Pourquoi Pas Papa

What makes this horse interesting is not the bare statistics but the shape of his recent form. After winning at Wincanton nine months ago, he has finished second or fourth in every race since, which tells a different story than a simple 1-from-8 record might suggest. His last run, just yesterday, ended in a fourth-place finish, but his recent form shows real consistency: he has landed top-3 finishes in 5 of his last 6 races. Nicholls, who runs a powerhouse yard at Ditcheat in Somerset — the outfit has already sent out 91 winners this season — has noted that his runner performs significantly better over middle distances, winning 1 of 3 races between 1 mile 6 furlongs and 2 miles. The trainer is particularly struck by how well Pourquoi Pas Papa runs on soft ground, and after a second-place finish in a competitive race at Haydock in mid-February, Nicholls suggested he could be nicely handicapped going forward.

Most of Pourquoi Pas Papa's races have come under Harry Cobden, one of the country's top jumps jockeys, though Cobden's record aboard him stands at 1 win from 5 rides — a 20% success rate that is considerably better than the horse's overall record. That relationship may prove significant as the season progresses. For now, Pourquoi Pas Papa remains an active runner chasing his second career win, a horse that seems to improve with every outing and may yet spark into life under the right conditions.