Tough Enough

The early signs were encouraging. Brittain noted that the horse improved with every race in his first season, capping it with a debut win at Wolverhampton in November 2022 on the all-weather surface — the kind of fast, artificial track that suits certain horses down to the ground. Importantly, Brittain said that win did Tough Enough good mentally, which matters in horse racing more than people realise. A confident horse is a better horse. He also filled out physically through that period, suggesting there was more to come. One early lesson learned the hard way: he does not handle wet or muddy ground, getting bogged down badly at Nottingham. That's useful information — it narrows where and when the team can run him effectively.

The partnership with jockey Rossa Ryan is the most striking number in this profile. Ryan has ridden Tough Enough in 8 races and won 3 of them — that's a win rate of 38%, or more than 1 in every 3 rides together. For context, his overall career win rate is 13%. Whatever the combination of communication, style, and timing, something clearly clicks between this horse and that jockey.

The shadow over the profile, though, is time. Tough Enough's last win came at Sandown Park in August 2023 — nearly three years ago now — and his recent form reads 4-6-10-2-12-6, which is patchy at best. He ran just yesterday, so he is active and clearly still in training, and Brittain's yard has sent out 23 winners this season, which shows the operation is in good health. His best results have come at Class 4 level — the mid-tier of British racing — where he has won 2 from 9 (22%). That win at Sandown still sits as the peak. Finding another one will take the right conditions, the right track, and probably Rossa Ryan in the saddle.