Rhoscolyn

Ground is everything for this horse. He has won 2 of his last 5 races (40%) on very wet and muddy ground, and overall he wins roughly 1 in every 5 races (3 wins from 15) when conditions are soft and wet. On faster, drier ground, he struggles badly. Similarly, he performs best over a mile and one or two furlongs — where he has won 3 of 15 races — rather than the longer distances he sometimes tries. He is a specialist, not a jack of all trades. At Class 2 level, where most of his races happen, he has won 5 of 42 races (12%), a respectable return for a horse competing at that grade.

The bad news is that he has been off the boil lately. His last six races, dating back months, have brought no wins — a 10th place finish most recently, then a 9th, two 2nd top-3 finishes, an 8th, and a 13th. It is a slump that has cost him, and both his owner and trainer have acknowledged it. "He lost his mojo a bit," one part-owner said after that August Goodwood win, the moment Rhoscolyn seemed to switch back on. Since then, though, he has raced without success. His overall record of 6 wins from 64 races (9%) is modest, but when he finds the conditions and the course he loves, he is a different horse entirely. Right now, at eight years old and out of form, he needs those favourable stars to align again.