British Performance of the Week - 26 January 2026

Track records at Central Park and Sheffield 

The Cesarewitch final produced an exceptional win from Mongys Wild on Saturday evening at Central Park. The crack stayer got an awful run round in the semis but had a dream passage when it mattered the most. It was his 22nd win for Mark Wallis, making his debut for the team on January 26, 2025, adding this track record to ones he holds at Towcester, Monmore and Nottingham.

Swift Hostile was the second track record breaker of the week, dipping inside the sprint clock at Sheffield. Half a length was shaved off the previous best which had been set by Coolavanny Galiv back in 2022. A. top grade winner over four bends, that trip has always looked far enough for him and the drop back to sprinting has proven to be an excellent decision. 

Romford on Friday night saw the conclusion of the first Category One of the year, the Coral Essex Vase. Nobody would begrudge Tiffield Tarquin his day in the sun, winning a final at this level for the first time. He is one of the most consistent types in training over four and six bends, showing track smarts as well as brute pace to land himself the win.

A dog who is only going to get better as he gets more trackcraft himself is Droopys Graph. He has the potential to be an exceptional recruit to these shores for Patrick Janssens, taking a smart scalp in Slick Sentinel on Sunday afternoon at Towcester. Given his age and runs on the card, there should be more to come from him later on in the year, shaping like a genuine Derby candidate.

500m around Towcester might stretch the stamina of Turnthemagicon, but 480m at Monmore is a very happy hunting ground for him. His pace down the back on Thursday night to put a race to bed against some very smart dogs was sensational. He looked a little stronger through the line than he had in the summer, so Towcester in a few months could see him progressing given the sheer pace that he possesses. 

Speaking of sheer pace, Bockos Buster is getting quicker and quicker over Nottingham's 305m trip. The East Anglian Derby runner-up stays that 462m distance well enough but is more than capable of beating some of the quicker dogs in the country over two bends as well. 2025 was an excellent campaign and another big year should await the Kevin Boon-trained hound.

There was an exceptional performance from Droopys Mikado at Suffolk Downs on Tuesday. Any winning time that is sub 34 seconds is very smart over six bends at the track. Not only did she produce that with a 33.90, it was on a track that was subsequently marked -30 which took her calculated time seven spots inside the track record of Luna Jezabelle. 

Oxford saw a back-to-back winner in Alright Twinkle who went one spot different to her winning time at the track last week. Given her times, it feels a little wrong to say that the 450m around here is on the short side for her but she does shape as if a test over four bends is what she is looking for. Perhaps she'll get the chance to put that to the test in something like the Brighton Belle in April?

Those who make a flashy debut always generate plenty of excitement and that was the case at Star Pelaw this week when Inclement Queen made a sensational start to her career over two bends. There is plenty of speed in her family, a litter sister of Ted Soppitt's Sunnyside Ted who has made a slick start to his career. Sub 15 seconds on her own debut promises plenty for the future.  

At Hove there was a Thursday night win from Fantasy Alex that was just enough to take the POW. He has taken on some decent company over the last six weeks or so, picking up a pair of wins in his last three starts, runner-up to the Pall Mall winner Gingers Prince in the other. 

Ballymac Sargie brought up a five-timer with a Newcastle win this week. Those wins have come on three different tracks, over four and six bends, from the front and getting up on the run-in. A finalist in the Grand Prix over six bends last year, he also made the semis of the Eclipse and All England Cup over four. As adaptable as they come, he must be an absolute pleasure to own.

Staying in the area, Parkview Sprite was the top performer at Sunderland from a limited run of opens during the week. He has won three of his five starts since coming across from Ireland to give Tom Heilbron a double in the north east.

There were some opens on Sunday's card at Valley where Clongeel Bono produced a clear leader in the best time of 2026 so far over the 460m distance. There have been limited opportunities for the better dogs this year, but he took the one that was afforded him in style. 

Although it was only a three dog race that Kereight Fraud won at Yarmouth on Saturday, she beat the current track champion in the process and with no danger of finding any trouble, she was able to produce a smart winning time. 

It's taken a while for Burrows Ace to get his head back in front and supplement a Hove win from September but he did so in sparkling fashion at Dunstall Park on Thursday. It was only the second time this year that the 28.40 barrier has been broken at the track, running riot by more than seven lengths. 

Sandwood Gabby was another this week to bring up a five-timer, her sprinting wins coming at Doncaster in D2 level. She is in the form of her life at present for Susan Watson, with the last four of those all seeing her go 16.90 or quicker on calculated times. 

There was a decent performance from a puppy at Kinsley with Deecee Gracie stopping the clock sub 28 seconds in an A4 contest. The penny has dropped with the April 24 youngster in recent runs, this win supplementing those that she has produced in A7 and A6 grade. From the same bottom line as Shadow Storm and Quarteira, this win saw her produce by far her quickest sectional. 

We finish up at Harlow where Amys Gem picked up a D3 win. She has been running well in open class company at Suffolk Downs of late and has been a regular winner at a higher level than this at Harlow in the last year.