Bruce Millington: my tribute to one of the unsung stalwarts of British racing

Before the lights finally go out on the 2021 Flat season a small mention is due to one of the unsung stalwarts of British racing, one of those horses so tough that if they were all like him the issue of small field sizes would not exist.

Hochfeld, named after a suburb of the German city of Duisburg, or possibly a district of Canada or even Namibia, started his 2021 campaign at Musselburgh on April 3, when he finished a decent third to stablemate Themaxwecan. It ended five and a half months later in a 2m2f contest at Newmarket.

That was Hochfeld's 16th outing of the season, none of which was over shorter than 1m5f, a remarkable show of resilience that, over the course of 241.5 furlongs, earned a win, three seconds, two thirds and the admiration of those of us who love an old favourite who turns up again and again and gives his all every time.