To be mentioned in the same breath as legendary 20-time champion Sir Anthony “AP” McCoy is a huge honour for any jockey. But justifying every comparison bestowed upon him is the current king of the weighing room, Sean Bowen.

On Saturday (25 April) the 28-year-old jump jockey is officially crowned champion for the second season running. Not since AP McCoy’s incredible record-breaking reign have we seen the kind of stats that the young Welshman is racking up.

Immediately after earning his first jockeys’ championship in 2025, he set off in hot pursuit of the next title and enjoyed his quickest ever start to a season, eventually racking up nearly 250 winners at a superb 24% strike rate. To put that into perspective, he’s ridden nearly twice as many winners as any of his weighing room colleagues.

“It’s only AP to beat now numbers-wise and that will take some doing, but the numbers have been incredible. I’m very lucky,” says Sean.

“It’s taken an immense amount of work – I surpassed 1,000 rides for the season at Perth [on Thursday, 23 April] – so the miles on the road are a lot. But now I’ve reached my targets for this season, I really can’t wait till next season to start it all over again.”

Not only does this unassuming Welshman have the same relentless McCoy-esque work ethic, his mindset is strikingly similar, with an all-consuming drive to succeed and a hawk-like focus on the ambitious goals he sets himself.

“Winning my first championship was amazing,” he says. “But to be champion jockey, chasing numbers is what you’ve got to do. You have to set your own targets and hopefully they come.

“It’s not just about the big Saturdays either – every day is important because the day-to-day meetings are where you rack up the winners. I know AP used to chase numbers and he got to a record 289 winners one season, which is a crazy amount really, but hopefully that’s something I can achieve.

“All I dreamt of as a kid was to be champion jockey and I suppose now I’m in this position, I don’t want to give it up too easily!”

Sean Bowen: a class apart

So what sets Sean Bowen apart from his current crop of weighing room colleagues – a hugely talented bunch in their own right that includes previous champions Brian Hughes, Harry Skelton and Harry Cobden?

Sean struggles to pinpoint an answer himself but evidently his skills in the saddle are more refined than ever and he’s excelled since joining forces with talented trainer Olly Murphy four years ago. He has become a skilled tactician, also displaying enviable balance and strength with his ultra-short riding style. But most impressive of all is his ability to infiltrate the mind of every horse he sits on, instilling in each the confidence to shine.

“Something seems to be going right anyway!” says Sean. “Every season for the past three or four years, I’ve felt my riding has got better and better. Obviously riding for very good people helps and Olly’s yard is going from strength to strength.

“So many variables go into each race though, so you have to be constantly aware of what’s going on around you, are they going too fast, too slow, is your horse too keen or a bit lazy.”

Sean would receive an A* for his homework, too, and it’s clear why Olly feels no need to issue his number one rider with any riding instructions.

“For all the horses I’ll be riding the following day, I’ll sit down the evening before or in the car on the way home and watch back all their races on the iPad to get a gist of what they’re like,” he reveals, adding that the flipside of his daily quest for winners is, “I don’t have time to ride out in the mornings anymore, so I have to get to know the horses pretty quickly as soon as I get on them. Trainers have to make allowances for that and I need to be adaptable – that’s something I’ve got used to. I’m in a very fortunate position to be riding every day though.

“But I love that side of racing; the tactics and looking at all the different data is so interesting.”

In the genes: why Sean was a late-starter in the saddle

Sean was born into a family steeped in racing history. His father is former Pembrokeshire trainer Peter Bowen and mother Karen was a champion point-to-point jockey. Their oldest son Mickey was a successful point-to-point trainer and has now taken over the training license, while the youngest of their three sons, James, has made an equally big impact since following his brother Sean into the weighing room, finishing this season with just over 100 winners.

Despite his early surroundings and genetic make-up, Sean initially showed little interest in the sport.

“I actually wasn’t a massive fan of horses or ponies to start with,” he smiles. “Every time I came home from school the racing channel would be on TV – it used to drive me mad!”

But the spark ignited around the age of nine.

“Nobody ever taught me, we just got legged up on the ponies and off we went – my cousins would come down with their ponies and we would all race them up the gallops as fast as we could and I learnt that way. It was a survival instinct!”

Racing ponies followed and all three Bowen brothers learnt the ropes in that sphere, with great success.

“Once you’ve had one ride in pony racing, it gets you hooked and I absolutely loved it,” says Sean. “I don’t suppose there was ever a plan B after that, I was always going to be a professional jockey. I actually only did one season of point-to-point riding, at the age of 16, but I’d have needed to do a lot longer if it hadn’t been for pony racing all those years. You learn so much about race riding and the whole experience of being a jockey.”

When “school got in the way of riding out racehorses” at the age of 14, he completed his education from home every afternoon.

“It worked well for all of us and Dad was happy because he had a free member of staff!” he recalls.

Despite only a brief stint as a point-to-point jockey, Sean was crowned leading novice in 2014, riding a large crop of winners for David Brace, who Sean says “supported me massively” and his brother Mickey, who was enjoying a purple patch in his training career.

“It was brilliant – you think pony racing is great and then you race over jumps and it’s unbelievable,” says Sean, who’d actually had his first winner under Rules as an amateur for trainer Bernard Llewellyn in 2013 before the point-to-point winners started flooding in.

All the while of course, Sean has also had the support of his parents.

“I suppose the minute I started race riding, Dad wanted me,” reveals Sean, who was inspired by Peter’s regular jockeys Tom O’Brien and Jamie Moore growing up, as well as the likes of Barry Geraghty, AP McCoy and Ruby Walsh.

Like many future champions, he enjoyed a stint with the 13-time champion trainer Paul Nicholls while riding as a conditional, where he made a huge impact, partnering, amongst others, a novice Cyrname and earning his first ride in the Grand National aged just 17, en route to being crowned champion conditional at the end of his first full season racing under rules.

Sean’s milestone first Grade One winner came on Harry Fry’s If The Cap Fits at Aintree on Grand National Day, in 2019.

“That was a huge day – it was a photo finish, too, so I didn’t know if I’d won or not for what felt like an age!” says Sean. “But in some ways it was a bit of a relief, too, because I’d ridden a few favourites in Grade Ones that, for one reason or another, hadn’t won, so it meant a lot and I realised it could happen.”

When asked for his proudest moment on the track, those close family ties are once again to the fore.

“Winning the Topham at Aintree on Mac Tottie for my Dad,” he says, relishing the memories of that emotional day in 2022. “My brother Mickey rode him out every day, James had won the Sefton on him that season and everyone saw James running up the track to congratulate us that day. It was the best day of my life so far – you can’t beat riding a winner for your family.

“We’re very lucky that all three of us brothers have been very successful at a young age and it’s brilliant to share the weighing room with your brother,” says Sean. “Good or bad, we talk to each other most days about racing – James is someone that understands what’s going on – but we all have a great relationship.”

James was sitting second to Sean in the jockeys’ standings for much of this season.

“Luckily I’m far enough ahead of my brother that he can’t take the mick too much! But it’s brilliant to have him there,” says Sean.

One advantage Sean has over his younger brother is on the weighing scales.

“James gets very annoyed because I can eat what I like and still do 10 stone, whereas he’d probably be a stone heavier if he ate meals like I do, I’m definitely one of the lucky ones!” he says.

“But for us all to be doing so well is fantastic really. Mickey is young and keen and the yard has really grown. I’ve ridden plenty of winners for him already and hopefully it continues.”

The highs and lows of horseracing

As all-conquering jumps trainer Willie Mullins said to underling Dan Skelton after edging him out of another trainers’ championship last season, “You have to lose one to win one” and, like Dan, Sean endured a character-building journey to being crowned champion jockey, a decade after he triumphed as the leading conditional.

“I finished second to Brian Hughes in 2023, then I was a long way clear when I injured my knee two seasons back,” says Sean of the heavy fall at Aintree on Boxing Day that scuppered his chances of closing in on his best friend Harry Cobden in that year’s title race. “Missing out on the championship by seven winners was unbelievably frustrating.

“But every young child riding their pony dreams of becoming champion jockey and AP McCoy and Ruby Walsh were the ones I looked up to. So finally to be able to fulfil that dream was amazing.”

Sean has built a resilience to the inevitable highs and lows of this rough-and-tumble sport.

“I’m pretty level-headed and I’m able to sleep in the car well, which helps!” he says, brushing off any concerns I suggest about burnout, stress and other potential side-effects of such a relentless existence. “I’ve wanted to be in this position since I was a kid so while it’s happening you can’t stop it.”

2025 was a huge year for Sean away from the racecourse, as he married Harriet in the summer – making use of the sport’s annual two-week break in August, so he didn’t miss out on riding any potential winners.

“It was an amazing day. Harriet did all the planning because I was never home, but she did a very good job of it,” says Sean. “So it was a good fun summer: plenty of winners and a wedding to top it off.

“Racing is a busy life and I’m not home very often but these are the sacrifices you make.”

Sean Bowen, dual Grand National winner

One surprising omission from Sean’s tally of winners is a Grade One success and, while brother James scored a brace of winners at this year’s Cheltenham Festival, that too remains a gap on Sean’s CV.

However, the Rebecca Curtis-trained Haiti Couleurs gave Sean two career-defining moments in the saddle, starting at Fairyhouse last April.

“Haiti’s win in the Irish Grand National was amazing,” comments Sean of the all-Welsh conquest of Ireland’s flagship race, before following up in the Welsh Grand National in December.

Before celebrating his second jockeys’ title, Sean assures me there is one milestone belonging to 20-time champion AP McCoy’s that he won’t be chasing.

“There are so many records of his I’d love to beat but I’m too old to be thinking of winning 21 jockeys’ championships now!” stresses Sean.

This talented young rider’s career is still unfolding, but regardless of how many records he smashes, how closely he can emulate the greatest jump jockey of all time or how long he can assert his dominance in the weighing room, this is undoubtedly an exciting era for the sport.

Sean has built a lofty platform from which to operate, but there’s no time to enjoy the view. His sights are set on one thing only – riding that next winner.

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Fresh from Cheltenham Festival, the jump jockey tells Martha Terry about his racing childhood, the invincibility of youth and keeping a level head, in this exclusive article for H&H subscribers

James Bowen had waited years for a Cheltenham Festival winner. This time round, he left with two. For those who knew his roots, it felt almost inevitable.

Childhoods don’t come much more idyllic than the Bowen boys’. The three brothers spent much of their schooldays playing with ponies in the Pembrokeshire countryside: racing ponies, racing each other, racing their cousins, racing themselves.

When James was 13, he left school – ostensibly to be home-schooled while pursuing his racing commitments. In reality, the yard, not the classroom, was the real crucible for his education.

“I didn’t spend any time on schoolwork,” says James as we chat while he drives from a morning gallop at Newbury to racing at Kempton. “If I couldn’t be a jockey, there wasn’t much chance of another career to fall back on.”

He didn’t need one. Aged 16, James was crowned the youngest-ever winner of the Welsh National, followed by becoming champion conditional jockey with 58 winners. Nine years later, last month at Cheltenham, he franked that prodigious talent, bagging not just his first Festival trophy but a double. On day one, he steered Holloway Queen to win the National Hunt Challenge Cup before Jingko Blue galloped to victory in the BetMGM Cup Handicap Hurdle the following day.

“A win there is incredible, and I wasn’t expecting much – especially from Holloway Queen as I thought she’d hate the ground,” James says. “Nicky Henderson actually asked me before the race if I’d run her. I said, ‘It’s up to you,’ but I’m glad she did run.

“The atmosphere is amazing, but you don’t hear as much when you’re on the horse. It’s when you watch it back that you realise just what a big deal winning there is.

“I’ve watched it back multiple times,” he grins. “I’m still watching it back now.”

James is the youngest son of trainer Peter Bowen, brother of champion jump jockey Sean and trainer Mickey. Although riding was on offer as soon as he could sit up, James wasn’t interested early on.

“I didn’t enjoy riding much until I was eight,” he says. “I rode a couple of times, but my mum didn’t let me off the lead rope and I didn’t want to do it unless I was let off. But once I was on my own, I got into it.”

At the heart of this utopian childhood was a 12hh roan called Striker.

“Striker was incredible, bombproof,” says James, chuckling at the memory. “He was older than Sean and I put together, and we were always galloping around on him. He didn’t love jumping, so instead of hurdles, we’d put poles on the ground and race over those.

“We’d take it in turns racing around the gallop. Sean always won because he went first – and I was smaller and weaker than him. I even tried stopping the clock later, but I still lost.”

Mickey, who is more than six years his senior, lit the touchpaper when he started pony racing.

“I just wanted to do what he did,” remembers James, with a sense of youngest brother syndrome. “And once Sean was champion conditional, being a jockey is all I wanted to do.”

The brothers’ domestic races ramped up a level in sophistication when their two cousins came to stay.

“They’d bring their ponies and we’d set up a four-horse race,” James says. “We’d do four races – probably six furlongs to a mile – so each of us rode races on all the ponies, and we had a points system.”

Striker – “not fast enough” – had by this time been superseded by increasingly racy models. The first serious ponies came when James was 10.

“The first two we’d just hunt round at the back, and then Dad got fed up of us always being beaten, so he got Sean a 14.2hh, Cudlic Verona, and me a 13.2hh called Push The Button,” James relates. “They were both great ponies, but on Push The Button it was almost impossible to get beat. If I did, Dad would let me know about it! We ended up having so many wins.”

This included 10 in one season, including the 138cm finals at York – with Sean also taking the 148cm trophy – in 2013.

The moment James turned 16, he moved straight into point-to-pointing.

“I had five rides on my 16th birthday, had two winners and fell off two, so I learnt a lot about the ups and downs on the first day,” he says.

Surfing on the wave of the invincible Push The Button and some dead-cert rides, James admits his mindset at the start of his career was that “every horse I rode would win”.

