The one area where Howard's horses seem to find their best form is on normal ground conditions — not too wet, not too firm. On that surface he's won 1 from 6 races, which works out at around 17%, or roughly 1 in every 6. That's a meaningful number, and it suggests his horses are built for conventional conditions rather than extreme ones. If you're watching one of his runners, it's worth knowing what the ground is doing on the day.
The most curious subplot in Howard's recent record is his partnership with Edge Of Darkness. Eight races together and not a single win — that's a combination that clearly hasn't cracked the code yet. Whether that changes depends on finding the right race and the right conditions, but so far the two have simply not clicked on the track.
Four years in, Howard is still a trainer building his reputation, and one difficult season doesn't define a career. The jump from 12% to 3% is stark, but small yards can be heavily influenced by the form of just a handful of horses, and one or two good results can shift the picture quickly. The foundations — particularly that record on normal ground — suggest there is something to work with. The next few months will say a lot about which direction this yard is heading.
| Course | Races | Wins | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Galway | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Limerick | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Cork | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Tramore | 3 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Punchestown | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Dundalk | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| The Curragh | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Roscommon | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Ballinrobe | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Killarney | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Sligo | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Thurles | 1 | 0 | 0% |