The 7-Year auction on September 24 drew a foreign bid of only 57.2%, an F grade. Leveraged funds hold E-mini Russell 2000 shorts in the 4th percentile of the past two years, the rarest since 2026, while sterling longs sit at the 7th percentile. Weak demand at the long end and a crowded small-cap short are stacking risk into the October 28 FOMC, 28 days away: if the Fed leans dovish, that short covers fast.