Protectrix

John Butler's Newmarket yard has her in good company—he has sent out 39 winners already this season, so Protectrix is part of a well-run operation. Her recent form is mixed. She bounced back with a second-place finish just two weeks ago, but sandwiched between that and her Kempton win was a third-place effort, and before that came a pair of much tougher runs where she finished sixth and seventh. These are the kind of rollercoaster results typical of a young horse learning the game, and there is not yet a clear pattern to pin down. What does stand out is that when the distance suits her, she tends to perform better—keep her over ground where she can settle into a rhythm, and she seems more likely to fire. With a recent race under her belt and a win to build on, Protectrix looks like a horse worth keeping an eye on as she continues to develop.