“I thought it was so easy!” he says. “I had 50 rides point-to-pointing and 30 winners, but they were all steering jobs trained by my brother. They were unbeatable, long odds-on shots.

“And when I first turned conditional, Dad’s horses were running well and I won the Welsh National. I knew that was a big deal, but as I felt everything would win every race, it wasn’t unexpected. I probably didn’t appreciate it enough at the time.”

Aged 17, he was champion conditional, with a plum job based with champion trainer Nicky Henderson. While his peers were still sitting exams, James had been plying his trade for seven years, and was heralded as the brightest young talent in the weighing room.

“It was going so swimmingly, but when I lost my claim I was struggling,” he admits.

James went from riding 70-odd winners a year to 20, hamstrung by breaking his wrist and his arm in successive seasons.

Perhaps it’s an innate understanding of the precarious nature of the sport in which he’d been raised, or that first yo-yo day as a professional, but James seems to take the rough with the smooth with equanimity. He may have switched from assuming every mount would win to a more measured approach, but the winners are rolling in all the same.

“I suppose it took a while for me to get my first Grade One win [on Jango Baie at Aintree on Boxing Day 2023], but I never worried about it – I knew it would come,” he says lightly. “I’ve been injured a couple of times, I’ve rebuilt and now I’m on my best season.”

Nor has Cheltenham been the happiest of hunting grounds, with him missing several due to illness or suspension.

“I’ve not enjoyed the meeting that much over the years because you come away thinking, ‘God, I’m just a spare part,’” he admitted after this year’s Festival. “But when you do have a winner, it’s as good a feeling as you’re going to get.”

There have been other levellers. In January 2024, James would have expected to log another Grade One win when stepping in for the ride on the indomitable Jonbon, at long odds-on in the Clarence House. He’d won earlier in the day on Sir Gino and thought, “I couldn’t do anything wrong.”

But Jonbon made a bad mistake four out, nearly unshipping James, who clung on to rally the horse for an embarrassing neck defeat.

In the same race this year, James made amends, again coming off the subs’ bench to pilot Jonbon to the horse’s 12th Grade One success.

“Last time I’d ridden him, I got beaten and felt like an idiot,” he says. “There was less pressure this time, and it was good to put the record straight. It’s a pretty good feeling riding such a crowd favourite.”

James uses the word pressure, but he’d prefer to describe the feeling “less as pressure, more excitement”, giving an insight into the make-up of a top jockey.

“You have to keep a level head,” he says. “You can’t get too up or too down. Of course you get excited, but it’s not like you feel nervous. If you’re on a good horse in a good race, it’s normal to get butterflies in the belly but you can’t let it get to you. You need to ride every race the same, just try to win every one. That’s what drives me: riding winners, any winners.”

His other driver is Sean. Three-and-a-half years older, Sean has already virtually secured his second champion jockey title. But James emphasises that their rivalry is mutually beneficial.

“Sean and I push each other,” he says. “Sean is older and if I can eventually start to achieve what he’s achieving, that’s the goal. He’s a massive help in terms of tactics. We help each other out. I talk about every race with him, we go into depth, probably more than a lot of other jockeys can.”

Those outside the Bowen family like to tickle the fraternal rivalry, with Nicky Henderson saying after James’s first Cheltenham Festival winner, “He beat his brother to it. They’re the best boys you’ll ever meet. What a family. We have a great bunch of jockeys but it’s terrific for James.”

The man himself brushes it off.

“Sean is doing well enough for himself; there was never a race between us to get there first. When he gets one, I’ll be just as delighted as I would for myself,” he says.

The only area that provokes a little jealousy is weight management.

“That’s the hardest thing for me about being a jockey,” James says. “Sean is extremely lucky – he wakes up a stone lighter than me. I’d be so happy if weights were a stone or two heavier! It can get you down a bit but you find your own way.”

And find his way he certainly has. But with the Festival box finally ticked and Sean still setting the benchmark, I sense he’s only just getting started.

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Teenage jockey Lucas Murphy has certainly earned classroom bragging rights by winning his first race against professional jockeys during his Easter holidays.

At the age of 16, Lucas is a rising star of the horseracing world. But on Friday (17 April), just days before he returned to school, the Marlborough College student lined up against the likes of champion jockeys Sean Bowen and Harry Cobden for Ayr Racecourse’s Slater Menswear Handicap Hurdle and came home a mighty 11 lengths clear of his rivals.

Riding 18/1 shot Tuppence for trainers Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore, Lucas’s milestone success came on the eve of the Scottish Grand National. This was a race that Lucas’s father Timmy Murphy won twice on Merigo for owner Raymond Green, Lucas’s grandfather, who owns and bred the lovely six-year-old Tuppence with his late wife.

“I really enjoyed that, she gave me a nice spin round and it’s nice to get my first winner under rules in Granddad’s colours here,” said the young jockey, who was a star on the Shetland Pony Grand National circuit before honing his skills in pony racing.

Lucas Murphy: combining A levels and point-to-pointing

Lucas rode his first point-to-point winner in January, but any aspirations to become a professional jump jockey have to be put on hold until he completes his A levels at school next year.

“I’m very happy that it’s all happened, but it’s back to reality now,” Lucas told H&H when we caught up with him in the aftermath.

Lucas’s license only came through the week before Ayr and as well as winning on Tuppence on his professional debut, he finished fourth on the Paul Nicholls-trained Paso Double in the conditional/amateur jockeys’ hurdle later in the day.

“It was all very coincidental – Grandad had entered Tuppence before we even considered riding as a professional, so it was just a good draw of events,” he said.

“I’d never ridden her before but luckily she was very easy. [Lucinda Russell’s partner] Peter Scudamore said to jump off in the middle to near the back and just have a nice spin round. I tried not to complicate things and the further we went, the better it was getting, so I’m delighted.

“I was slightly concerned about the task of settling her because in her past races she has been a bit buzzy, but whether it was the ground or the speed she went, she was easy enough. It was very enjoyable.”

“I was just waiting for something to come by me”

Lucas and Tuppence took the lead three fences from home in the two-mile race, opening up a clear advantage by the time they cleared the final hurdle in tremendous style.

“I popped the last and I was just waiting for something to come by me to be honest! Everything went a bit quiet so I looked at the screen and thought ‘Oh, I should probably take a pull!’” said Lucas. “But she’s very professional in the way she kicked clear and won nicely.”

Lucas was welcomed to the winner’s enclosure by his extended family including proud mother Verity, his grandfather and his aunts.

“It was a great day out,” said Lucas. “The other jockeys were very kind – obviously a few knew Dad from back in the day and they were all very supportive.

“Dad’s very good at giving me advice on things to change, things to improve on. When I’m racing, Granddad is very good at supporting me. I’ve had a dream start and hopefully it keeps going.”

More success in his grandfather’s colours

While Lucas returns to school for his final term of the lower sixth year, he’s hoping to continue his pointing career alongside his studies.

“I’m very fortunate to have big trainers like Nicky Henderson very locally to me, so I ride out there in the mornings then we’ve got one pointer at home, which is a retired horse of Granddad’s called Castletown, who won a race at Lockinge the other week, which was very cool,” he said.

“I’m just going to try to keep getting as many rides as I can pointing at the weekends and get as much experience as possible, and hopefully ride a few winners.”

Tuppence’s half-brother Traprain Law, another of Raymond’s home-breds, finished third behind Moudan in the following day’s Scotty Brand Handicap Chase.

“This is beyond special,” he said.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2026, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Watch the Grand National this Saturday (11 April 2026) and join the massive global audience to enjoy this major event in the racing calendar.

The Grand National has been running officially since 1839 and this year there are 34 Grand National runners and riders gearing up for their chance to write their names in the history books. You can download our Grand National sweepstake kit to add another element of excitement to your day.

At a glance

• Grand National date: Saturday 11 April 2026
• Watch Grand National on TV: ITV (UK, FREE) and Racing TV
• Watch Grand National from anywhere: Use this NordVPN deal – 75% Off

How to watch the Grand National on TV

ITV will screen most of the action live and for free on ITV1 and ITVX, while Racing TV (Sky channel 424/Virgin Media 536) will broadcast via its subscription-based service.

You don’t need an ITVX subscription to watch live racing – just an email address and a valid TV license. You can register for a free account or download the app to your mobile device.

If you’re away from home, you can use NordVPN to unlock your ITVX stream of the Grand National action from anywhere in the world.

Free ITV coverage

ITV Racing will broadcast live from Aintree racecourse on 11 April from 12:45–5pm. You can watch on TV or online via ITVX.

Five of the seven races, including the Grand National, will be broadcast live on ITV1 (and can be streamed on ITVX). The first (12:45pm) and final race (5pm) of the day will not be available on ITV.

Whos presenting ITV Racing Grand National coverage?

The ITV racing coverage will, once again, be hosted by Ed Chamberlin, who has been the ITV Racing presenter since 2017. Richard Hoiles will be the lead commentator and will be supported by Mark Johnson and Stewart Machin.

Analysis will be provided by Sir AP McCoy, Mick Fitzgerald and Rachael Blackmore. Alice Plunkett will be reporting from the course, Brian Gleeson on betting, Matt Chapman in the paddock and Luke Harvey at the start. Sam Quek will also be on your screens as part of the team.

Oli Bell will be presenting The Opening Show.

What time is the Grand National?

The Grand National will start at 4pm on Saturday 11 April 2026. The first race of the day is 12:45pm.

Full Grand National day race schedule

• 12:45pm | The Hallgarten and Novum Wines Maghull Novices’ Steeple Chase
• 1.20pm | The William Hill Handicap Hurdle Race
• 1.55pm | The Turners Mersey Novices’ Hurdle Race
• 2.30pm | The William Hill Handicap Steeple Chase
• 3.05pm | The Jet2 Liverpool Hurdle Race
• 4pm | The Randox Grand National Handicap Steeple Chase
• 5pm | The Weatherbys nhstallions.co.uk Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race

How to watch first and last race of the day

ITV will not broadcast the first or final races on Grand National Day, so you’ll need to switch over to Racing TV for this coverage.

How to watch the Grand National from anywhere

If you’re away from home and your normal ITVX coverage is geo-blocked, a VPN will get you your usual coverage from anywhere in the world.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. We’d suggest using a paid-for service such as NordVPN, where you can get an exclusive 75% off, which offers a 100% risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

What distance is the Grand National?

The Grand National is 4m 2½ furlongs, which equates to 6.94km.

How long does the Grand National last?

This is really dependent on the raceday conditions, but you can expect it to be complete in around 10–12 minutes. The average winning time is 9min 10sec, but there have been variations of the course and fence heights over the years.

The fastest time ever was 8min 47.8sec recorded by Mr Frisk in 1990, while the slowest time was the first ever running of the race in 1839, when Lottery took 14min 53sec to be the first across the line.

How many fences are in the Grand National?

The Grand National requires horses to jump a total of 30 fences over two laps of the Aintree course. There are 16 individual fences, but only only 14 are jumped on the second circuit – The Chair (15) and The Water Jump (16) are omitted.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news at major events throughout the year, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Former showjumper Nicole Lockhead Anderson has transferred her high-octane riding skills from coloured poles to the racecourse over the past two seasons. On Saturday she landed the biggest race of her career – and her first winner under Rules – the Blackrock College AFC Ladies National Handicap Chase at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival in Ireland.

“It was great just to be offered a ride in the race, so to win was incredible,” she told H&H.

The 24-year-old Aberdeen-born rider won team gold at the pony European showjumping championships, then went on to jump at five-star level and win at the likes of Hickstead, Royal Windsor and the London leg of the Longines Global Champions Tour. But at the end of 2024 she switched codes to pursue her love of racing.

She began riding in point-to-points for Kent trainer David Phelan, then moved to leading Irish handler Sam Curling’s Tipperary yard where she’s been based since, riding her first Irish point-to-point winner in November, Longhouse Star.

Nicole Lockhead Anderson: “I just crept away and then picked up the pieces”

Now in her second season, she’s racked up eight winners between the flags, also riding in a bumper and an amateur hurdle under Rules, but Saturday’s ladies’ national for amateur riders was her first attempt over fences.

Turning for home in the 2m 5f 17-runner contest, Nicole and the Sean O’Brien-trained The Gradual Slope were making eye-catching progress. Despite veering right over the final three obstacles, the nine-year-old grey gelding produced a thrilling late surge and forged ahead of leaders Caragh Monaghan and Vaureal in the final stride to win by a head.

“It wasn’t until I was coming to the line that I thought I might win it,” she said. “They went very fast early on and he couldn’t really be competitive, so I was further back than I wanted to be, but I just crept away and then picked up the pieces. He dug deep.

“I didn’t know if I’d got up on the line so hearing I’d won was brilliant. The atmosphere coming back was just class.”

The Mark McDonagh-owned The Gradual Slope hadn’t won for nearly two years, although he finished fourth behind multiple Grade One-winning Gerri Colombe and Grand National-winner Nick Rockett on his previous outing at Down Royal, and the pair were sent off at odds of 16/1.

“He was coming back to form so we thought he’d run well, but he ran a lot better than we imagined!” said Nicole, who was riding the son of Shantou for the first time.

“I’ve had an amazing season – eight winners point-to-pointing and my first win on the track. This is everything I’ve dreamed of and more.”

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2026, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Nicole Lockhead Anderson won the Al Shira’aa six-year-old championship with Emerald Irish Cruise earlier in the week...

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Don’t be fooled by this “little rat of a thing” and his diminutive stature, says Kate Johnson of the dual Grand National winner Tiger Roll, for this larger-than-life character – who was bred for the Flat – never once fell and knew how to work a crowd

Tiger Roll was a box-office sort of horse. Fittingly, the 2022 Cheltenham Festival delivered more drama than the Oscars.

Rachael Blackmore was “absolutely lost for words” when she became the first woman to win the Cheltenham Gold Cup with a note-perfect ride on A Plus Tard and was greeted with rapturous applause. Jack Kennedy rode a fearsome race on Delta Work to win the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase on an almost waterlogged course and was met with thunderous boos.

