Rajjnatin

The recent form doesn't offer much encouragement either. Across the last six races, the best it has managed is a third, bookended by a string of fourth, seventh, seventh, eighth, and eighth-place finishes. That third place is at least a sign that something resembling a performance is in there somewhere, but the pattern overall is one of a horse operating well down the field more often than not. Jockey Philip Donovan has had six chances in the saddle and is yet to get Rajjnatin into the winner's enclosure, though it's fair to say the raw material hasn't made that an easy task.

What keeps things interesting is the context around the horse. Trainer Ian Patrick Donoghue, based out of Clonalvy in County Meath, has had 26 winners on the board this season — a yard clearly capable of getting horses to perform. Rajjnatin raced just yesterday, so it remains very much an active project rather than a fading one. Whether that persistence reflects belief in the horse or simply the hope that conditions will one day fall perfectly in its favour is hard to say, but the team keeps running it, and in racing, you can only win if you turn up.