Titian

What makes him genuinely interesting is where he gets that job done. On wet ground—the kind that turns tracks into sticky, demanding obstacles—Titian wins about one race in every four. It is a marked difference from his overall record, and it gives his trainer, Julie Camacho at Norton in North Yorkshire, a clear map of when to aim him. He also shows his best form over the longer middle distances, between a mile and three furlongs and a mile and four furlongs, where he has won three of his 16 races (19%). Most telling of all is York: he is a two-time winner there from just six races. That second victory came last June in an amateur riders' event, a race that meant the world to one of his owners, who lives in York and had dreamed his whole life of owning a winner at the course. It was the kind of small, perfect moment that racing occasionally gives you.

The puzzle is that Titian has not won in his last six races, with his most recent outing just yesterday. He was placed in four of those six, showing he is still competitive, but the wins have dried up since that June victory at York. At his best, ridden by Ryan Sexton or other pilots who know how to place him, he can compete in modest Class 4 races. Camacho sounds like a trainer who understands her horse's quirks and limitations, and who accepts that value lies in finding the right conditions and the right race shape. For a horse like Titian, that might mean waiting for the rain and the right track. He may not be destined for glory, but he has earned the patience.