The reason? He’d relegated beloved Tiger Roll and Davy Russell into second place and denied what would have been, in Irish trainer Gordon Elliott’s words, “the perfect ending”.

The owners, the O’Learys’ Gigginstown House Stud, had already announced Tiger would retire and live with Michael and his family as his “fifth child” after this race.

Davy was surprised by the crowd’s reaction and says, “I’ve never heard it before. I can understand where people were coming from, but it seemed to be in jest, it didn’t feel like there was any malice in it.”

The emotion Tiger inspires is no surprise to Jerry O’Brien, the retired Coolmore vet who bred the now 16-year-old diminutive bay with the outsized whiter-than-white star and pony-ish thick forelock as a Flat horse.

He recalls with great tenderness his first sight of the foal: “He had an air of invincibility, a beautiful head, an air of whatever it is – confidence – he had that look, you see it in people too, whatever it is.”

All this and “a beautiful mover, a daisy cutter. He’d do anything for you, very placid, though if you took him on or tried to bully him, you wouldn’t win.”

Tiger – or Sausage – Roll

Tiger Roll’s career started unpromisingly at Godolphin in Newmarket where Jerry notes with no delight he was nicknamed “Sausage Roll” and says,“I think they didn’t understand him, he needed one-to-one treatment.”

Having bought Tiger at Tattersalls, Godolphin sold him, unraced, to National Hunt trainer Nigel Hawke. When he refused to go down to the gallops, instead of arguing with him, they showed him a fence and “he cleared it, and the rest is history”.

“They never taught him how to jump, he trained himself,” Jerry says with obvious pride.

His first race was over hurdles, rather than the traditional bumper Flat race, and he won. Nigel said at the time, “this horse can do anything”.

He changed hands and by the time he trounced his competition at the 2014 Cheltenham Festival Triumph Hurdle, he was owned by the O’Learys and trained by Gordon Elliott, who says of the race that put Tiger on the map: “He always showed a brilliant attitude. When he won, if he’d done nothing from then, we wouldn’t have been disappointed, but he never stopped pleasing us.”

The race wasn’t the rocket launch pad one might expect, though, and Tiger’s light wasn’t always burning bright. Plenty of people thought he’d lost his way.

At the next Festival, he only made 13th place in the World Hurdle, and his next win at the Festival wasn’t until the 2017 novices’ chase. In 2018, he took the Cross Country Chase, again in 2019 by 22 lengths, and by 18 lengths in 2021.

He’d found his race, though there were plenty of disappointing runs between these victories, including being pulled up in the 2020 Cross Country Chase and the Grade One chase at Aintree in 2021 when he finished 92 lengths behind the winner. Gordon never gave up on the horse he describes as “a bit of a character”.

“He was very straightforward, he liked getting on with things and getting his own way,” so Tiger went hunting, cross-country and to the beach, all to spark his interest.

The 2018 Grand National was one more attempt to relight the fire.

Davy Russell recalls: “I felt I was going to be finished very early, I didn’t think he had any chance,” explaining that Tiger’s an “economical jumper”.

“I’d have thought before I rode that he wouldn’t get round in an old National, but guaranteed he’d have won the Grand National no matter what the fences are. He’s just so shocking clever and wicked quick with his fences. I thought it would catch him out, but he knew what he was doing.”

Davy remembers landing over Becher’s Brook: “Tiger sidestepped a horse on the ground and came back to where he was. He was looking after me as much as anything else,” he says.

“The experience was unreal, heart in your mouth at times, he gets so low at his fences, you don’t know if he’ll lift his legs high enough. He has it to a fine art.”

Praise indeed from such an experienced and successful jockey, who gave Tiger a race that Jerry O’Brien describes as “poetry in motion”. He remembers Davy losing an iron between fences and “without losing any momentum or balance he gently got his foot back in. That’s horsemanship at its best.”

How the Tiger ticks

Davy had found the key to Tiger. On the surface, it’s simply that “Tiger just loves jumping” but the jockey also understands the horse.

“He’s not that keen on being told what to do, you have to ask him to do it,” he explains. “He’ll give you everything, empty the tank, whatever he has he’ll give, as long as you don’t ask for too much too soon.”

It’s the same trait that Jerry first noticed in his foal.

Come the 2019 Grand National, the 4/1 favourite was so wound up, Davy needed a lead from another jockey to the start. This time, he recalls: “I felt he kept a little bit to himself the first year, he was a little bit idle which gave him the opportunity to come back and have another go.”

Together they pulled off a feat not seen since Red Rum in 1974. Gordon says: “Any horse can do it once, but to come back and do it the following year, carrying a lot more weight was very special.”

He was ruled out of the Grand National in 2022 and his – depending on whom you ask – much-fancied chance to equal Red Rum’s record of three wins, when his owner Micheal O’Leary vociferously disagreed with the handicappers’ assessment and withdrew him.

As Tiger’s career was winding down after five Cheltenham wins and two Grand Nationals, Mary Nugent, who looked after the star, says the staff drew lots before his races, “to give everyone a chance to lead him up”.

“You could work in racing for years and very rarely come across one like him,” she says. “To have any involvement at all is amazing.”

None of which would come as news to Tiger.

Gordon says: “He knows he’s the man, he’s a bit of a show-off.”

And Mary agrees: “He knows how good he is. He’s a really strong character, he knows his own name and when you call him, he comes to his door and expects treats all the time.”

When Gordon’s friends brought their children to the yard, staff would put them up for a spin.

“He’s as good as gold, then a jockey gets on and he tries to buck them off,” says Mary with obvious affection. “He is what he is, there’s not a bad bone in his body, he’s just a monkey.”

From underdog to national treasure

Why did the public take to him so strongly?

“I think it’s because he’s the underdog – having won at the Festival, he disappeared for a couple of years,” says Davy.

“He was small and unwanted at the start, though he was always well looked after, but he was bred for a different job than he ended up doing. And then to win not once but twice…

“People around the world have an interest in the Grand National, those associated with it end up being household names and for him to continue winning after, which is not the norm, adds to his reputation.”

Gordon agrees: “He’s not the biggest, but he’s got a big heart. It’s his style of racing, he never knows when he’s beaten, a few have said he’s gone and he keeps coming back.”

Surprisingly, when Gordon considers what this horse has done for the yard, it’s not the prestigious wins he cites, but something more intimate and emotional.

“The morale he brings around the place is unbelievable,” he says. “Everyone who comes into the yard – the postman, DHL, someone to see another horse – the first question is, ‘Where’s Tiger Roll?’

“He’s bigger than the yard, bigger than horse racing, all they want to see is Tiger, he stands out on his own.”

Michael O’Leary ungallantly once described Tiger as, “a little rat of a thing, not a good horse, not a class horse, just a complete overachiever”, which Jerry says merely had the effect of “putting everyone on Tiger’s side”.

And for the record, he’s not that small. He’s had more inches added to and subtracted from his height than Tom Cruise over the years, but he was measured at the yard for this article and… he’s 16hh. Or is he? Jerry maintains that he leant into him (he visited Tiger after his second Grand National win) and he’d put him at 15.3hh but “perhaps he was wearing shoes?”.

It’s clear that the only thing that all connections can agree on, is that Tiger Roll is without a doubt the horse of a lifetime.

Facts and figures

• Tiger Roll was sired by the 2007 Derby winner Authorized and bred as a Flat horse
• He was bought at Tattersalls by Godolphin, who later sold him, unraced to National Hunt Nigel Hawke for £10,000, where he won his debut as a three-year-old over hurdles before being sold for £80,000 to the Gigginstown House Stud and celebrating his fourth birthday by winning the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham on 14 March 2014
• 45 races
• Nine-year career
• 13 wins
• £1.4million prize-money
• Never once fell
• One of only three horses to win five times at the Cheltenham Festival

Alice Plunkett: ‘Not one person didn’t want him to win’

ITV Racing presenter Alice Plunkett recalls Tiger’s last race at the Cheltenham Festival on 16 March 2022, when he finished second in heavy going to his stablemate Delta Work.

“I went into the pre-parade ring to see him and everyone was appreciating the moment, knowing it was the last time we’d see him on a racecourse,” says Alice.

“I followed him to the parade ring, he was getting a round of applause everywhere he went. It was very emotional, to be there walking along next to him, eight years after the Triumph Hurdle, realising how small he is, how big a personality he has, how much the public loved him.

“When the commentators said, ‘Tiger’s taking the lead,’ the place went mad, everyone was screaming ‘Come on Tiger!’ Not one person didn’t want him to win.

“He got a reception like I’d hardly seen. We averaged 1.2 million viewers for Cheltenham and it peaked at 1.6 million for Tiger Roll.”

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major events throughout the year, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Join the nation in watching Cheltenham Festival on TV today to witness “the greatest show on turf” with the added bonus of excellent angles, exciting commentary and expert punditry.

Today is the final day of Cheltenham Festival, which began on Tuesday, and the famous Cheltenham Gold Cup starts at 4pm.

At a glance

• Cheltenham Festival dates: 10–13 March 2026
• TV coverage: ITV (UK, FREE) or Racing TV
• Watch Cheltenham from anywhere: Use this NordVPN deal (73% off)

How to watch the Cheltenham Festival

ITV will screen most of the action live and for free, while Racing TV (Sky channel 424/Virgin Media 536) will broadcast via its subscription-based service.

You don’t an ITVX subscription to watch live racing – just an email address and a valid TV license. You can register for a free account or download the app to your mobile device.

If you’re away from home, you can use NordVPN to unlock your ITVX stream of this week’s Cheltenham action from anywhere in the world.

Free ITV coverage

ITV Racing will broadcast racing from Cheltenham Racecourse on 10–13 March from 12:30pm–5pm. You can watch on TV or online via ITVX.

The first six races on each day of the Cheltenham Festival are broadcast live on ITV1 (and can be streamed on ITVX). The ITV coverage is limited, however, to the first six races as it will only run between 12:45pm and 5pm. This means that the final race of each day (starting at 5:20pm) will not be available on ITV.

There is also “The Opening Show” each morning (9–10am) where they will preview the day’s racing. This is shown on ITV4 and ITVX. Finally, there is also a Cheltenham Festival Highlights show available on ITVX, which is a round up of each day after the event.

Who’s presenting ITV racing at Cheltenham?

The ITV racing coverage will, once again, be hosted by Ed Chamberlin, who has been the ITV Racing presenter since 2017. Richard Hoiles will be the lead commentator.

Analysis will be provided by former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner AP McCoy, extremely successful retired jockeys Ruby Walsh and Mick Fitzgerald, and jockey turned presenter Megan Nicholls.

Matt Chapman, Alice Plunkett, Rishi Persad and Luke Harvey will be roving reporters bringing you the biggest stories from around Prestbury Park.

Oli Bell presents the The Opening Show each morning.

How to watch the Cheltenham Festival live from anywhere

Coverage on ITVX is geo-blocked outside the UK. A VPN, though, will get you your usual coverage from anywhere in the world.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. We’d suggest using a paid-for service such as NordVPN, where you can get 73% off, which offers a 100% risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

Today’s race times at Cheltenham

Day 4: Gold Cup Day (Friday, 13 March)

• 1.20pm | The JCB Triumph Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 2.00pm | The William Hill County Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 2.40pm | The Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase (Grade 2)
• 3.20pm | The Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 4.00pm | The Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (Grade 1)
• 4.40pm | The Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase
• 5.20pm | The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle

Have you made a bet? Here are our Cheltenham Day 4 tips

What are today’s highlights at Cheltenham?

Today’s highlights are the Grade One Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle, which is run over three miles, and the Grade One Ryanair Chase, which is a shorter 2m4½f. The Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle is considered the ultimate test of stamina for long-distance hurdlers, while the Ryanair Chase is ideal for horses that are too fast for the Gold Cup but need more stamina than the Champion Chase provides, and the fences are higher, which leaves less room for error.

Cheltenham Festival 2026 race times

All these races will be broadcast on ITVX. Races at 5.20pm (shown in italics) are available on Racing TV, while the feature races of each day are shown in bold.

Day 1: Champion day – Tuesday, 10 March

• 1.20pm | The Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 2.00pm | The Singer Arkle Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
• 2.40pm | The Hallgarten and Novum Wines Juvenile Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 3.20pm | The Ultima Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
• 4.00pm | The Unibet Champion Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 4.40pm | The TrustATrader Plate Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
• 5.20pm | The Princess Royal National Hunt Novices’ Handicap Chase

Read our Cheltenham Day 1 report.

Day 2: Ladies Day – Wednesday, 11 March

• 1.20pm | The Turners Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 2.00pm | The Brown Advisory Novices’ Chase (Grade 1)
• 2.40pm | The Coral Cup Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 3.20pm | The Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Chase
• 4.00pm | The BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase (Grade 1)
• 4.40pm | The Debenhams Johnny Henderson Grand Annual Handicap Chase (Premier Handicap)
• 5.20pm | The Weatherbys Champion Bumper (Grade 1)

Read our Cheltenham Day 2 report.

Today – Day 3: St Patrick’s Thursday – Thursday, 12 March

• 1.20pm | The Ryanair Mares’ Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 2)
• 2.00pm | The Jack Richards Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase (Grade 2)
• 2.40pm | The Close Brothers Mares’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 3.20pm | The Paddy Power Stayers’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 4.00pm | The Ryanair Chase (Grade 1)
• 4.40pm | The Pertemps Network Final Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 5.20pm | The Rosconn Group Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase

Read our Cheltenham Day 3 report.

Day 4: Gold Cup Day – Friday, 13 March

• 1.20pm | The JCB Triumph Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 2.00pm | The William Hill County Handicap Hurdle (Premier Handicap)
• 2.40pm | The Mrs Paddy Power Mares’ Chase (Grade 2)
• 3.20pm | The Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle (Grade 1)
• 4.00pm | The Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup (Grade 1)
• 4.40pm | The Festival Challenge Cup Open Hunters’ Chase
• 5.20pm | The Martin Pipe Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle

Have you made a bet? Here are our Cheltenham Day 4 tips

How to watch the 5.20pm race at Cheltenham

As the ITV coverage ends at 5pm, to watch the 5.20pm races each day you will need to sign up to Racing TV (Sky channel 424/Virgin Media 536).

