Rival

Those recent runs tell a familiar story: a fourth, a second, a fourth, an eighth, a sixth, and a fifth in his most recent outing. There is enough there to suggest Rival is not disgracing himself — a second place and a string of top-six finishes show he is competitive — but the gap between placing and winning has become a long one. At the level where he most often races, he has won just 1 from 10, a 10% win rate that sounds modest but is actually his best hunting ground. Even there, the opportunities have not converted.

Rival is trained by John and Rhys Flint out of Kenfig Hill in Bridgend, a yard that has sent out 8 winners already this season — so it is not as though the stable lacks ability. Ffos Las, where Rival got his one moment of glory, is practically a local track for this Welsh operation, and that familiarity may well have been a factor when he got his head in front back in 2022. He raced just yesterday, which means he is very much an active participant rather than a horse winding down, and that in itself says something about his durability across 31 races at age 8.

What makes Rival interesting is not the win column — it is the persistence. He is the kind of horse that finishes third or fourth or fifth, week after week, year after year, without ever quite getting his nose out in front. For anyone following a local Welsh yard, he is a familiar face, a reliable performer at his level, and perhaps, on the right day back at Ffos Las, still capable of a surprise.