Royal Deeside

What makes Royal Deeside genuinely interesting, though, is what happens when it travels to Hexham. That tight, undulating track in Northumberland clearly suits this horse like a glove — 2 wins from just 7 races there, which is a win rate of roughly 1 in 3.5. That is a completely different animal to its overall record, and it tells you something real: some horses have a course, a place where everything clicks, and Hexham is unquestionably Royal Deeside's. The most recent win came there as recently as August 2025.

Patrick Morris, whose yard has sent out an impressive 22 winners already this season, has spoken about this horse with a mix of affection and measured optimism. He noted that Royal Deeside was placed in almost every race over hurdles last season and felt the horse had strengthened over the summer. He was honest about a disappointing run at Plumpton but pointed to a much better effort at Warwick as evidence that the horse had come back to itself. Morris sees two miles on normal ground as the sweet spot — and the numbers back that up. On standard conditions over long distances, Royal Deeside has those 2 wins from 15 races, a 13% win rate, or roughly 1 in every 8 attempts.

The current six-race sequence without a win, combined with recent form figures of 2-2-3-2-3-3, paints the picture perfectly. Tom Cannon, who has partnered the horse six times without a win, will be hoping that changes soon. Royal Deeside raced just yesterday, so it is very much in active training and clearly being kept busy. For a horse competing at Class 5 level, the question is not whether it can win — it clearly can — but whether it can find the right day, the right ground, and ideally the right track. If Hexham comes up on the schedule again, it is worth paying attention.