What time is the Cheltenham Gold Cup?

The Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup will start at 4pm today, Friday 13 March, which is Gold Cup Day at the Cheltenham Festival. Following the final declarations on Wednesday, 11 March, the Cheltenham Gold Cup runners have now been confirmed.

When is the big race at Cheltenham Festival?

Racing fans are treated to a “championship” race every day of the Cheltenham Festival, beginning on Tuesday with the Unibet Champion Hurdle, Wednesday features the BetMGM Queen Mother Champion Chase, on Thursday it’s the Ryanair Chase and it all culminates on Friday with the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Each showpiece race runs as the fourth race and will start at 4pm. However, each of the 28 races over the four days offers something to savour with 12 Grade One (top level) races in total.

What is the Cheltenham Gold Cup?

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt race run at Cheltenham Racecourse over a distance of about 3m 2½f with 22 fences to be jumped. Gold Cup Day is considered the grand finale of the Cheltenham Festival and the race has crowned some of the greatest champions in jump racing history.

Is the Cheltenham Gold Cup on TV?

Yes, you can watch the Cheltenham Gold Cup for free on ITV or ITVX – the Gold Cup sets off at 4pm today (Friday, 13 March), but it’s one of seven races throughout the day. ITV Racing is broadcasting 12:30–5pm.

You don’t an ITVX subscription to watch live racing – just an email address and a valid TV license. You can register for a free account or download the app to your mobile device.

If you’re away from home, you can use NordVPN to unlock your ITVX stream of this week’s Cheltenham action from anywhere in the world.

How to bet at Cheltenham Festival

Online betting companies will be clamouring for your custom during Cheltenham Festival so look out for some of their promotional deals for new customers which include everything from a free bet to giving your money back if your horse loses.

You’ll need to deposit some money into your betting account, choose a race, select your horse (you could study the form and read our tips for day 4, or you could simply pick your lucky number of favourite colour from the jockeys’ silks) and the type of bet — then get ready to cheer!

How to watch Cheltenham Festival in person

If you don’t already have your Cheltenham Festival ticket, there are no more options to watch in person this year as Gold Cup Day is sold out. Thinking of visiting next year? Book somewhere to stay now before everyone else – here’s a list of hotels near Cheltenham Racecourse and other accommodation.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout the Cheltenham Festival and other major events, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

Cheltenham day 4 tips from racing experts, including some cracking outsiders and ‘a great each-way bet’ in the Gold Cup

If at first you don’t succeed… It’s fifth time lucky for the Stayers’ winner and H&H columnist strikes with a 40/1 Festival winner on Cheltenham day 3

A bluffer’s guide to reading a racecard

Cheltenham Gold Cup confirmed runners and riders for 2026 after a late withdrawal

Meet Willie Mullins’ key Cheltenham Festival 2026 contenders: ‘This horse still has the ability to win the Gold Cup’

‘This fellow is top shelf’: the Cheltenham Gold Cup runner with a serious chance, according to Grand National-winning trainer

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A day at the races is often a rare treat, perhaps once a year for a major festival or a local trip with friends to mark a special occasion. Chances are, you purchase a racecard, not only as a souvenir of the day, but to help you follow the action. The snag is that to the uninitiated, reading the information within the racecard can be like deciphering secret code.

Whether you’re off to the Cheltenham Festival or an evening on the all-weather, knowing how to read a racecard can give you wonderful intel into the race, the horses, their form – and ultimately help you make an informed decision where to put your £5 note.

Not all racecards are created equal, however there is a certain language that applies to all of them and, once you understand the code, you can work out how to read any racecard across the country.

With up to 20 different pieces of code providing each nugget of information, it’s understandable that many people never get any further than name, colours and starting price. But understanding what the additional letters, figures and numbers mean will add rich flavour to a day at the races.

How to read a racecard

Above is a generic example of a racecard, from Royal Ascot. For the purposes of this decoding exercise, below we have broken down the essential figures into the typical sections you’ll find on all racecards. They may be in slightly different arrangements, and there are of course variations according to whether the race is on the Flat or National Hunt.

This is a hypothetical example for the purpose of showing all the possibilities for both Flat or jumps horses – it could not be a real specimen as it shows elements exclusive to each code but should enable you to decipher any racecard.

Key for reading a racecard

a) Owner’s colours, shirt and hat silk worn by the jockey.

b) Draw (4) – this is the starting stall number and only applies to the Flat as the jumpers start with tapes with no drawn order.

c) Saddle cloth number (14). If there is an R as shown in this case, it means the horse is on standby to run in case of any non-runners. If NR is shown here, it means the horse is a non-runner. It is not the same as the draw number because it depends on the horse’s weight/rating in the handicap, while the draw is randomly assigned.

d) Colour and sex – this horse is a grey gelding.

For colours:

• b=bay
• bl=black
• br=brown
• ch=chestnut
• gr=grey

For sex:

• c=colt
• f=filly
• h=horse (an entire male horse that is five years old or over)
• m=mare (female horse of five years old or over)

The number 1 after “g”, as shown here, indicates that this is the first time the horse is running since being gelded.

e) Horse’s name. If bred outside Britain, the country code is noted, for example IRE for Ireland, FR for France, USA.

f) Sire and dam – this is the horse’s pedigree, and sometimes the damsire (maternal grandfather) will be listed after the dam in brackets.

g) Number of days since the horse last ran in this type of race. In brackets is the number of days since it last ran under a different code. For example, if this was a hurdle race, this horse last ran over hurdles 155 days ago. However, it ran on the Flat (denoted by F) 24 days ago. PTP would indicate point-to-point.

h) Age of horse – six in this case.

i) Weight allocated for the horse to carry – 10 stone 11 pounds. If the jockey can claim an allowance or is riding overweight, this is not shown here (see notes on J and P).

j) Penalty – this applies to handicaps only, and is the extra weight in pounds that a horse has to carry on top of the allocated weight, according to any improved performances since the handicapper last made its rating. In this case, the horse has 3lb extra to carry, so 11st in total.

k) The horse’s form, most recent on the right.

• All-weather or point-to-point will typically be in bold.
• Hyphen – means new season.
• Slash / means a longer break, so two seasons ago or more.

There are many letter abbreviations used, mostly applying to National Hunt:

• B=brought down
• F=fell,
• P=pulled up
• R=refused
• S=slipped up
• U=unseated rider
• V=void

Numbers apply to placings, with 0 meaning unplaced.

So this horse’s form shows that he has had significant time off after a fall and an unseat, finished second on his comeback last season, and second on his only run so far this season.

l) Horse’s race history

• BF=beaten favourite on last run
• C=course winner
• D=distance winner (to nearest half-furlong)
• CD=course and distance winner
• Hc=horse’s handicap debut.

m) Official rating. There may be one, two or three rating numbers here, which could be calculated by the Racing Post, the official handicapper, Timeform or the British Horseracing Authority. These might take into account the horse’s past race times within the standard time, adjusted for weight and going. These will vary according to the racecard, and is getting into the nitty-gritty for the serious punter.

n) Owner.

o) Trainer. Some racecards will print a number after the trainer’s name to indicate if the horse is having his first or second run for a new stables.

p) Jockey. If there are numbers after his name, this denotes a weight allowance for an inexperienced jockey – this jockey claims 5lb, which means the horse carries 5lb less than his allocated weight.

q) W1 shows that the horse has had one wind operation. This is obligatory for trainers to declare. Some racecards will label wind surgery as WS.

r) Odds at which the horse is expected to start. This is rarely available in printed programmes because the starting price changes all the time.

s) Betting history, showing whether the horse is shortening or drifting in the market.

t) Headgear abbreviations to indicate whether the horse has blinkers, a tongue-tie and so on. The number 1 denotes that this is the first time they have worn this headgear under this code. This horse is wearing first-time blinkers.

• b=blinkers
• e/s=eye shield
• e/c=eye cover
• h=hood
• t=tongue-tie
• p=sheepskin cheekpieces
• v=visor

Crack the code and the racecard transforms from a baffling list of symbols into an essential guide to every horse’s story, form and chance in the race.

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On the eve of the Cheltenham Festival and 40 years on from her Gold Cup win, we remember the magical Dawn Run, the only horse ever to win both the Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup. “Ferocious” in the stable, this Irish mare’s prowess on the racecourse was never in doubt, says Julian Muscat

There are several strands to Dawn Run’s status as a legend of the Turf. She merits that description for the fact that 40 years ago, in 1986, she was the best steeplechaser over all distances from two miles to 3¼ miles. It would be warranted, too, for her unique achievement in 1984, when she won the Irish, British and French Champion Hurdles.

Yet her greatest claim to fame is that she remains the only horse in history to win both the Champion Hurdle and the Gold Cup at the Cheltenham Festival.

That prestigious double has eluded all others because of the diverse qualities required to win both races. The Champion Hurdle, with its emphasis on speed and quicksilver jumping, is the polar opposite of the Gold Cup, in which stamina and resilience are at a premium. But it all came alike to Dawn Run. There was nothing she despised more than the spectre of defeat.

And of course, she was a mare. A common perception in racing is that mares are inclined to wilt when confronted by male opponents. It largely holds true; hence the 5lb weight allowance mares receive from males on the racecourse. Conversely, however, a tough, hardy mare will put males to shame.

Not for nothing was Dawn Run described by Maureen Mullins, wife of her trainer Paddy Mullins, as the “most ferocious” among thousands of horses to pass through their stable. She was her own soul and woe betide anybody who challenged her authority, in or out of the saddle. Her box was her own private domain.

“She was quite a savage in that way,” says Tony Mullins, who rode Dawn Run to 15 of her 21 victories. “If a stranger went into her stable, she’d let him have it.”

When it came to racing, however, all was sweetness and light. Dawn Run would quickly become Ireland’s pride and joy.

Dawn Run and the ‘galloping granny’

Dawn Run had for an owner an equally redoubtable woman in Charmian Hill, who gave 5,800gns for the filly as an unbroken three-year-old at public auction. Charmian also rode the mare on her first three starts in “bumper” races on the Flat for young, inexperienced horses. Dawn Run won the third of them at Tralee in 1982, but not before she tried to bite a horse with the temerity to challenge her for the lead.

Just days later, the Irish authorities refused to extend Charmian’s riding licence on the grounds of her advancing years. She was 62. Very much of the old school, she was brought up around horses on the family’s Monksgrange Stud in Wexford. She’d started riding as an amateur in her 40s and vented full spleen at the Irish stewards’ decision to stand her down.

Known to all as the “galloping granny”, Charmian was pivotal to the Dawn Run story. She frequently rode the mare in morning exercise on the Mullins’ circular, 2f, all-weather gallop, where she was rarely in control of her headstrong partner. Having broken her leg in a fall one morning, Charmian resumed the partnership some months later with increased enthusiasm.

She was also brash in her convictions. On each of Dawn Run’s three visits to the Cheltenham Festival hill, she displaced Tony Mullins, Paddy’s son and the mare’s regular rider, in favour of a more established jockey. It was Jonjo O’Neill who rode Dawn Run to her Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup triumphs, in the process bringing tinges of sadness to what would otherwise have been an unforgettable family affair.

Now a trainer like his much-decorated brother Willie Mullins, Tony remembers every facet of Dawn Run’s career. He vividly recalls the moment when Charmian almost casually dropped a bombshell after his victory aboard the mare at Down Royal in late 1983.

“I won quite well,” he recalls, “but when I came in, Mrs Hill told me that since Dawn Run looked like a Champion Hurdle mare, I wouldn’t be riding her for the rest of the season.”

Just like that. Even when he was again “jocked off” ahead of Dawn Run’s 1986 Gold Cup triumph, Tony Mullins offered great assistance to Jonjo during a crucial schooling session at Punchestown one week before the big race. It probably made the difference. Jonjo recognised as much when he hoisted him atop his shoulders and carried him to the presentation dais at Cheltenham to pick up his winner’s trophy.

“It was difficult even though the place was really buzzing,” Jonjo reflects of that famous day. “It was Tony who’d done everything with Dawn Run, not me. I was just lucky enough to get on her. All Tony had done was help me.”

On that highly charged occasion, with Irish hordes still intoxicated by the excitement of a dramatic conclusion to the Gold Cup, Paddy Mullins was nowhere to be seen. Wounded by the absence of his son from the saddle, he’d sent his wife to receive his trophy from The Queen Mother and made his way instead to the sanctuary of the racecourse stables.

It would emerge over time that Paddy Mullins, who died in 2010, could never bring himself to watch a replay of Dawn Run’s Gold Cup triumph. Nor did he and his son ever sit down and talk about the contrasting emotions intertwined with the mare’s triumph.

Tony Mullins, for his part, was always magnanimous in public. On Gold Cup day, he was taken aback to be asked how he felt about missing the winning ride.

“My family had just won the Gold Cup,” he recalls. “The excitement of it far outweighed losing the ride myself.

“The disappointment of not riding her came much later on. It was a very hurtful thing the way it happened. It ran deep.”

‘This one is out of the ordinary’

Even though Dawn Run showed abundant promise in her early races, it was impossible to envisage her progression to the highest peaks. Tony Mullins admits he never saw it coming, although his father, who would win 10 champion trainer titles in Ireland, had more than an early inkling.

“When she was young, she was a masculine-looking filly who never did anything spectacular at home,” Tony says. “Before she ran, nobody ever said: ‘By God, this is the one.’

“But after my brother [Tom] had won a bumper on her, Dad said to me: ‘This one is out of the ordinary.’ I was quite surprised. I knew by the way he said it that he thought she was something else.”

