Pomeriggio

The recent form makes for uncomfortable reading: seventh, ninth, twelfth, seventh, third, second, reading back from the most recent run. That twelfth tells you something about the tough days, but so does the second — there is clearly a horse in there capable of mixing it at the front, just not quite getting over the line. The distance that seems to suit best is seven furlongs to a mile, where Pomeriggio has won 1 from 7 races (roughly 1 in every 7), which is actually where its best racing has come. That is a meaningful contrast to its overall record and suggests the team know where to look if the right opportunity comes around.

Pomeriggio is trained by Nikki Evans, based in Pandy in Monmouthshire, a yard that has sent out two winners this season. Shane Foley has ridden the horse six times without a win between them, which is a difficult combination to keep faith in, though the placing record shows the horse is rarely disgracing itself. A career total at this level does not suggest a horse troubling the big prizes, but it does suggest one that competes honestly week after week. Sometimes that is its own kind of story.