Shoot To Kill

Kelly, based at Draperstown in County Derry, has been candid about what makes this horse both exciting and exasperating. At home, Shoot To Kill works like a serious racehorse. On the track, that ability does not always follow him out of the gates. He has a habit, as Kelly puts it, of throwing away his good luck — and when he does get a clean run, the results speak for themselves. Jockey Darragh Keenan, who has ridden him to 4 wins from 11 races together — winning roughly 1 in every 3 times they pair up, which is a remarkable partnership rate — noted after one win that the horse actually tends to idle when he hits the front, suggesting there is more in the tank than he always bothers to use.

His best results tend to come over six furlongs on fast, dry ground, and Kelly has said that is exactly where he plans to aim him through the summer. At Class 4 level, the tier he most regularly competes at, he has won 3 from 11 races, a win rate of 27 percent — roughly 1 in every 4 — which suggests he is competitive at that grade when everything goes right. His last win came at Gowran Park in August 2025, and his recent form of 2nd, 3rd, 13th, unplaced, 7th, and 4th shows a horse who keeps finishing close to the action without quite getting back to the winner's enclosure.

At nine, Shoot To Kill is not getting younger, but he raced just yesterday and is clearly still ready to do the job. The team around him seems to know exactly what brings out his best, and on a quick summer track over a sharp six furlongs, he remains the kind of horse you would be foolish to write off.