The Gurkha proves a real trooper as he rises to Sussex battle

There is no owning elite better at naming their horses than Coolmore and most of the credit has to go to Susan Magnier for a host of memorable names.

But it is a bold shot to call a horse The Gurkha as you would look middling to silly if it turned out to be some dodgy yoke which took an hour to saddle, swished its tail like a propeller, was forever looking at the skylarks and had a nasty habit of beelining it back to the racecourse stables at the drop of a hat.

But The Gurkha has many attributes in common with those diminutive warriors from Nepal (and Aldershot!) - most notably a tough constitution and relish for a scrap.