Tradecraft

That win came at Sandown Park on 13 February 2025, and it remains the defining moment of Tradecraft's career so far. Sandown is a track that sorts horses out — its finishing hill is notoriously punishing, and horses that win there tend to do so on genuine ability rather than luck. The victory came over a trip between one mile six furlongs and two miles, a range where Tradecraft has actually been quite sharp: 1 win from 3 races at those distances works out at 33%, or winning roughly 1 in every 3. That is a dramatically better return than anywhere else in its record and is the clearest signal of where the yard — sorry, where the team should be targeting it next.

Most of Tradecraft's races have come at Class 4 level, which sits in the middle of the British racing pyramid — competitive enough to require a proper performance, but not the top drawer. At that level, it has yet to win in four attempts, a 0% record that is a little puzzling given it has shown the ability to win somewhere. It may simply be that Class 4 draws a slightly different kind of opposition, or that Tradecraft needs things to fall right on the day.

The trainer is Nicky Henderson, one of the most decorated names in the sport, operating out of Upper Lambourn in Berkshire. His yard has sent out 85 winners already this season — a remarkable volume that reflects an operation running at full tilt. Jockey Nico de Boinville, Henderson's go-to rider, has been aboard for five of Tradecraft's nine races and has that one win to show for it — a 20% win rate together, or 1 win from every 5 rides. That is actually a decent partnership return by most measures. Tradecraft raced 29 days ago and is still active, so another run should not be far away. Whether it can build on that Sandown breakthrough is the question worth watching.