Andrew McNamara

The most telling number in McNamara's recent record is what happens when the ground is normal underfoot. In those conditions, his horses have won 5 from 40 races — that's 12%, or roughly 1 in every 8. For context, that is more than double his overall rate, which tells you his yard performs at a meaningfully higher level when the track suits them. Trainers who know their horses' preferences and place them accordingly tend to improve faster than those who don't, and that selectivity is a skill in itself.

His most productive working relationship is with jockey Darragh O'Keeffe, who has partnered McNamara's horses to 3 wins from 26 rides together — a win rate of around 1 in 9. That kind of consistent partnership is worth paying attention to: when a trainer and jockey build a rhythm together, they tend to get more out of each other's horses over time. It is a combination worth watching whenever O'Keeffe's name appears in McNamara's silks.

The one partnership that hasn't clicked yet is with Galaxy Wonder, who has managed just 1 win from 13 races together. Thirteen races is a reasonable sample, and one win from that many outings suggests the horse and yard are still searching for the right opportunity to unlock something better. That said, one win from 13 is not a disaster — it simply means the big day hasn't arrived yet.

McNamara is not putting up the kind of numbers that make headlines, but he is improving, he has a clear profile on ground conditions, and he has a reliable jockey alongside him. At four years in, that is a reasonable foundation.