David Thompson

The numbers around his best partnerships are modest but honest. His most productive relationship with a jockey is with Rhys Elliott, who has ridden 2 winners from 24 races together — roughly 1 in every 12. That is not a flashy figure, but it speaks to a working partnership that keeps getting opportunities. His standout horse Berry Edge has delivered 2 wins from 21 races as a combination, which tells you this is a yard that sticks with its horses through lean spells rather than constantly switching things up. There is something to be said for that loyalty, even if the results have been patchy.

Where Thompson does show a genuine edge is on wet, soft ground. His runners have won 2 from 16 races in those conditions — 12%, or roughly 1 in every 8 — which is almost double his overall win rate. That is a meaningful pattern, not a fluke, and it suggests he either selects his targets well when the ground is testing or genuinely prepares his horses to handle it. Keeping an eye on Thompson's runners when rain is in the forecast looks like a smart habit to develop. The overall picture is of a trainer still finding his ceiling, but one with enough tools — four years of learning, 61 winners banked, and a clear strength in the wet — to suggest the current dip is a chapter rather than a conclusion.