progress

Look at those last four results in order — a tenth, a fourth, then back-to-back seconds — and you can see a horse that has found its feet as the season has gone on. That kind of improvement across a short run of races is exactly what you hope to see from a young horse still learning the job. The wins will come, or they won't, but at least things are pointing in the right direction.

What works firmly in Pilgrim's Progress's favour is the yard behind it. Richard Hannon, based in Wiltshire, has sent out 118 winners already this season — a remarkable volume that puts him among the busiest and most successful trainers in the country. A yard firing at that rate tends to know when a horse is ready to run and ready to win, so when Hannon decides Pilgrim's Progress is due another outing — and with a race just yesterday, this is a horse very much in active training — it is worth paying attention.