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Horse profile

Better Times Ahead (IRE)

9yo gelding · Trainer Robert Tyner · Owner John P Mcmanus
23 runs · 6 courses · from Dec 2021
As at 8 Nov 2026 · KTB archive: GB, Ireland & France · 2005–present, updated daily
4 wins · Fairyhouse, Navan & Naas Last run 6 Apr 2026 Last raced off OR 136
KTB Profile

Better Times Ahead is 4 from 23 on turf, including a Listed win in the BAR 1 Betting Porterstown Handicap Chase at Fairyhouse over 3m on soft ground in Nov 2025. He has two wins from eight starts at Fairyhouse, two from five between 2m5f and 3m, and all four wins came in handicaps on soft or heavy going. The gelding last ran off his career-high mark of 136 in the Boyle Sports Irish Grand National Chase at Fairyhouse in Apr 2026. He is by Walk In The Park out of a Beneficial mare.

Based on 23 archived runs · run-style from 8 commented runs since Feb 2025 · updated 8 Nov 2026
KTB at a glance OR at career high
Official rating136At career-high mark
136 98–136

KTB Speed and Rating

KTB Speed

Best recent Speed 133 the best of the last 3 graded (A or B) runs · Gowran Park, 22 Jan 2026

How fast the horse ran, as points against the day-corrected standard time for its course and distance: 100 is the median GB Class 4 handicap winner on that code; one point is 0.1% of the standard time. A, B or C is how much the day's card could tell us, not how good the run was. What this means →

Jumps 21 figures · best 136C · median 79
GoingRunsBestMedianSince 8 Nov 2025
Soft13112B601 run · —
Heavy8136C95.52 runs · 133 / 121.5
DistanceRunsBestMedianSince 8 Nov 2025
2m1f – 2m4f8136C77.51 run · —
2m5f – 3m5106A79—
1m5f – 2m595B60—
Over 3m3133B1122 runs · 133 / 122.5

Of 23 runs looked at, 2 have no figure: did not complete (1) · obstacles omitted — the race ran a shortened course (1).

KTB Speed v1 · batch 15 Sep 2026 · GB & Irish racing only · 21 figures from 23 runs · as at 3 Oct 2026 · a record, not a forecast

KTB Rating

Best recent KTB Rating 135B the best of the last 3 rated runs · Gowran Park, 22 Jan 2026 Official rating 136 at the last run, 6 Apr 2026

What the horse achieved in each race, in pounds on the official-rating scale, from the weight carried, the lengths beaten and the race's own level solved across the archive — never the market, never the official rating as a starting point. The headline is the best of the horse's last three rated runs on that code — its best recent day. The KTB Rating on a racecard is a different reading of the same figures: the level the horse has been running to, an average of up to its last six runs with the latest counting most, so the two can differ. A, B or C on a run is how much known form was in that race. What this means →

Jumps 22 figures · best 138A · median 114
GoingRunsBestMedianSince 8 Nov 2025
Soft14132A1111 run · —
Heavy8138A121.52 runs · 135 / 128.5
DistanceRunsBestMedianSince 8 Nov 2025
2m1f – 2m4f8122A1081 run · —
1m5f – 2m6132A109—
2m5f – 3m5138A123—
Over 3m3135B1312 runs · 135 / 133

Of 23 runs looked at, 1 has no figure: did not complete (or a non-runner row) (1).

KTB Rating v1 · batch 3 Oct 2026 · GB & Irish racing only · 22 figures from 23 runs · as at 4 Oct 2026 · a record, not a forecast

Both figures are KTB's own, computed from the archive; no vendor rating enters either. Every run's figure is on its form line below with its grade. Grades measure how much the archive could see, never the merit of the run.

Run style from 8 analysed runs since Feb 2025

  • Held up 4 (50%) · 2 wins
  • Mid-division 3 (38%) · 0 wins
  • Prominent 1 (13%) · 0 wins

Pedigree intelligence

Sire

Progeny in our archive have won 13.4% of 7,054 runs since May 2011 (707 horses).

GoingRunsWinsSRvs sireThis horse
Good to Firm501122%+8.6—
Good1,90126013.7%+0.3—
Good to Soft1,60522213.8%+0.4—
Soft2,46332113%−0.42 from 15
Heavy99813113.1%−0.32 from 8
Standard (AW)3712.7%−10.7—
Distance (all codes)RunsWinsSRvs sireThis horse
Under 6f100%−13.4—
6f – 7f1815.6%−7.8—
1m – 1m1f2600%−13.4—
1m2f – 1m4f75912%−1.4—
1m5f – 2m2,24931614.1%+0.71 from 6
2m1f – 2m4f2,83340814.4%+10 from 8
2m5f – 3m1,55817511.2%−2.22 from 5
Over 3m2943712.6%−0.81 from 4

Flat and jumps together (all codes) · since May 2011 · as at 8 Nov 2026 · rows under 30 runs muted · win % is the measure, a record not a forecast

Dam
Byerley Babe (IRE) (Beneficial)

1 sibling in the archive, 1 winner — best of them A Great Buzz (IRE) (1 win).