The jumping fraternity would get a glimpse of Paddy Mullins’ intuition when Dawn Run paid her first visit to the Cheltenham Festival in 1983. Charmian stood Tony down in favour of Ron Barry, who rode the mare into a commendable second place behind Sabin Du Loir in the SunAlliance Novices’ Hurdle (now the Ballymore).

Sabin Du Loir looked like winning easily, but Dawn Run made him pull out all the stops. It was Barry’s first time aboard the mare and a consensus held that he may even have won had he set a stronger pace aboard Dawn Run. Barry was not to know of the mare’s remarkable ability to maintain a punishing, end-to-end gallop. She could contrive a racing rhythm that would have seen most horses throw in the towel long before the finish.

With Barry sidelined by a fall, Tony was back aboard when Dawn Run ventured to Aintree three weeks later, where they waltzed to victory.

“Then came the first portent of the heights the strapping mare would one day scale. Saddled up again just 24 hours later, Dawn Run made Gaye Brief – winner of the Champion Hurdle three weeks earlier – work hard to suppress her in the Templegate Hurdle. And when Dawn Run won again in a canter at Punchestown two weeks later, the extent of her prowess had become plain.

Dawn Run picked up where she left off the following season until her Down Royal victory, when Charmian told Tony he would be replaced as the mare took aim at the Champion Hurdle. With Jonjo now aboard, Dawn Run won the Christmas Hurdle and Irish Champion Hurdle before descending on Cheltenham for the second time.

Up against her in the Champion Hurdle was another habitual front-runner in Desert Orchid, no less, but Dawn Run led the grey until halfway. Desert Orchid briefly went on but the mare had his measure by the third-last flight, when the field bunched up alongside her. At that point, Jonjo prompted Dawn Run, who shrugged off the persistent Buck House before she resisted Cima’s late thrust to carry the day by three-quarters of a length.

Irish eyes misted up as they cheered Dawn Run every step of the way into the winner’s enclosure. She became just the second mare to win the Champion Hurdle, yet amid scenes of joyous bedlam Charmian remained unmoved. She was already thinking ahead to Dawn Run’s date with destiny in the Gold Cup.

But Charmian had other fish to fry before that. After Dawn Run won the Aintree Hurdle by 15 lengths, she instructed Paddy to send her mare to France, where she won the Prix la Barka and Grand Course de Haies (French Champion Hurdle), each time with great ease under Tony.

Tony was supremely confident Dawn Run would win that day at Auteuil. So much so that he obliged a photographer from The Times, who told him that if he could jump the final flight in the middle of the obstacle (rather than either end), he would get a picture of Dawn Run jumping to victory with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

“I was winning so easily that I was able to do just as the photographer asked,” Mullins recalls. “That day was the best feel I ever got from Dawn Run.”

She closed that season having won eight of her nine starts.

Dawn Run: ‘Brilliant – but a bulldozer’

Dawn Run’s 1984–85 campaign, which saw her graduate to fences, was cut short after she sustained a tendon injury in winning on her chasing debut. It was a significant setback that detained her for 13 months, after which she resumed by winning the Durkan Brothers Chase in December 1985. And she showed she was back on the Gold Cup trail when she beat Buck House over 2½ miles at Leopardstown over Christmas.

Then the plot unravelled.

Dawn Run was sent to Cheltenham in January 1986 for a straightforward assignment ahead of the Gold Cup. She was sauntering along in the lead until she crashed into the fifth-last, unseating Tony into the bargain.

“That was just her,” Tony relates. “She was quite ignorant with her jumping. If she met a fence right, she was brilliant; if she met one wrong, she felt she could bulldoze it. She wouldn’t try to put herself right.”

Tony also spoke of seeing his Gold Cup dreams biting the dust in the act of falling off Dawn Run – and his nightmare duly materialised.

“I didn’t like it but after all these years, I’m just about getting over it,” he reflects.

Nevertheless, when Jonjo O’Neill schooled Dawn Run solo at Gowran Park seven weeks before the Gold Cup in 1986, he came away thinking the inexperienced mare should not even be lining up at Cheltenham, never mind as the favourite.

But it was a different story when he rode Dawn Run in another schooling session at Punchestown one week before the Gold Cup.

“That time Tony Mullins schooled alongside me on another horse and it made all the difference,” O’Neill recalls. “Tony was a big help to me. It allowed me to go to Cheltenham thinking I had a fighting chance.”

So, for the third time, Charmian stood Tony down in favour of Jonjo, who rode in the Gold Cup like a man possessed. He needed to, since Dawn Run was making only her fifth start over fences.

“I was worried down at the start because she was a moody so-and-so and I had to get away smartly,” Jomjo relates. “She might have sulked otherwise, but she jumped away and we met the first fence on a good stride.”

As with her Champion Hurdle victory, Dawn Run was harried from the off, this time by Run And Skip. And her task became all the more daunting when she clattered into the fifth-last fence, where she surrendered the advantage. Even though she was back on terms on the turn for home, her goose looked cooked when both Wayward Lad and Forgive ’n Forget swept past her on the run to the final fence. But Dawn Run was far from spent.

“I had ridden Wayward Lad before and never felt that he stayed more than three miles,” Jonjo recalls. “I could see that he was tiring on the run-in, so I kept riding away and sure enough, the mare came alive under me. She’d taken a breather and managed to force herself back in front in the nick of time.”

If Dawn Run’s Champion Hurdle triumph had triggered a communal outpouring of joy, this one saw the winner’s enclosure engulfed by what seemed like half of Ireland. In the deliriously happy chaos, Paddy slipped quietly away, unnoticed. His finest moment as a trainer was compromised by the absence of his son in the saddle.

It would be apposite to relate that Dawn Run, then an eight-year-old, had had another chance to win the Gold Cup for a second time the following year. Sadly, it never came to pass.

After Dawn Run had beaten Buck House, who’d just won the two-mile Champion Chase at Cheltenham, in a match race at Punchestown in April, Charmian was adamant she should return to France. Dawn Run would again take in the Prix la Barka as a stepping stone towards the Grand Course de Haies she’d won two years earlier.

Tony was back aboard for the Prix la Barka, after which he maintained Dawn Run would not avenge the beating she’d taken from Le Rheusois in the Grand Course itself. Agitated by what she perceived as Tony’s negativity, Charmian replaced him once more with French jockey Michel Chirol, in whose hands Dawn Run died when she fell heavily and broke her neck at the fifth-last flight.

Her demise hit the Mullins family hard.

“It was a massive shock,” says Tony.

“I went off for a walk on my own; I felt very angry. I felt Dawn Run should never have been there that day and in two seconds she was gone.

“She was only really maturing. She was a huge big mare, almost 17 hands, and only just coming into her prime. She was just superior at every level, all of her life.”

It says everything about Dawn Run that her death was reported on the front page of The Irish Times.

Dawn Run’s origins

• Bay mare, foaled 1978
• By Deep Run out of Twilight Slave, by Arctic Slave
• Owner: Charmian Hill
• Trainer: Paddy Mullins
• Breeder: Joe Riordan
• Jockeys: Tony Mullins, Jonjo O’Neill, Ron Barry
• Unlike many top-class National Hunt horses, Dawn Run boasted a fine jumping pedigree. She was by multiple champion National Hunt sire Deep Run out of the unraced Twilight Slave, whose five other winners over jumps included Even Dawn, himself the winner of 21 races over jumps. Furthermore, Dawn Run’s granddam, the point-to-point winner Early Light, was a full-sister to the Scottish National winner Brasher.

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Jimmy Mangan may only have 10 horses in his yard in Co Cork, but his Cheltenham Gold Cup contender Spillane’s Tower is one of the best in the National Hunt game. Having already saddled a Grand National winner, Jimmy is bidding to add jump racing’s most prestigious prize to his CV at this year’s Cheltenham Festival.

It’s been 23 years since Jimmy celebrated victory at Aintree with Monty’s Pass, but eight-year-old Spillane’s Tower could be the horse to thrust him back into the limelight.

“In the village I come from the signs are still up ‘Home of Monty’s Pass’, so hopefully they can put another one up!” said Jimmy, 70.

Spillane’s Tower beat two potential Boodles Gold Cup rivals in the Betfair Cotswold Chase over the same distance on Cheltenham Trials day.

“He’s a lovely, placid horse, who comes alive when he goes racing,” Jimmy says. “When he came into the [parade] ring at Cheltenham, you could see he was ready for it. We had to put him in a stable as he was really on his toes, getting giddy and wanting to get on with the job. That’s a good sign with him.”

The Walk In The Park son was bred by Noreen McManus and is certainly fulfilling his early promise.

“The McManuses said they were sending me the most beautiful horse to train and when he came off the lorry that day I said, ‘I hope there’s an engine inside that horse, because he had all the physique, size, strength and boldness – he was a real athlete.

“Thankfully there was an engine to drive that body. He performed very well over hurdles and I said, ‘If this horse can jump a fence we’ll have a great time’.”

He promptly won two Grade Ones as a novice.

“I knew then we had a good one,” Jimmy chuckles. “You can’t compare him to Monty’s Pass, who was a handicapper. This one is all class, he has the gears. This fellow is top shelf.”

Spillane’s Tower’s build-up for the Gold Cup

Not only is he a performer, he’s also a “very easy horse to deal with”. His routine includes plenty of turnout and variety.

“He loves rolling in his paddock every day,” Jimmy says. “If it’s wet, he has an all-weather sheet and we’ll still get him out. He eats better if he goes out, and he’ll roll in the mud and have a pick of grass. He’ll kick the door to get out, but then he loves to come in in the evening, I think he suits being where he’s trained.

“He goes out in the centre of the circle gallop and we work the other horses round him and he won’t even lift his head. He’ll just pick at the grass and say, ‘I’ve done my work this morning’.

Jimmy works him both on a circular gallop and up a hill.

“If you’d run up that hill yourself, you’d know about it!” says Jimmy. “We have a lot of nice gallops that we use. I think variety is nice – not to be confined to the same gallop all the time.”

As for the race itself, Jimmy says “you need luck”, but he isn’t the type to stress about it.

“I’m cool enough, I’ve been at it all my life,” he says. “This horse has a ‘pull out’ which is vital from the last fence home. If luck has gone his way during the race, he should have a bit up his sleeve and won’t be far away at the finishing line.

“If I go for the big race, I fancy my own horse and that’s it. They all have chances, but I’m not running for the sake of it.”

Jimmy Mangan’s lucky local hat

One extra bit luck comes in the form of Jimmy’s trademark purple and yellow beanie – both his family racing colours and those of his local hurling team, St Catherine’s GAA in Conna.

“A long time ago, my father had a few point-to-pointers and he had no racing colours,” Jimmy explains. “He asked the local hurling team would they give him the loan of a jersey, and they did. He kept the jersey and registered with the Turf Club so they’re our racing colours and also our local hurling team.

“Any time I do a Cheltenham preview night for charity, they give me a hat in my colours! It will definitely be coming to Cheltenham.”

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Champion trainer Willie Mullins has entered nine horses for the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup 2026, and his son and assistant trainer Patrick Mullins highlights Gaelic Warrior as his pick of the bunch.

“I’d love to ride Gaelic Warrior, I think he’d win the Gold Cup,” says amateur rider Patrick, who won the Grand National last year with Nick Rockett. “I’ve ridden a lot of horses in my life, the feeling he gives is pure strength, and it’s that strength that makes me think he could win.

“It’s a cliché but he’d run through a brick wall – he’s like a tank.”

Patrick rides Gaelic Warrior at home and describes him as “always leaning on you, always wants to be in conversation”.

“He can hang and run a bit keen at times, he’s complicated, but while some horses would annoy you, he doesn’t annoy me because you can have a conversation with him,” he says.

“Our gallop is bottomless and he just goes through it so easily. After every race he’s fresh – nothing knocks him or fazes him.”

Thankfully, he never throws his weight around in the stable – though it takes two people to lead him up at the races.

“He’s a funny horse, if he was a human he wouldn’t know how strong he is,” Patrick adds. “He has a bit of wild eye and he’s a bit turned in – he’s not an oil painting, but he does the job.

“He looks big – he’s 16.3hh – but in the stable he’s quite relaxed. But he has this persona in his races of being very difficult to ride and he is. He was born with this energy. You need to know him, that’s all.”

Why Gaelic Warrior could win at Cheltenham 2026

The eight-year-old has a superb record, only finishing out of the first three once (sixth) in 20 completed races. He racked up three in a row last season, and won the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival by 8½ lengths two years ago.

Gaelic Warrior finished a tight third in the Boxing Day King George thriller, before last time out finishing second to stablemate Fact To File in the Irish Gold Cup at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown.

“I thought he’d win there too,” admits Patrick, before pointing out that the horse’s form outside of Leopardstown is considerably better than his form at Leopardstown. “In technical terms, in Cheltenham and Aintree and Kempton, where he ran well, there’s a constant inside running rail, and the field races quite tight, so you can park him in on horses’ tails and he relaxes, when he can’t see any daylight.

“At Leopardstown, there’s no inch of running rail, so the field is always spreading out and there’s daylight. Whenever he sees daylight he says I wanna go faster! He is strong, and when he wants to go there’s not much I can do about it. But if you know him well enough, you can distract him – you can’t force him to slow down.”

Of course, with Willie Mullins having some 87 entries across the board, several in multiple races and numerous key contenders, all this conjecturing could be academic. Gaelic Warrior is currently vying for favouritism for the Ryanair Chase with Fact To File – who may yet himself be supplemented at a cost of £25,000 for the Gold Cup, for which the latter is favourite despite the lack of entry. Gaelic Warrior is entered in both – and it’s Willie’s decision which of his jockeys rides which horse.

But Patrick has laid down his cards as the horse he is keen to ride in the big one as he bids to add the Gold Cup to a CV that is impressive by any standards, let alone as an amateur rider.

He adds: “If I could choose one, the Grand National would be the one and always was because of the history – but Sam Waley-Cohen won both so let’s try to match him!”

