By Simon Massey, CEO of Funded Trading Plus
How long does it take to pass a prop firm challenge?
Because Funded Trading Plus was one of the very first prop firms to entirely remove time limits, you can take as long as you need to pass an evaluation. In this review, we analyse Christian from Germany, who took 308 days and over 1,000 trades to successfully pass his $50K simulated evaluation through extreme discipline and strict risk control.
Many traders mistakenly believe that a prop firm evaluation is a sprint to the finish line. They overleverage their simulated accounts, take massive risks, and inevitably breach their drawdown limits. Recently, alongside our Chief Strategy Officer Jamie, I reviewed an evaluation account that proves exactly why slow, steady, and disciplined trading is the ultimate edge. Christian traded the $50,000 Experienced Trader account, a legacy program that has now been replaced by our superior, swap-free 1-Step Express Challenge. He took nearly a year to pass, demonstrating an unwavering commitment to his strategy.
I highly recommend watching the full video review embedded below to see his exact equity curve and trade breakdowns.
Here is a breakdown of the data behind Christian’s success and the vital lessons you can apply to your own simulated trading journey.
The Power of No Time Limits
One of the biggest drivers for Funded Trading Plus removing evaluation time limits was to allow traders like Christian the flexibility to find their own path to funding. If he had been trading at a firm with a 30-day time limit, his account would have been closed, and his efforts wasted. Instead, Christian executed a true “grind” approach. He started on April 29th, and by early August, his simulated equity curve had barely moved; he was in exactly the same position as when he started after navigating a sideways market and minor drawdowns. Many traders would become frustrated and force trades to make up for lost time, but Christian remained disciplined. From September onwards, his account caught momentum. Even when he suffered a heavy drawdown around the end of December after getting very close to his profit target, he managed his risk properly, survived the dip, and rallied to hit the milestone.
The Data: Win Rate vs. Risk-to-Reward
Christian took an incredible 1,001 trades over roughly 10 months, averaging around three intraday trades per day. What is most fascinating is his win rate: he lost more trades than he won. Here is exactly what his data looked like:
| Metric | Christian’s Account Data |
| Total Trades | 1,001 |
| Winning Trades | 476 |
| Losing Trades | 525 |
| Average Winning Trade | Just under $70 |
| Average Losing Trade | Just under $54 |
| Evaluation Duration | 308 Days |
The Prop Trader Edge
Christian proves that you do not need a high win rate to be consistently profitable. Because his average winning trade was roughly $17 larger than his average losing trade, that positive risk-to-reward ratio provided him with the mathematical edge needed to push his equity curve upward over a large sample size .
Trade Analysis: Breakouts on the US30
Christian primarily traded indices, and a deep dive into his trade history reveals clear patterns of what worked and what failed.
The Best Trade: Christian’s largest winner was a $764 profit on the US30 (Dow Jones). He successfully preempted a breakout during a period where the market was making higher highs and higher lows, capitalising on the momentum.
The Worst Trade: Conversely, his worst trade was a $64 loss on the US30. He went short into a market making higher highs, trading directly into two areas of resistance without placing his stop loss at a logical area of invalidation. Fortunately, his overall position sizing was small enough that this error did not severely damage his $50K simulated balance.
Want to Master Breakout Strategies?
Christian’s success heavily relied on capturing breakouts on major indices like the US30. If you want to learn how to execute these types of setups with strict, rule-based precision, explore our Top 10 Prop Trading Strategies for 2026. Inside, Head of Trader Education Andrew Lockwood breaks down exactly how to trade momentum using systems like the Open Range Breakout (ORB) and the classic Turtle Trading Strategy, complete with video tutorials and downloadable rule sheets tailored for simulated prop environments.
Why Journaling is the Ultimate Trading Edge
The most valuable takeaway from Christian’s 308-day journey is hidden in his asset performance data. Despite being from Germany, Christian’s lowest-performing instrument was the DAX (the German index). His highest-performing instrument was the US30. If Christian had used a trading journal or simply searched his closed deal history to analyse his symbol performance, he would have realised that the DAX was draining his simulated profits. If he had excluded the DAX from his strategy entirely, he likely would have passed his evaluation much faster than 308 days and saved himself hundreds of unnecessary trades. Challenges are designed exactly for this purpose: they allow you to test your style, gather data, and refine your approach before you move into the funded stage.
Frequently Asked Questions
While many legacy prop firms used to enforce strict 30-day time limits, Funded Trading Plus has removed time limits entirely across all evaluation programs. This allows traders to manage their risk naturally without the pressure of a ticking clock forcing them into bad trades.
No, a high win rate is not necessary if your risk-to-reward ratio is positive. As seen in Christian’s account review, a trader can lose more trades than they win (e.g., 476 wins vs. 525 losses) and still successfully pass an evaluation, provided their average winning trade is mathematically larger than their average losing trade.
Journaling allows you to review your closed deal history to identify which instruments, sessions, or setups are generating simulated profits and which are causing losses. By analysing this data, traders can stop trading poorly performing assets, just as Christian should have done with the DAX, leading to much more efficient evaluations.
Which FT+ Evaluation is Right for You?
Whether you are refining your established edge or testing a new approach, finding the right environment to execute your trades is critical. At Funded Trading Plus, we have built a simulated platform that gives you the autonomy to trade your way. You can explore our streamlined 1-step challenge for complete flexibility, opt for our traditional two step evaluation if you prefer a phased approach, or discover our instant funding program with no profit targets to begin trading a simulated funded account immediately. Choose the program that aligns with your risk management plan and start your simulated trading journey today.