Tiddesley Wood

The real concern is the gap since its last victory. Seven months have passed since Tiddesley Wood won at Kempton Park back in March, a drought that would worry any owner. Before that breakthrough, the horse had gone two races between wins, so there's an undeniable pattern of feast and famine. Yet the recent form sheet — fourth, first, fourth, third, first, third — tells a different story from the stark headline. This is a horse that refuses to run badly. It shows up, competes, and regularly gets into the shake-up. Whether it can convert that consistency into another win remains the question hanging over the stable.

Jonathan Burke, the horse's regular rider, has partnered Tiddesley Wood in seven of its eight races and won two of them — a 29 percent win rate, fractionally better than the horse's overall record and evidence that this jockey understands how to get the best from it. Trainer Adrian Keatley, based at Ryedale in North Yorkshire, runs a yard with genuine firepower — 43 winners already this season — which means Tiddesley Wood is getting the kind of professional care needed to mount another challenge. After that seven-month absence from the winners' circle, the horse raced just yesterday, which suggests the the yard believe another victory is within reach. Whether it comes sooner rather than later may depend on finding a race exactly suited to its current form.