T Ellis

The partnership with jockey Mr Jack Andrews looks central to that progress. Across 139 rides together, the pair have combined for 23 wins — winning at a rate of 17%, or just under 1 in every 6 races. In a sport where trainer and jockey combinations can take years to click, that is a productive alliance by any measure, and it suggests Andrews has a strong feel for how Ellis prepares a horse.

One horse in particular stands out from the Ellis yard right now: Desertmore News, with whom Ellis has recorded 2 wins from just 3 races together. A two-from-three record in any partnership is the kind of thing that raises eyebrows — it means they have got it right far more often than they have got it wrong, and it is the sort of combination worth keeping an eye on.

Perhaps the most telling detail in Ellis's recent record is what has happened at Southwell. From just 12 runners at the track, Ellis has produced 5 winners — that is nearly 1 in every 2 horses sent there finishing first. Trainers often have tracks that suit the way they work, whether it is the surface, the layout, or simply the type of race that tends to be on offer. For Ellis, Southwell looks like exactly that kind of place — a venue where the horses arrive tuned and ready.

Still only four years in, Ellis is building something that looks genuinely sustainable. The winners are coming more frequently, the key partnerships are in place, and there is a track where the yard consistently delivers. The next step is turning all of that into winners at a higher level — but the direction of travel is hard to argue with.