After 17 years of analysing racing for a living, there is still one lesson I refuse to learn. This is that the biggest truths are best left alone. I would not advise that you accept the premise either.
This column is wont to draw parallels between the philosophies of punting and trading stocks. Here is another. The market adage of ‘don’t fight the tape’ – basically ‘don’t swim against the tide’ in the local dialect – does not mean that all portfolio managers just buy index funds.
One of my white whales when this column started was to look into the seasonality of horses, particularly when it comes to the Flat in the autumn. The theory lay behind me having Venture Capital top of the list in a particularly hot running of Saturday’s Portland Handicap.
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on 16 September 2025inKeith Melrose
Last updated 16:26, 16 September 2025