St Just In Time

The horse's recent form tells a story of close calls and near misses. His last six races show a third place four outings ago, a pair of placings in the two runs before that, but also a disappointing tenth just two starts back. This is a horse who finds his way into the frame regularly — five places from 14 races means he finishes in the money roughly one-third of the time — yet converting those near-misses into wins has been the challenge. His performance in Class 5 races, where he has managed no wins from six attempts, suggests that even when the standard drops, he struggles to get across the line. But step him up in distance, and something clicks.

Harry Derham's Upper Lambourn yard has sent out 57 winners already this season, a sign the stable is in good form, and St Just In Time's freshness — he last raced just a day ago — means he is an active part of the team's plans. After a long campaign to find the winner's spot, he has finally found a configuration that works: the right track, the right distance, and clearly the right day. Whether he can build on this breakthrough remains to be seen, but for a horse that took three years to land his first win, a repeat victory would feel like genuine momentum.