Wise Counsellor

The recent form makes for sobering reading. Over the last six races, the closest Wise Counsellor has come to a win is fourth place, and results of 6th, 8th, and 14th suggest a horse that is finding its level rather than threatening to break through it. Racing just yesterday, this is clearly an active, busy campaign — but the numbers tell an honest story. Zero wins from 13 races, and zero wins from three outings at Class 5 level, which represents the more accessible end of the racing ladder. If a horse is going to find its opening win, Class 5 is usually where it happens, which makes the blank record there the most telling detail of all.

D Steele's yard in Henfield, West Sussex, has sent out four winners this season, so the operation clearly knows how to get a horse to the line first. The question is whether Wise Counsellor can find a race and a set of conditions that suit well enough to finally get its head in front. Placed horses are useful — they earn the yard a return and show the horse is trying — but racing without a win after 13 attempts means this one has work to do before it can be considered anything more than a nearly horse. Whether that changes soon remains to be seen, but with the horse still racing actively, the story is at least still being written.