Talismans Time

Both of those wins have come at Hamilton Park, which is worth paying attention to. Some horses simply click with a particular track — the shape of the bends, the undulations, the way the ground rides — and Hamilton seems to suit this horse down to the ground. The first win came on 16 May 2025, and Bethell described it as looking really progressive from the off. The second followed on 12 July 2025. Winning two from three at a single track at a 67% clip is the kind of record that makes a trainer think carefully about when to go back there.

The broader context matters here too. Bethell's operation has sent out 59 winners this season, so this is not a yard guessing. The trainer has spoken about a bigger ambition for Talismans Time: the Melrose Handicap at York, one of the most prestigious staying races for horses of this age in the British calendar. Getting there depends on earning a competitive enough mark and staying healthy, but the fact that the yard is pointing a horse with six races to its name at a race like that tells you something. They believe there is considerably more to come.

Recent form shows a win, then a second, then a blank last time out — the kind of profile where the overall trend is still firmly upward even if the most recent run raised a small question mark. At 4 years old, with a yard behind it that is clearly firing, and a specific big target in mind, Talismans Time is exactly the sort of horse that rewards following. The Melrose may or may not come off, but even the ambition is a story in itself.