The key to understanding Vaguely Royal is distance. Over a mile and six furlongs to two miles — the longer, more stamina-testing trips — this horse has won 4 of 12 races, or 1 in every 3. That is a dramatically better record than anything it produces over shorter distances, and it tells you something important: this is a horse that wants time and ground to get into a rhythm. Ask it to quicken up quickly over a shorter trip and it tends to find less; give it room to build and it can be a handful.
Ian Williams trains the horse from his yard in Portway, Worcestershire, and it has been a productive season for the operation — 96 winners sent out this term, which is the kind of output that marks a yard firing on all cylinders. Kieran Shoemark has been the regular partner, riding Vaguely Royal in 8 of its races and winning 2 of them, a win rate of 25% together — meaningfully better than the horse's overall average, suggesting the combination works.
Recent form reads 1-6-3-3-3-9, which is the picture of a horse that consistently gets into the places without always delivering the win — and then, occasionally, does exactly that. Three third-place finishes in a row before the Chester win this week suggests Vaguely Royal was building towards something. Whether it can back that up and push into better company consistently remains the question, but for now it arrives as a horse in form, racing just yesterday, and clearly enjoying life at the longer distances.
| Course | Races | Results | Last visited | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newcastle Galloping |
4 | 1 win, 3 other | 19 Feb | 25% |
| Wincanton Galloping |
3 | 1 win, 2 other | 17 Dec | 33.3% |
| Wolverhampton Galloping |
3 | 1 win, 2 other | 6 Feb | 33.3% |
| Southwell Galloping |
3 | 2 thirds, 1 other | 23 Apr | 0% |
| Newmarket Galloping |
3 | 2 seconds, 1 other | 11 Oct | 0% |
| Chester Tight |
2 | 1 win, 1 other | 11 Jul | 50% |
| Doncaster Galloping |
2 | 1 win, 1 other | 14 Sep | 50% |
| Chepstow Galloping |
1 | 1 second | 2 Jun | 0% |
| Ripon Sharp |
1 | 1 third | 17 May | 0% |
| Taunton Undulating |
1 | 1 third | 9 Apr | 0% |
| Great Yarmouth Galloping |
1 | 1 third | 15 Sep | 0% |
| Uttoxeter Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 27 Nov | 0% |
| Lingfield Park Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 3 Apr | 0% |
| Goodwood Undulating |
1 | 1 other | 25 May | 0% |
| Newbury Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 1 Jun | 0% |
| Pontefract Undulating |
1 | 1 third | 22 May | 0% |
| Warwick Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 31 Dec | 0% |
| Ascot Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 21 Jun | 0% |
| Newton Abbot Sharp |
1 | 1 other | 29 Oct | 0% |
| York Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 26 Aug | 0% |
| Exeter Undulating |
1 | 1 second | 18 Nov | 0% |