'You need a bit of early pace to get to the lead, then keep it simple'

He's so good at it that it's become a recognised entity with its own battle cry. 'Fanning from the front' is a shout that goes up with regularity, normally when Dublin-born Joe is skipping five lengths clear at the furlong pole, having dictated the pace on a willing partner who shows no signs of capitulating in the face of late pressure.

Sometimes it can look as though the 46-year-old Irishman has stolen the race by bamboozling his fellow riders into giving him an easy lead; other times as if he has simply judged the fractions to a nicety and eked every last grain of effort out of a horse who still has a few ounces to offer in the closing yards.

FACTFILE

Name Joe Fanning