Veblen Good

His only recent victory came at Pontefract in late April over 6 furlongs, and that race matters more than the bare facts suggest. His trainer David O'Meara, who has already sent out 101 winners this season from his Upper Helmsley yard, sees room for improvement in Veblen Good's distance range. O'Meara acquired him as a yearling and took a chance buying him again at the horses in training sales last October; his debut run for the yard — that first career win at Wolverhampton in mid-October — vindicated that eye for potential. The trainer believes Veblen Good has the ability to race over seven furlongs, a step up from his winning distance, and has even pencilled him in for the Wokingham, one of the most competitive races of the season. Whether he makes the cut depends on picking up another win first, but the plan alone suggests O'Meara sees something worth backing.

Right now, Veblen Good sits in that frustrating middle ground where the talent is plainly there — you do not place in three of your last six races by accident — but the wins have dried up. At four years old and with a yard capable of placing him shrewdly, he remains a horse with unfinished business.