'He's the most enthusiastic seven-year-old I've ever known'

Limato won the Group 1 Darley July Cup in 2016 as a four-year-old. At five he returned to finish second, beaten by the superb sprinter Harry Angel. At six, he could finish only 11th, but now, as a seven-year-old, his trainer Henry Candy believes he can once again finish among the first three.

The morning before the 2019 renewal, Racing Post visited Candy's Wantage stables to see the horse he describes as "a freak," who "loves his work, loves what he's doing and loves taking people on all the time." The remarkably consistent gelding has won at least one Pattern race for six consecutive seasons, with his most recent coming in a Group 3 at Newmarket on 29 June.