The wins came over 3m½f.

ProduceRunsWinsWin tripsBest grade
A Great Buzz (IRE)1113m½f—

Record by conditions

GoingRunsWinsSR£1
Soft 15 2 13% −8.00
Heavy 8 2 25% +10.00

CourseRunsWinsSR£1
Fairyhouse 8 2 25% +3.00
Naas 4 1 25% −1.00
Gowran Park 4 0 0% −4.00
Punchestown 3 0 0% −3.00
Navan 3 1 33% +8.00
Cork 1 0 0% −1.00

DistanceRunsWinsSR£1
2m1f – 2m4f 8 0 0% −8.00
1m5f – 2m 6 1 17% −3.00
2m5f – 3m 5 2 40% +13.00
Over 3m 4 1 25% +0.00

JockeyRunsWinsSR£1
Mark Walsh 12 3 25% +2.00
Simon Torrens 6 1 17% +5.00
Brian Hayes 2 0 0% −2.00
L P Dempsey 2 0 0% −2.00
Phillip Enright 1 0 0% −1.00

HeadgearRunsWinsSR£1
None 19 4 21% +6.00
Hood 4 0 0% −4.00

SeasonRunsWinsSR£1
2026 3 0 0% −3.00
2025 5 2 40% +6.00
2024 3 0 0% −3.00
2023 3 1 33% +8.00
2022 8 1 13% −5.00
2021 1 0 0% −1.00

TypeRunsWinsSR£1
Chase 15 2 13% +0.00
Hurdle 8 2 25% +2.00

Splits include every sample, however small — muted rows are under 3 runs. A one-from-one record is a fact, not a trend: read the Runs column before the strike rate.