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If you want to back a winner at the 2026 Cheltenham Festival, take a look at hat-trick seeker Marine Nationale. The 2025 Champion Chase winner returns to defend his title, and is set to peak at just the right time.

So far, Marine Nationale has been to the Cheltenham Festival twice. The first time he beat the favourite, Willie Mullins’ Facile Vega, to win the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, before thrashing two-mile chasing superstar Jonbon by 18 lengths last year.

“He’s been to Cheltenham twice, won twice and hasn’t come off the bridle twice,” says Barry Connell, the horse’s owner-trainer.

Last time out this term, Marine Nationale’s speed was blunted in a Leopardstown bog at the Dublin Racing Festival, where he was beaten 19 lengths by Majborough, and Barry is hoping for better going at Cheltenham for his stable star.

“I live near Leopardstown and in the last 20 years, I’ve never seen rain like it, the heaviest ground I’ve ever seen up there,” he says.

“We needed to get a run into him, but he didn’t go a yard on that ground. He lost 15 lengths with the mistake he made and it brought him to a standstill. He was never in a rhythm, but he stayed on at the end, and I think you’ll see a different horse in March.

“Two factors will come into play: he loves spring ground and he loves Cheltenham.

“He’s nine years old and in the prime of his life. Last year we were learning on the job – this year he’s the finished article.”

Marine Nationale: gearing up for Cheltenham Festival 2026

H&H visited Barry Connell’s Co Kildare yard in the lead-up to the Festival, where Marine Nationale was just back in work after a short break following his Leopardstown exertions. After a short canter on Barry’s two-furlong deep sand circle, he rolled in his airy box and was then walked round by yard manager Mandy Makepeace to pose for photos.

“He’s an absolute dote to handle, exceptionally well behaved,” says Mandy. “He’s a little excited today as he loves people coming to see him, but you could put a child in here.”

Barry says this temperament – coupled with his natural athleticism – is a winning ingredient.

“He did come alive in the parade last year for the Champion Chase, but while other horses are losing it and sweating, he’s a dude and doesn’t mind where he is,” he says.

“Marine is a special animal, not just one in a lifetime, he’s one in 10,000 lifetimes and we’re just lucky he landed in our yard.

“They say the good horses train themselves, and you just don’t get in their way or do anything stupid.”

It’s a humble assessment of his input from Barry, who is a relative newcomer to the training ranks. He started riding aged 30, took out his amateur jockeys’ licence at 40 – landing two Cheltenham Festival winners in the saddle. Since he started trained only six years ago, he has secured two wins and two placings in five starts at the the Festival.

“I enjoy the whole process,” he says, resting an arm fondly on Marine. “Being down with horses in the early morning, seeing them gallop and just standing with them in the stables.

“It’s addictive once you’ve been bitten by these gorgeous thoroughbreds. There’s an energy that radiates out of these magic creatures.”

And Marine isn’t the only horse from Barry’s Boherbaun Stables making the trip across the Irish Sea. While his Champion Hurdle hopeful William Munny is temporarily sidelined by a muscle injury, seven-year-old Eachtotheirown will line up for the Supreme Novices’. He was sub-par in November at Fairyhouse, but has since bounced back to win at Thurles on his last start. He has won or been runner-up on all his five runs but one.

“He’ll be a big price, but he’s a good jumper and he’ll definitely be competitive,” says Barry.

Barry Connell is a trainer on form. With only 17 horses in training, he’s not prolific, but when they run, it tends to count. He had two winners from two runners on Valentine’s Day. And while neither of them hold Cheltenham entries this time, it bodes well for Marine Nationale and Eachtotheirown come the Festival.

To read the full article on Barry Connell’s yard visit, pick up a copy of Horse & Hound, 26 February.

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If you’re wondering what to wear to the races, this guide will help you work out what’s a good option and what to avoid, depending on what type of race meeting you’re attending.

In 2023, The Jockey Club announced that formal dress codes will no longer be in place at any of its 15 racecourses in order to make racing more accessible and inclusive, but many racegoers will still choose to dress up for a day at the races, especially if they’re heading to one of the big meetings. Not every outing requires you to dress up as if you’re heading to Royal Ascot, but there are still several things to consider when deciding what to wear to the races.

That said, some racecourses (as not all are owned by The Jockey Club) do employ dress codes, especially for prestigious racedays. The dress codes usually vary between enclosures and will also differ for men and women. For example, men may be required to wear a particular type of jacket, such as a morning coat, while women may need to wear a hat or fascinator. If you’re struggling with what to wear to the races, we always recommend checking whether there are rules for the meeting and enclosure at the racecourse you plan to attend.

What to wear to the races: the considerations

As there is quite a difference in what to wear to the races depending on the fixture, there are a few things you need to consider before you start thinking about individual items of clothing. It’s currently National Hunt racing season (until the end of April) and this calls for stylish yet practical attire, focusing on warmth, comfort and, often, country chic.

Weather

Much of the excitement at a fixture is outside, whether it’s heading down to the parade ring to check out the runners, placing a bet at the bookmakers in front of the grandstand or standing at the rail to watch your horse come in, so it’s important you’re dressed for the weather.

Some seating areas are covered, but not all, so be sure to check your ticket.

Time of year

All-weather racecourses mean that racing can go on year round, but traditionally the Flat racing season runs from the Newmarket 2000 Guineas meeting at the start of May until Champions Day at Ascot in mid-October, while the bigger meetings in the National Hunt season run from the end of October to the end of April.

Enclosure

Generally, the more expensive an enclosure is to access, the smarter people tend to dress. Some enclosures will have dress codes you’ll need to adhere to, but these vary so it’s best to check on the racecourse’s website.

Time of day

Most meetings are held in the daytime, but some racecourses, such as Windsor, are known for their evening meetings, while many all-weather tracks also hold evening meetings under lights throughout the winter. Some jumps meetings also take place in the evening during the summer months. If you’re heading to an evening meeting, it’s definitely worth taking a jacket or something to cover your shoulders.

For specific areas of advice or inspiration, jump to:

• Men’s footwear
• Men’s legwear
• Men’s shirts and jackets
• Men’s accessories
• Women’s footwear
• Women’s dresses
• Women’s legwear
• Women’s tops and jackets
• Women’s accessories

What men should wear to the races

Although not compulsory in all enclosures or at all racecourses, men usually dress smart.

At jumps meetings, men tend to adopt a “dress for the weather” approach as most of the big meetings take place during the winter months. Many traditionalists wear tweed, but this is personal preference. If you’re a corporate guest at a big meeting, such as the Cheltenham Festival, a suit is more appropriate.

For Flat racing, men usually wear a collared shirt with trousers and smart shoes. Some choose to finish the look with a tie and blazer, but again this is personal preference and not essential – and to some extent determined by the weather.

Men’s footwear

First thing’s first – you can expect to be on your feet all day at the races. Consequently, the footwear you select needs to be comfortable and suitable for day-long wear. If you’re keen to buy a new pair of shoes for the races, ensure your first wear of them does not coincide with raceday. To ensure the shoes have suppled up and moulded to your feet, wear them in a good few times around the house or in the office.

Next, consider the style of shoe you want to wear. As as general rule, trainers are largely regarded as a no-go for the races – however, they are often welcome at more low-key racedays or weekday meetings. Oxfords or brogues pair well with a suit, and you may want to opt for a boot, such as a Chelsea, for the depths of winter. In summertime, loafers can help keep you cool and comfy.

You should also ensure the colour you opt for compliments the colour and material of your attire. As a rule, black suits should be paired with black shoes, while navy suits may go more pleasantly with a brown or burgundy shoe. Light or grey suits can be successfully paired with a warmer colour, such as shades of brown, navy or oxblood. That said, black shoes are a classic and usually pair well with most suits.

Finally, be sure your shoes are in good order before you go. In essence, make certain they are clean and polished and the laces are in a good state of repair. It would be a shame to detract from an otherwise chic look with shabby shoes.

Men’s legwear

A formal, tailored trouser in a slim or regular fit looks smart and is comfortable – but think about your material. A wool, tweed or a heavier cotton twill are good choices for cooler weather, while a linen or linen/cotton blend will help you beat the heat at a summertime fixture.

A chino is also a great move for raceday – but be wary of shorts. Some events where dress codes are in place do not permit them. Even so, the general consensus is a preference for longer trousers, so at the end of the day it’s about your comfort. If it’s baking hot and you want to rock a short, in most cases you’ll be at liberty to.

Smart jeans are out for the more prestigious racedays and the fanciest enclosures, though smart casual racing outfits featuring denim are very popular on weekday meetings.

Men’s shirts and jackets

Shirts with a collar are the obvious choice and it’s your choice to opt for a dress shirt if you wish – cufflinks are a fun accessory. Most men opt for a classic Oxford shirt, however.

If you’re not going to a full tailored suit, a suitable blazer or jacket will be what to wear to the races. Fabric will be a major player as with trousers, and it’s advisable to avoid a high polyester content if you can. Jackets with a high concentration of polyester are not especially breathable and could cause you to overheat.

Some men like to opt for a three-piece suit, which has the addition of a waistcoat. These are smart and add a little personality to an outfit (especially if they have a fun lining). What’s more, they give you an layering option in changeable weather. On the coldest racedays (or nights), you might add an overcoat to you look.

Men’s accessories

A smart belt is great, if it matches your shoes then even better. A wristwatch is another nice touch, especially if the strap also ties in to your belt and shoe colour.

Most men pair their collared shirt with a tie and you could even go the extra mile and choose a matching pocket square (like this one).

A pair of smart gloves are just the ticket on chilly winter racedays.

What ladies should wear to the races

Although ladies do tend to dress up for the races, you do not need to go to the lengths you would for Royal Ascot for other race meetings.

As with the gentlemen, it is a case of wearing weather-appropriate clothing in the winter for National Hunt racing. We wouldn’t advise heels as the conditions are likely to be wet and you’re likely to spend much of the day on your feet.

Many ladies attending Flat racing meetings in the summer use it as a chance to get dressed up, although this is not always compulsory. Some of the more prestigious meetings, such as Royal Ascot, and the increasing number of ladies’ days put the spotlight on fashion. Some meetings also offer competitions for the best-dressed racegoers to enter.

Women’s footwear

It’s a caution that’s worth repeating – at the races about 90% of your time is spent on your feet, so it’s a very good idea to ensure you’re shod primarily for comfort. That said, there’s no need to sacrifice on style and there are so many chic options at your fingertips. Even so, if you’re buying new, give them a few wears before you step out on raceday.

Strappy sandals and open-toed stilettos are tempting for aesthetic purposes – but a few words of caution. Firstly, racedays can draw huge crowds and you wouldn’t want your toes getting trampled on. Secondly, there’s a high chance you’ll be walking across grass at some point and risk sinking into the turf. Finally, the grace period for which most people can tolerate such shoes is usually very short. Strappy, thin-heeled shoes are likely suspects in causing tired, aching and blistered feet. So, what to wear to the races?

Chunkier, close-toed shoes are a great choice and heeled pumps or court shoes are elegant yet practical. Block heels are especially comfortable. If you aren’t keen on fully enclosing your foot, a slingback pump is a good shout and makes for a summery look. Or, why not go for some smart flats? Loafers, Mary Janes or mules would be ideal choices.

Heels are seen much less in the winter and many ladies opt for a pair of stylish boots instead. Ankle and Chelsea boots are popular options, or invest in a pair of knee-highs that will serve you well through the colder months.

As with the men, trainers are not traditionally worn, but are becoming more popular as dress codes become more and more relaxed.

Women’s dresses and jumpsuits

When we think of the ultimate raceday look, a dress is often the thing that springs to mind. Dress code pointers that apply to dresses usually relate to straps, sheer fabric and skirt length, so double check before you attend.

Sky’s the limit in terms of style, cut and fabric – the most important consideration is your comfort and wearing something you feel good about. One thing to bear in mind is that synthetic fabrics do not have the breathable properties of natural ones, and can be more liable to pilling. Cotton jersey dresses are on the casual end of the scale, linen and cotton poplin somewhere in the middle and wool, silk, satin and velvet numbers offer the most polished look.

Another all-in-one option that shouldn’t be overlooked is the jumpsuit – a super garment for overcast days when you don’t need a jacket, but a summer dress would leave you chilly. Alternatively, you might opt for a jumpsuit if you’re a habitual trouser wearer and fancy a compromise. The styles vary from super slim-fitting, to a tailored bodice and wide-leg pant, or even a relaxed all-over fit.

Women’s legwear

If you’re more of a trouser person, your options are far ranging. Whether you’re after a high-waisted nautical vibe, a statement culotte or a wide-leg linen, you can build an outfit as casual or chic as you like.

On wintery days a wool or tweed trouser with a boot will keep the cold at bay. Dark colours disguise any mud and opting for a smooth grain leather will be easier to clean.

Jeans can be on the agenda dress code permitting – we can recommend bootcut, wide leg or flared styles to give your look an upmarket feel, while skinny jeans fit nicely under knee-high boots in winter.

Women’s tops and jackets

Double check for any rules on straps and sheer fabrics, but other than that sky’s the limit on the top you choose. If you’re struggling to pair a top and trousers it can sometimes help to go for opposite fit styles for each garment. For example, pair a loose, wide-leg trouser with a more fitted top.

Similarly, you can use your top to dress down a more elegant trouser to give off a smart-casual vibe. A nicely-fitted, well-made white cotton jersey t-shirt would pair wonderfully tucked in to a high-waisted statement trouser.

When dressing for colder weather, you have the opportunity to elevate your look with whatever you choose to layer up with. Long wool or tweed overcoats, capes or ponchos – especially those with a faux fur trim – keep you cosy while looking looking glam.

Women’s accessories

We need to talk headwear. Again, you’ll need to check the dress code for the meet you plan to attend to know if you need one, but in the majority of cases preference will be the decider.

