The Notebook - 25th July 2026

Not every big performance results in a headline victory. Sometimes it is the subtle runs, the late headway, the eye-catching move through the field, or the effort despite unfavourable conditions, that signal a horse ready to strike next time. Here are four runners who caught the eye this week and may be worth adding to your tracker for future races...

STARLINER

Wearing a first-time visor, Starliner ran a lovely race at Ayr on Monday, finishing a three-quarter length second behind Hale End. The change of headgear was interesting because he ran a nice race on his penultimate start wearing cheekpieces and in the past has won in a hood, so I’d be intrigued as to the choice of visor. He sat prominent throughout before taking the lead with two furlongs to go. He was unable to kick clear of the long-time leader and as they got involved in a strong battle, both were picked up late by the eventual winner. Off historical data, he has won off a mark of 72, so his current rating of 63 is attractive and he could pop up with a race in the coming weeks.

MISTER MOJITO

There are strong signs Mister Mojito will be back in the winner’s enclosure sooner rather than later after a good second at Newmarket last week. He bumped into an in-form rival called Prefer The Sister, who I wrote about in this column a few weeks ago. I said back then the winner had about two stone in hand, so to finish within two lengths of him was a strong performance from the runner-up. Similar to the horse above, off previous data, he is well treated off a mark of 69, having won in the past off 72. He is equally effective on turf and all-weather and a strongly run seven furlongs suits him well. He has been added to the tracker.

MILITARY LEADER

Military Leader has been a revelation this season for Phillip Makin but is in danger of flying up the handicap without winning as many races as he should. He won twice at the beginning of the season at Southwell and Thirsk, being raised 10lbs as a result. Since then, he has finished third at Newcastle, second at Chester and second again at Thirsk on Thursday, collectively going up five lbs for these placed efforts. While it is great he is competitive, his consistency is damaging his chances of winning races and a mark of 73 might now be on the high side. Nevertheless, he is enjoying s fruitful spell and often gives supporters a good run for their money.

KINGSTON NARCISSUS

Finally, while on the topic of horses damaging their handicap marks, Kingston Narcissus finished second in the Summer Plate at Market Rasen and has been raised four pounds as a result. I can’t quite believe he didn’t win. He looked home as they jumped the last but was run down in the dying strides by Queensbury Boy from the Mickey Bowen team. The Skelton team picked up Kingston Narcissus back in June from Rebecca Menzies for 25,000 GNS and after three runner-up efforts in good races, he has already taken care of that price tag. He isn’t the most frequent winner, (3-31), but there will no doubt be another target for this horse who is more than capable of landing a nice prize. He is in the perfect hands to continue his progress.