'Racing needs a little bit of skulduggery' - how the sport lost out when old-fashioned coups became harder to pull off

Even through the prism of ITV Racing’s cameras, it was clear how much pleasure Get It’s Stewards’ Cup victory at Goodwood this month brought to his many owners. As my colleague Jonathan Harding wrote last week, the Goodwood winner’s enclosure erupted in a spontaneous outpouring of joy from members of the Myracehorse and Partners group.

It was the very essence of racehorse ownership. Not too many people are happy to stump up a monthly fee and deal with the multitude of disappointments while retaining hope it will all be worth it one day. And if that day never dawns for the horse in question, they are frequently prepared to invest their dream in a new one.

So there is no feeling like it when it all comes together, as it did for Get It at Goodwood. The joyous bedlam made a stark contrast to many of the meeting’s big-race winners, which were greeted by besuited connections looking as if they were digesting a financial statement on the implications for their equine asset.