Yeah Man

What makes that Haydock win particularly striking is how well the horse performs when it steps into the biggest races. At Class 1 level, Yeah Man has won 1 from 4 — that is one win in every four attempts at the sport's elite tier, a 25% rate that comfortably outstrips its overall record. In other words, the horse seems to raise its game when the occasion demands it, which is exactly the quality that makes a racehorse genuinely exciting to follow.

The less encouraging news is that the Haydock win now sits 26 months in the past, and the recent record of nine races without a win includes some mid-field finishes that suggest the horse is working to find that form again. The most recent run came just 17 days ago, so Yeah Man is still very much an active campaigner. Two placed efforts in its last six runs show it has not fallen off a cliff — it is still competing — but a return to the winner's enclosure has so far proved elusive.

Trainer Gavin Cromwell operates a busy and successful yard out of Navan in County Meath, sending out 94 winners already this season — that is a yard very much in form, which bodes well. Jockey Keith Donoghue, who has ridden Yeah Man in 12 of its 24 races, has one win to show from those partnersips, the Haydock success. Whether that combination can click again is the question worth watching. At nine, time is not unlimited, but a horse that has won a Class 1 race is always capable of doing it again.