Seagulls Eleven

That top level is worth dwelling on. Seven of Seagulls Eleven's ten races have been Class 1, the elite tier of British racing, and he has won one of them — which sounds modest until you consider how hard it is simply to be competitive in that company. Most horses never get near a race like that. Seagulls Eleven not only gets there, he won at Goodwood on 1st August last year, one of the most prestigious venues in the sport, in front of a summer crowd on one of the great days of the British racing calendar. Palmer's reaction afterwards said everything: he was already talking about the Golden Eagle in Sydney, a race worth ten million Australian dollars. You don't mention a race like that unless you genuinely believe the horse can travel and compete.

Palmer is the trainer who sent Galileo Gold to the 2,000 Guineas — one of the five most important flat races in the world — and he has been open about planning a similar campaign for Seagulls Eleven. A racecourse gallop during the Craven meeting, then straight to Newmarket for the Guineas itself. He describes Seagulls Eleven as the highest-rated horse in the yard and says the horse has answered every question asked of him through the winter. The plan is ambitious, but it is not guesswork — it is a blueprint that has worked before for this trainer.

Seagulls Eleven has been off the track for roughly eight months now, which is a long time, but horses pointing at major spring targets are often freshened up over winter. His best distance appears to be between a mile and a furlong and a mile and two furlongs — he has won 1 from 3 races at that range, a hit rate of 1 in 3. When the horse returns, probably in early spring, it will be worth paying attention. Palmer's yard has already sent out 66 winners this season and his best horse is yet to reappear.