Form

DateCourseRace PosBtn Wgt ORSpdKTB Jockey SP
2026 · 3 runs
06 Apr 26+29d Fairyhouse BOYLE Sports Irish Grand National Chase (Extended Handicap Chase) (Grade 3) 3m5f · Yielding To Soft · 30 ran Settled midpack - couldn't quicken from the 4th last - pulled up before the following fence PU/30 — 10-8 136—— Simon Torrens 25/1
08 Mar 26+45d Naas BAR 1 Betting 'Proud Sponsor Of Irish Racing' Handicap Hurdle 2m3f · Soft To Heavy · 17 ran Sat handy early - shared front spot 3 out - hit front smoothly turning in but pushed along and lost advantage 2 out - faded quickly after finishing 7th 7/17 ¾ 11-0 118110B122A Mark Walsh 3/1F
22 Jan 26+53d Gowran Park Goffs Thyestes Handicap Chase (Grade 3) 3m1f · Heavy · 18 ran Settled midfield early - progress from 11th and up to 2nd 4 out - bumped a touch approaching the following fence - pushed along after 2 out and hit the front at the last - stayed on strongly but caught right on the line 2/18 hd 10-5 131133B135B Mark Walsh 17/2
2025 · 5 runs
30 Nov 25+26d Fairyhouse BAR 1 Betting Porterstown Handicap Chase (Listed) 3m6f · Yielding To Soft · 15 ran Settled towards the back of the pack - minor error at the 12th and brushed three out - progressed into 5th two out - improved to 2nd approaching the final fence - stayed on strongly to hit the front near the line 1/15 10-6 122112B131A Mark Walsh 3/1F
04 Nov 25+197d Fairyhouse Christmas Party Jackpot Jingle At Fairyhouse 13th December Handicap Hurdle 3m · Soft To Heavy · 13 ran Held up towards the back early - made ground before 3 out and moved into 5th entering the straight - up to 3rd before 2 out with a blunder there - second and battling on last - driven out on the run-in to get up and win 1/13 11-10 10889B138A Mark Walsh 6/1
21 Apr 25+43d Fairyhouse Envirogreen Building Services Handicap Chase 3m½f · Soft To Heavy · 13 ran Held up at the back - improved into 6th 6 out - up to 4th and driven early in the straight - unable to close approaching last and held for pace to the line 4/13 12 10-11 12470B117A Mark Walsh 3/1F
09 Mar 25+22d Naas Bar One Racing Leinster National Handicap Chase (Listed) 3m1f · Soft · 14 ran Settled around midfield early - still 8th at halfway - improved to 7th with encouragement into the straight - up to 5th near the last but held no rally to the line finishing 6th 6/14 1¼ 10-8 12644B115A Simon Torrens 15/2
15 Feb 25+287d Gowran Park O'Driscolls Irish Whiskey Careys Cottage Cup Handicap Chase 2m4f · Soft · 12 ran Held up towards the back - lost touch after blundering at the 4th and slipped to 10th following the 6th - faded before two out 9/12 3¾ 11-9 12742C108C Simon Torrens 18/1
2024 · 3 runs
04 May 24+33d Punchestown Palmerstown House Estate Pat Taaffe Handicap Chase (0-150) (Listed) 3m½f · Soft · 12 ran 2/12 hd 10-0 121106A129B Simon Torrens 4/1F
01 Apr 24+44d Fairyhouse Envirogreen Building Services Handicap Chase 3m½f · Heavy · 9 ran 2/9 12 10-13 11920A123B Mark Walsh 11/4F
17 Feb 24+334d Gowran Park Careys Cottage Cup Handicap Chase 2m4f · Heavy · 10 ran 6/10 20 11-1 119136C107C Mark Walsh 12/1
2023 · 3 runs
20 Mar 23+30d Navan Irish Stallion Farms Ebf Novice Handicap Chase Final (grade B) 2m7½f · Heavy · 12 ran 1/12 10-0 10679B121A Simon Torrens 10/1
18 Feb 23+21d Gowran Park Careys Cottage Cup Handicap Chase 2m4f · Soft To Heavy · 10 ran 4/10 nk 10-10 107102B108B Brian Hayes 20/1
28 Jan 23+40d Fairyhouse Jump Into January Handicap Chase 2m1f · Soft · 10 ran 8/10 4¾ 10-11 10862C92C Simon Torrens 4/1J
2022 · 8 runs
19 Dec 22+22d Punchestown Last Chance 20% Off Festival Tickets Beginners Chase 2m · Soft · 9 ran 8/9 11 11-12 —-49C110C L P Dempsey 80/1
27 Nov 22+14d Navan Boardsmill Stud Irish EBF Beginners Chase 2m1f · Soft · 15 ran 13/15 5 11-12 —24C116C Brian Hayes 100/1
13 Nov 22+209d Navan Irish Stallion Farms Ebf Beginners Chase 2m1f · Yielding · 11 ran 9/11 1 11-12 —25A112A L P Dempsey 150/1
18 Apr 22+36d Fairyhouse Farmhouse Foods Novice Handicap Hurdle 2m · Yielding · 15 ran 7/15 nk 10-12 10887B113A Mark Walsh 9/4F
13 Mar 22+32d Naas Bar One Racing Extra Places Everyday At Cheltenham Handicap Hurdle (80-102) 1m7½f · Soft · 25 ran 1/25 11-11 9848B132A Mark Walsh 2/1F
09 Feb 22+24d Fairyhouse Support Irish Injured Jockeys Handicap Hurdle (80-109) 2m4f · Soft · 16 ran 9/16 3 11-3 9893B102A Mark Walsh 11/2
16 Jan 22+14d Punchestown 15% Off Festival Tickets Maiden Hurdle (Div 2) 2m · Soft · 21 ran 6/21 4 12-0 ——108A Mark Walsh 9/2
02 Jan 22+28d Naas I.N.H. Stallion Owners EBF Maiden Hurdle 2m · Soft · 18 ran 5/18 16 12-0 —95B107A Mark Walsh 33/1
2021 · 1 run
05 Dec 21 Cork Follow Us On Instagram Maiden Hurdle (Div 1) 2m · Soft · 16 ran 5/16 24 12-0 —60C104C Phillip Enright 28/1

Quick answers

How many races has Better Times Ahead won?
Better Times Ahead (IRE) won 4 of 23 archived starts between 2021 and 2026, a strike rate of 17.4%. Placed 7 times in total (30.4% of starts).
Who trains Better Times Ahead?
Better Times Ahead (IRE) is trained by Robert Tyner, who saddled the horse on its most recent run on 6 April 2026.
Who is Better Times Ahead's sire?
Better Times Ahead (IRE) is by Walk In The Park (IRE) out of Byerley Babe (IRE), whose sire is Beneficial.
What going does Better Times Ahead prefer?
Better Times Ahead (IRE) has the best record on heavy going: 2 wins from 8 starts (25%). Only going bands with at least three archived starts are read, so this is a direction rather than a settled preference.
What is Better Times Ahead's official rating?
The most recent official rating on record is 136, from the run on 6 April 2026. That is also the highest on record.
What is Better Times Ahead's sire's record?
Walk In The Park (IRE)'s progeny in our archive have won 13.4% of 7,054 runs since May 2011 (707 horses), Flat and jumps together.
Who are Better Times Ahead's siblings?
Out of Byerley Babe (IRE), Better Times Ahead (IRE) has 1 other produce in our archive, 1 of them a winner. Most wins: A Great Buzz (IRE) (1). The wins came over 3m½f. As at Nov 2026.

Record shown from December 2021. Our archive holds racing in Great Britain, Ireland and France from January 2005. Any runs before that, or in other countries, are not in it. In-running comments are available from 2024 onward.