There are two obvious options when it comes to raceday headwear: a hat or a fascinator. What you choose will come down to budget, style and personal preference. The main difference between the two is that fascinators affix to the head using a headband or clip, ideal for fine, silky hair, or a comb, best suited to thicker hair. Traditionally, fascinators are worn on the right side of the head.

Hats and fascinators can be as subtle or as bold as you like, so consider how best your headwear can complement your outfit. If your look is thus far muted, opt for a more striking colour or style. On the other hand, you’re already sporting eye-catching attire, opt for a more subtle hat or fascinator so as not to detract from your outfit.

If you need a winter style, a fedora, trilby, pill box or cossack-style hats are smart and chic. Look for felt-type or velvet options for a wintery feel.

What to wear to the races at Cheltenham

Known as the home of jump racing, Cheltenham holds a number of racedays and meetings throughout the year, the biggest of which is the Cheltenham Festival. If you’re heading to Cheltenham, we’ve put together a specific guide on what to wear to Cheltenham races. You can also find Cheltenham edits by brands including Fairfax & Favor or Really Wild.

What to wear to the races at Royal Ascot

The dress code and expectations at Royal Ascot are different to almost all other race meetings in the UK. There is a strict Royal Ascot dress code and in some Ascot enclosures you’ll be required to wear an appropriate hat or fascinator. We’ve picked out a selection of suitable hats for Royal Ascot and dresses for Royal Ascot to help give you some inspiration and guidance on what’s accepted.

Things to take to the races

Depending on the time of year and type of meet you’re heading to, there are a few things you shouldn’t be without:

• A large umbrella, like this one available at Amazon
• A pair of binoculars – we’ve rounded up the best binoculars for horseracing
• Picnic basket, like this one, if you’re heading to a summer meeting

How to save money on raceday outfits

Without doubt, picking up a new look for a trip to the races can be a pricey affair. Given that there’s the cost of travel and the price of entry, investing in a new look on top might feel like a stretch. With this is mind, can you be smart about your spending? Here’s how…

Think multi-purpose – could the boots you’d like to top off your winter raceday look work in your regular wardrobe rotation? On the other hand, maybe the hat you want for Ascot would go perfectly with your wedding guest outfit later in the year? There’s nothing worse than buying something beautiful and wearing it once. Instead, think about what to wear at races in terms of your closet as a whole.

Hit the charity shops – it’s an age-old tip but truly, you never know what hidden gems lie in these treasure troves of preloved articles.

Rent your look – wear something flashy for the fraction of the cost with designer clothing rental services like By Rotation. You can rent garments and accessories to upscale your look and when you’re done, simply return them. No wasted money or wardrobe space – and it’s a greener way to style yourself, too.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major events throughout the year, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You might also like:

Heading to the races? Here are 7 of the best binoculars to keep you abreast of the action

A bluffer’s guide to reading a racecard

What to wear to Cheltenham Races – outfits for ladies and gents

I’ve been to Royal Ascot at least a dozen times and these are my eight golden rules

Avoid a fashion faux pas at Royal Ascot with the full 2026 dress code for every enclosure

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

The hugely popular veteran racehorse Two For Gold has been retired from racing at the age of 13. Trained by H&H columnist Kim Bailey and his assistant turned co-trainer Mat Nicholls, the gelding won 11 times in a remarkable career spanning more than eight years, during which he ran 36 times – an outstanding 36% winning strike rate.

Two For Gold also finished second six times and came third twice, taking part in the 2022 Grand National and at the Cheltenham Festival, accruing over £287,000 in prize money for owners, the May We Never Be Found Out Partnership 2.

Kim Bailey writes in Horse & Hound this week: “All in all, he has been a most remarkable horse to be involved with.”

Kim Bailey on Two For Gold: ‘He has a truly remarkable record’

Two For Gold was bred by Neil Tector and is a son of Gold Well. He made a winning debut in a Southwell bumper in 2017 under conditional jockey Richard Condon and returned to the winner’s enclosure two months later at Doncaster with Mikey Hamill in the saddle.

The following season he embarked on a hurdling career before going chasing and it was with jockey David Bass that he posted a glittering nine successes.

A Grade Two victory at Warwick and the Fleur Du Lys at Lingfield are just some of the highlights of Two For Gold’s racing career and he became a great campaigner of the hugely popular veterans’ races in recent years.

“A truly remarkable record,” said Kim Bailey of the yard favourite who he has described as “a funny old horse and a quirky individual”. “He will now enjoy a wonderful and very well deserved retirement.”

Ensuring the future of Two For Gold and other retired racehorses

Kim Bailey went on to explain the importance of safeguarding the future of all racehorses when they retire from the sport.

“When we retire our horses, they go with a non-racing agreement,” he explained of the system in place at his Gloucestershire training yard. “The people who take them on are heavily vetted by my wife Clare, and the conditions are very clear: the horse must be properly looked after, we must be kept informed of how they are getting on, and there has to be ongoing communication. We never sell our retired horses, because once you sell a horse, you lose all control. This way, we retain some influence over their future.

“Racing has absolute responsibility to look after its horses when their racing careers end, but when you consider how many horses retire every year, it’s easy to see what a challenge this is for trainers and owners alike.”

You can read more from Kim Bailey in this week’s Horse & Hound, the magazine is in shops on Thursday, 12 February.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2026, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Grand National runners, riders and complete form guide for 2026, including a former winner ruled out on Thursday morning

‘The new generation of no-nonsense trainers are making their mark’, says Kim Bailey

The Horse & Hound Podcast 146: Kim Bailey on the Cheltenham Festival and the highs and lows of training racehorses

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

The Horse & Hound team always has one eye on the major horseracing events in the UK, and another on the other major equestrian sporting events.

We’re looking forward to an action-packed calendar throughout the year with plenty of racedays to attend in person or watch on TV. Here’s our quick guide to the key race meetings in 2026.

Major UK horseracing events 2026

If you are viewing this on a mobile, swipe left for more info

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major events throughout the year, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

A bluffer’s guide to reading a racecard

Heading to the races? Here are 7 of the best binoculars to keep you abreast of the action

What to wear to the races – all occasions covered

How to pick a winner and what to wear: H&H’s ultimate guide for first time racegoers

Don’t know the difference between a banker and a bumper? Hat or no hat? Swot up with our guide for

Discover the top UK equestrian events on the 2026 calendar

The major UK horse trials that eventing fans shouldn’t miss in 2026

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Watch the Welsh Grand National on TV this weekend and get a front-row seat for the biggest racing event of the year in Wales.

The Welsh Grand National is run at Chepstow Racecourse. It’s a Premier Handicap National Hunt steeplechase, which is open to horses aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of three miles and 6½ furlongs (6,154m) over 23 fences and the winner will take home more than £85,000.

At a glance

• Welsh Grand National dates: 27 December 2025
• TV coverage: ITV (UK, FREE), Racing TV or Sky Sports Racing
• Watch Welsh Grand National from anywhere: Use this NordVPN deal

How to watch the Welsh Grand National

ITV will screen all the action live and for free, while Racing TV (Sky channel 424/Virgin Media 536) and Sky Sports Racing (Sky channel 415/Virgin Media 519) will broadcast via their subscription-based services.

Free ITV coverage

ITV Racing will broadcast racing from Chepstow – and Kempton Park – on ITV1 from 12:30–15:00. You can watch on TV or online via ITVX.

The Welsh Grand National will start at 14:30.

How to watch the Welsh Grand National live from anywhere

Coverage on ITVX is geo-blocked outside the UK. A VPN, though, will get you your usual coverage from anywhere in the world.

A Virtual Private Network can alter your device’s digital location, bypassing geo-restrictions and unlocking your equestrian streams wherever you happen to be. VPNs also work wonders for your internet security, encrypting your information to keep you safe online.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. We’d suggest using a paid-for service such as NordVPN, where you can get 74% off, which offers a 100% risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major events, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

A beginner’s guide to betting

If you fancy having a flutter on a horse race but don’t know where to start, we’re here to help.

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:

• Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service)
• Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

Watch the King George VI Chase on TV this Boxing Day and get a front-row seat for one of the most popular sporting events over the Christmas period.

The King George VI Chase Day at Kempton Park stages some of the most important races in the Jumps calendar – not only the famous Grade 1 showpiece, the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase, but also the Christmas Hurdle and Kauto Star Chase.

At a glance

• King George VI Chase dates: 26 December 2025
• TV coverage: ITV (UK, FREE), Racing TV or Sky Sports Racing
• Watch King George VI Chase from anywhere: Use this NordVPN deal

How to watch the King George VI Chase

ITV will screen all the action live and for free, while Racing TV (Sky channel 424/Virgin Media 536) and Sky Sports Racing (Sky channel 415/Virgin Media 519) will broadcast via their subscription-based services.

Free ITV coverage

ITV Racing will broadcast racing from Kempton – as well as Aintree and Wetherby – on ITV1 from 12:30–15:00. You can watch on TV or online via ITVX.

The King George VI Chase will start at 14:30.

How to watch the King George VI Chase live from anywhere

Coverage on ITVX is geo-blocked outside the UK. A VPN, though, will get you your usual coverage from anywhere in the world.

A Virtual Private Network can alter your device’s digital location, bypassing geo-restrictions and unlocking your equestrian streams wherever you happen to be. VPNs also work wonders for your internet security, encrypting your information to keep you safe online.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. We’d suggest using a paid-for service such as NordVPN, where you can get 74% off, which offers a 100% risk-free money back guarantee. If you’re not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news throughout major events, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

You may also be interested in:

Which horse has won more King George VI Chases than any other, plus other key facts about this historic Boxing Day race

Kim Bailey: ‘Is it time for the King George to leave Kempton Park?’

A beginner’s guide to betting

If you fancy having a flutter on a horse race but don’t know where to start, we’re here to help.

Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:

• Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service)
• Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

Having long been regarded as a rising star of the weighing room, 20-year-old jump jockey Freddie Gordon hit the horseracing headlines last month when riding a hat-trick of winners for his trainer father Chris Gordon at Haydock Park, including a brace of Graded races.

During this remarkable “day to remember”, Freddie also rode out his claim having notched up his landmark 75th winner.

“I was in disbelief because in my career I haven’t won many big races and I’ve never won a Grade Two race,” says Freddie. “Having three big winners on a single day – on a Saturday – was amazing. Every jockey wants to be riding in these big races and these big meetings, but these opportunities don’t come round very often for a young lad, so I didn’t believe it would happen.

“It was a crazy day. I knew my old man was going to give me quite a few more rides this season, but I didn’t know we would enjoy quite such a good start. He’s had more winners already this season than we did for the whole of last season, so I’m just very lucky to be riding his horses.”

Freddie Gordon’s life before racing

Freddie was more interested in football than horses growing up, but learnt his trade in pony racing before progressing to the point-to-point circuit, winning his first race at the age of 16.

“I used to score lots of goals, but I think it was only because I played in a very bad Sunday league!” he says. “It was only when I joined a better football team that I realised actually I wasn’t that good!

“I wasn’t particularly great at school either, so I thought I might as well make good use of what my parents do and try to make something out of horses, so I was around 12 when I announced I wanted to start riding.

“I probably rushed into pony racing a bit quickly – I think mum and dad were so happy that I finally wanted to ride that they wanted to help me enjoy it as much as I could, so within six months of learning to ride I was in a pony race.

“It didn’t go to plan though. I got bolted with down to the start, I did a circuit on my own, then when we finally got to the start the pony refused to race. My mum thought that was it, the end of my riding career, but luckily I stuck with it and it’s gone quite well since!”

Freddie Gordon’s racing career

Early on in his riding career, Freddie joined training behemoth Paul Nicholls, switching from amateur to conditional rider at the time. He joined Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrows yard three years ago and rides out for his dad one day a week.

“The two yards are obviously very different, so it’s a great experience – nowhere else would you get to ride the sort of horses I’m riding at Nicky’s every day, they’re unbelievably good,” he says. “My riding has improved massively.”

Among his other notable successes along the way, Freddie celebrated his 18th birthday by riding his first ever winner at Cheltenham and racked up a treble at Ascot, Kempton and Cheltenham with the Nicky Henderson-trained East India Express. He also picks out winning the Great Yorkshire Chase at Doncaster last year on his father’s Annual Invictus as another highlight, describing representing the family business in the big races as “one of the best feelings you can have in racing”.

One of his favourite horses from his father’s stable is the six-year-old Jorebel and the pair have scored in five of their past six races.

“Hopefully he’s got more to come, too,” says Freddie.

Winning a Grade One is next on this talented young horseman’s checklist and, after a particularly successful summer season, Freddie now holds a strong lead in this season’s conditional jockeys’ championship, with an outstanding winning strike rate of more than 30%.

“Diamond Hunter, one of my winners at Haydock the other day, is entered for the Grade One at Aintree on Boxing Day, he should run a blinder in that, fingers crossed,” he says.

The racing world, it seems, is Freddie’s oyster.

• Enjoyed reading this? For more expert insight on top riders, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Subscribe to Horse & Hound magazine today – and enjoy unlimited website access all year round

Watch the Cheltenham November Meeting on TV and don’t miss out on the weekend’s electric atmosphere.

This meeting at Cheltenham racecourse features the Paddy Power Gold Cup and the Unibet Greatwood Handicap Hurdle.

At a glance

• Cheltenham November Meeting dates: 14–16 November 2025
• Cheltenham November Meeting on TV: ITV and Racing TV
• Watch the Cheltenham November Meeting from anywhere: Use this NordVPN deal

How to watch the Cheltenham November Meeting

ITV will screen all the action live and for free, while Racing TV will broadcast their subscription based service on Sky channel 424.

ITV Racing Cheltenham November meeting coverage

Ed Chamberlin presents the coverage with analysis from AP McCoy, Mick Fitzgerald and Ruby Walsh, reporting from Oli Bell, Alice Plunkett and Luke Harvey, and commentary by Richard Hoiles.

