THIS week’s column should perhaps be entitled when tactics go wrong. Aidan O’Brien admitted when interviewed on Racing TV that the team may have overthought things when it came to the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot last Saturday, and he was able to muster a wry smile when questioned about what happened in the Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes at Goodwood. Both races are better captioned with the phrase ‘pace makes the race’ as they can both be amply explained through sectional analysis.

The Goodwood Cup also comes under the microscope this week, a race in which Scandinavia announced himself as being the new kid on the block in the staying division.