Sullivan Bay

The best conditions for Sullivan Bay are normal ground and distances between a mile and six furlongs and two miles. On a dry, fast surface or in heavy mud, the results dry up. Keep it on standard ground at a staying trip and you are looking at a horse that wins 1 in every 9 races in those conditions — not flashy, but consistent enough to matter.

Jim and Suzi Best train Sullivan Bay out of Lewes in East Sussex, and the yard has sent out 14 winners already this season, so this is not a small operation going through the motions. Sullivan Bay operates at Class 6, the lower end of the racing pyramid, which means the competition is beatable — and indeed, both wins have come at that level, landing 2 from 14 races in Class 6, or roughly 1 in 7.

The awkward truth is that Sullivan Bay has not won since Chelmsford on 26 October 2024, now 18 months ago. In that time, Brendan Powell has been the regular jockey for five of those winless runs, and the partnership has not clicked — 0 from 5 together. The recent form of 7-2-4-10-5 shows a second place in there, which at least tells you the horse is still competitive on its day rather than simply going through the motions. With a race just yesterday, Sullivan Bay is clearly being kept busy and given every chance.

The profile of this horse is simple enough: take it back to Chelmsford, on normal ground, over a staying trip, and it becomes a very different proposition from its overall record suggests. Anywhere else, it's a tough sell.