Super Soldier

What makes Super Soldier interesting is not what he has done but what his the yard believe he might do. Trainer K. R. Burke, who runs a powerhouse Yorkshire yard that has sent out 145 winners this season, sees something in this horse that ground conditions have masked. Burke reckons Super Soldier needs slower, softer ground to show his true ability—he has raced almost exclusively on quick, fast surfaces, which may have been working against him. The trainer was encouraged enough by a strong second-place finish in a Listed race in France to consider running him in the Windsor Castle, one of the valuable sprint races at Royal Ascot, though that would require the ground to have enough juice in it. Jockey Clifford Lee, who has ridden the horse five times, has won aboard him once, a better win rate than the horse's overall record suggests Lee and the horse have a promising partnership.

The post-race commentary from Chantilly, where Super Soldier finished second, hints at a horse whose bad luck in running may be as much to blame as anything else. He got hemmed in early when the pace was not what he needed, stopped twice in his stride, and then found himself squeezed again when a gap finally appeared. His work at home had improved since his previous run at Ascot, according to Burke, and he stayed on well despite racing on ground faster than ideal. None of this explains away his lack of wins lately, but it does suggest that if the stars align—softer ground, a clearer path through the field, jockey and horse clicking—there could be another victory coming. For now, Super Soldier remains a work in progress, active and competing but not yet the horse his trainer believes he can become.