Senor Campanaro

Ed Walker, who trains him out of Upper Lambourn in Berkshire, has been quietly confident about the horse's development. Walker is having a strong season with 76 winners on the board, so he is not short of options when it comes to placing horses shrewdly. His view on Senor Campanaro is telling: the horse improved considerably from his two-year-old season to his three-year-old campaign, and the Newcastle win in December was the moment it all clicked. Walker has also noted that the Rowley Mile at Newmarket — a straight, galloping track that can expose horses without a strong, relentless stride — simply didn't suit him on his return to action. That is a useful thing to know. A horse finding the wrong track can look flat and underwhelming without actually regressing at all.

The recent form string of 2-8-10-1-5-9 reads messily at first glance, but strip it back and there is something worth watching here. That second place is promising, and Walker believes stepping up in distance will help — Senor Campanaro is expected to stay further than he has been asked to go so far. A horse whose trainer is openly talking about progress, a better track, and more distance is one with a clear road map ahead. He raced just yesterday, so he is firmly in the thick of his season right now. If Walker finds him a conventional, turning track and nudges him up in trip, the December winner could start looking like the shape of things to come rather than a one-off.