James William Hannon

What is worth watching, though, is what happens when the rain arrives. On wet or muddy ground, Hannon has won 1 from just 4 races — that's a 25% win rate, or 1 in every 4 — a figure that suggests he either knows how to place a horse in the right conditions or has stumbled onto something useful early in his career. For context, most established trainers would be quietly pleased with that kind of return on soft ground. In a trainer this new, it's a thread worth pulling.

It is still very early days, and a single winner doesn't tell you much on its own. But every yard has to start somewhere, and the wet-ground angle is a genuine reason to pay attention when Hannon saddles a runner next time the forecast looks grey.