Friday 14 November | 13:30–16:00 ITV4

Saturday 15 November | 13:30–16:00 ITV

Sunday 16 November | 13:05–16:00 ITV

How to watch the Cheltenham November meeting live from anywhere

A VPN is your ultimate companion to watching horse racing safely online, wherever you are in the world.

A Virtual Private Network will unblock the geo-restrictions you find on most streaming platforms, so you can get your usual coverage even while abroad. A VPN will also keep you secure while online, using encrypted connections to ensure your data remains private.

There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. We’d suggest using a paid-for service, such as NordVPN, which our colleagues at TechRadar rate as the best VPN service in the business. You can try 100% risk-free with a 30-day money-back guarantee, 24/7 support and, right now, a big discount.

How to use a VPN

Using a VPN is incredibly simple.

1. Install the VPN of your choice. NordVPN is the one we recommend.

2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access.

3. Then head over to your chosen provider on your browser or device and enjoy the livestream.

Cheltenham November Meeting post times

Time is provided in local time (GMT).

Friday 14 November – Countryside Day

13:10 | Race 1: Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle

13:45 | Race 2: Middle Distance Veterans’ Handicap Chase

14:20 | Race 3: Novices’ Chase

14:55 | Race 4: Shloer Chase

15:30 | Race 5: Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle

16:00 | Race 6: Novices’ Handicap Hurdle

Saturday 15 November – Super Saturday

12:35 | Race 1: JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Novices’ Hurdle

13:10 | Race 2: Amateur Jockeys’ Handicap Chase

13:45 | Race 3: Arkle Challenge Trophy Trial Novices’ Chase

14:20 | Race 4: Paddy Power Gold Cup

14:55 | Race 5: Handicap Hurdle

15:30 | Race 6: Intermediate Handicap Hurdle

16:00 | Race 7: Mares’ Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race

Sunday 16 November – Carnival Sunday

13:15 | Race 1: Maiden Hurdle13:45 | Race 2: Novices’ Limited Handicap Chase14:20 | Race 3: Talking Sense Handicap Chase14:55 | Race 4: Oddschecker Handicap Chase15:30 | Race 5: Greatwood Handicap Hurdle16:00 | Race 6: Open National Hunt Flat Race

You may also be interested in:

How to watch Cheltenham Festival 2026 live from anywhere in the world on Gold Cup Day

Remaining Cheltenham Festival 2026 ticket options now that Gold Cup Day has sold out

‘The new generation of no-nonsense trainers are making their mark’, says Kim Bailey

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Aamilah Aswat made her racing dream a reality and became the first ever Black British female jump jockey to ride in Britain, coming fifth on her professional debut yesterday (10 November).

The 19-year-old conditional jockey, who learnt to ride at a city equestrian centre, partnered Guchen for trainers Kim Bailey and Mat Nicolls, and owners Friends of Ebony Horse Club, in the JCB Handicap Hurdle at Kempton Park on Monday.

“I can’t believe that my dream to race has finally come true. I couldn’t ask for a better horse – Guchen gave me such a great feeling and I will remember this day for ever,” said Aamilah.

“I just wanted to get round safely and repay the trust that Kim and Mat have had in me. I am so grateful to them and the owners, the Friends of Ebony Horse Club, for giving me this opportunity.”

Aamilah grew up in Gloucester and first learned to ride at St James’s City Farm, under the tutelage of Imran Atcha, and competed in pony races in 2017 and 2018 with the Pony Racing Authority.

She joined the Riding A Dream Academy’s inaugural Khadijah Mellah Scholarship programme in 2021-22, where she was sponsored by The Jockey Club.

The Riding A Dream Academy is part of the British Racing School and aims to support young people from diverse ethnic backgrounds, disadvantaged communities and urban equestrian centres get involved in British horseracing. It is inspired by Khadijah, who was the first British Muslim woman to ride in and win a British race when she won the 2019 Magnolia Cup charity race at Goodwood. The Khadijah Mellah Scholarship is a year-long programme for talented riders, supported by Goodwood racecourse

After the scholarship programme, Aamilah went on to complete the foundation course at the British Racing School and then join the yard of Grand National-winning trainer Kim Bailey.

“I am really proud to be the first Black British female jump jockey. When I was growing up I looked up to Khadijah and I hope that now other young people will look up to me as well and know that they can also reach their dreams,” she said.

Khadijah, who is also one of the co-founders of the Riding A Dream Academy, said she has watched Aamilah progress over the years and “could not be more excited and proud to see her race”.

“She is a brilliant role model for the other Riding a Dream Academy students. Visibility is so important and I am excited for her to have the opportunity to display her talent and hard work,” she said.

“Huge thanks to Kim Bailey, Mat Nicholls and their team and also the Friends of Ebony for facilitating this huge day. It is a privilege to support the next generation and Aamilah is the future of talent in horse racing.”

Naomi Lawson, co-founder of the Riding A Dream Academy, said: “Representation really matters and what we’re seeking to do at the Riding A Dream Academy is ensure that young people from diverse ethnic communities have the chance to shine in the sport.

“Only around two to three percent of licensed jockeys come from these communities, far below the national average, so we hope that Aamilah is the first of many to come through the ranks and succeed in the sport.

“None of these things happen without a huge number of people and we are so grateful to our funders the Racing Foundation, the staff at the Riding A Dream Academy and British Racing School and the team at Kim Bailey’s for making today possible.”

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The past couple of weekends have served up some cracking jump racing. Everyone’s been desperate for a bit of rain and some genuine jumping ground, so it was great to see competitive fields and some good horses stretching their legs again.

You can tell the winter game is back, because Venetia Williams opened her account with Djelo winning the Charlie Hall Chase with just her second runner of the season.

There’s been a noticeable change in the pecking order among the jump trainers with a new generation coming through – probably not the sort to wear trilbies like the old guard used to!

Dan Skelton has come out flying again this year and, after last season, he’ll be determined not to let Willie Mullins get the better of him. He has the biggest team of horses in the country and has already run around 120 of them, so he’s not short of ammunition. He’s the poster boy for the new breed of no-nonsense trainers.

Newmarket-based James Owen is also doing a fine job of pushing boundaries, with one foot in the Flat world and one over jumps, and he’s making a success of both.

Then Olly Murphy is one of the most impressive young trainers around. His strike rate is hovering around 40%, which is extraordinary. He has a yard full of talented young horses, and you feel he’s ready to make that leap. If anyone is going to make Dan Skelton sweat over the trainers’ title, it might be Olly.

Olly also has the bonus of his agent father Aiden helping him buy his horses and Sean Bowen riding for him. Sean is in a class of his own – strong, balanced and clever and worth at least a 7lb advantage to any horse he sits on.

The whole Bowen family are quite something. Eldest brother Michael has made a great start to his training career since taking over from father Peter, who was a fine trainer in his own right and brought fresh owners and money into the Welsh scene. Their younger brother, James, is currently sitting second in the jockeys’ championship behind big brother Sean.

Another changing of the guard

There’s also been a shift in the point-to-point world. It’s an industry under real pressure at the moment, with rising costs hitting just as hard there.

Lately, we’ve seen a few of the so-called semi-pro point-to-point trainers make the jump into the professional ranks, and two to keep an eye on are Tom Ellis and young Max Comley. Max had a proper grounding working for me, and both he and Tom are training the right way.

A couple of young claiming jockeys who are really starting to make their mark are Freddie Keighley and Isabelle Ryder. Both had horsey upbringings in Pony Club, racing and showjumping, the sort that produces real talent.

Freddie rode his first winner at Cheltenham a couple of weeks ago – he’s the son of trainer Martin and I think he was born on a horse. He has a lovely natural balance and an infectious enthusiasm for the game. He’s now with Paul Nicholls, which will only bring him on further, and he’s definitely one to follow.

Now that Rachael Blackmore has retired and Bryony Frost has moved to France, the spotlight has turned to the next generation of female riders. And, as you will have read in Horse & Hound magazine last week (“Female role models”), Isabelle is absolutely one of them. She rode for me the other day and gave the horse a superb ride.

For someone so young, she has a fantastic attitude, real feel and plenty of confidence in the saddle. She’s going places, and quickly.

“The power behind the throne”

To finish, it would be remiss of me not to mention that I’ve added Mat Nicholls onto my licence. Mat has worked with me for 18 years and is very much the power behind the throne here.

We have invested heavily in some really nice young horses and ex-point-to- pointers and had a winner at Aintree with Marsiac, and Uttoxeter with Home Made Hero. We look forward to the challenges ahead.

● Which young trainers and jockeys are catching your eye? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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The wait is finally over with National Hunt racing making its seasonal return at Chepstow Racecourse on 10-12 October in 2025. If you want to experience the action in person, here’s our full guide on how to get your hands on tickets for The Dragonbet Welsh Racing Festival at Chepstow Racecourse.

This will be the first time that Chepstow Racecourse plays host to this three-day jump racing festival, which organisers hope will offer an “intimate” alternative to the Cheltenham Festival. The event will build on the track’s traditional jump season opener, expanding it with a third day of racing and a broader entertainment programme.

“It will be amazing and full of fantastic, really competitive racing,” says Chepstow’s general manager Luke Admans. “There will be loads of prize money up for grabs and loads of entertainment off the track as well.”

Where to buy Chepstow Racecourse tickets

To buy standard Welsh Racing Festival at Chepstow tickets, visit Chepstow Racecourse’s website.

Prices start from £24 for an admission ticket, with gates opening at 11.35am each day and with plenty of entertainment besides the racing to help give you a wonderful day out.

If you‘re after VIP and hospitality tickets, you’ll want to head over to Seat Unique. There’s a huge range of packages on offer, depending on what you’re looking for, with prices starting at £69, and you can learn more here.

What’s on at Chepstow’s Welsh Racing Festival 2025

Day 1

Day one at the Welsh Racing Festival includes some top-class action. Highlights on the racecard include the Grade Two Dragonbet Persian War Novices’ Hurdle. This prestigious contest has produced future stars of the sport and is a must-watch for fans eager to see the next generation of potential champions.

Another race not to miss is the crowd-favourite Dragonbet Veteran’s Chase, which celebrates seasoned chasers as they battle it out over fences in a thrilling, action-packed contest.

Day 2

The second day of the Welsh Racing Festival features even more great action from horses on the track and superb entertainment off the track too.

Day 3

The third and final day of the Welsh Racing Festival features the Dragonbet Welsh Champion Hurdle. This race was last run at this track in 2002, before moving to Ffos Las, but it now returns home to Chepstow and is a race not to be missed.

If you’re looking to upgrade your day with premium dining, luxury service, and unbeatable views of the track, check out Chepstow Racecourse’s official hospitality partner, Seat Unique.

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Championship titles were awarded to Britain’s top jump jockey, conditional jockey and trainer at the bet365 Jump Finale at Sandown Park on Saturday (26 April).

Sean Bowen, 27, built up an unassailable lead in the jockey championship and already had it won well in advance of the final day. The Welshman had 180 winners from 902 rides over the season, winning £2,219,430.

“It is something you dream of as a kid,” said Sean. “When you are racing ponies up the gallops, you dream of being AP McCoy, Richard Johnson and Brian Hughes. I can’t quite believe it’s now going to be me. Going racing, jockeys like those were my idols and you try to be like them.

“You want to be a jockey and then to be champion jockey – that is the dream.”

Paying tribute to all those who have supported him, Sean said: “It all starts with my parents – they have been my biggest supporters. And my agent [Alain Cawley] has done an incredible job and kept me very busy.”

Sean also thanked Olly Murphy, a trainer he has primarily ridden for for a number of years – he provided Sean with 103 of his 180 winners, including Reslendent Grey, who won Sandown’s feature race on Saturday, the bet365 Gold Cup.

“Olly Murphy has been my biggest supporter trainer-wise,” said Sean. “For him to have his horses in great form from the start to the end of the season has been a massive part of my success.”

“It’s been an unbelievable year and I texted Sean on Saturday morning and said sorry I hadn’t provided him with a Grade One winner,” said Mr Murphy. “But we’d just about done everything else.”

Sean’s win on Saturday came after an incredible last two weeks of the season, having ridden a treble and then a four-timer at Perth midweek, and winning the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse for Welsh trainer Rebecca Curtis on Haiti Couleurs on Monday.

“Honestly, the best two weeks of my life – I hope it carries on for ever,” said Sean, who is looking forward to his wedding.

“Harriet [Matthews] and I are getting married in the summer. I am not very good at organising things like that so am leaving it to Harriet!” joked Sean, who is off on his stag do to Tenerife this week. “We are really looking forward to the wedding and have been together since I was a conditional at Paul Nicholls’.”

Sean’s previous attempt at the jockey championship ended in heartbreak; a Boxing Day knee injury derailed his campaign while he was leading last season.

“I knew I had to start fast and keep the pressure on,” said Sean. “Harry Skelton pushed me hard around Christmas, but I managed to rebuild the lead. It’s been relentless, but every mile of the 75,000 I’ve driven this season, and every ride, was worth it for this.”

Harry Skelton finished second in the jump jockey championship with 142 winners, Harry Cobden was third on 116 winners.

‘Everything I achieve is for mum’: 19-year-old secures conditional jockey championship

Freddie Gingell became champion conditional jockey for the 2024/25 season. The 19-year-old is from a famous racing family; his grandfather is Cheltenham Gold Cup-winning trainer Colin Tizzard and his uncle is former jockey and Colin’s successor, Joe Tizzard.

Freddie said: “It was only three years ago that I was point-to-pointing and it took off from there. It’s gone really well.

“Joe has been very good to me and almost like a brother. We are very close and he helps me here, there and everywhere.”

Not only has he had the support of Joe, but he also had the considerable force of his boss, 14-times champion jumps trainer Paul Nicholls, behind him.

It was Paul that provided more big-race success when he handed him the ride on Il Ridoto in the Paddy Power Gold Cup at Cheltenham in November.

“Of my 39 winners this season, 18 have been for Joe and 18 have been for Paul Nicholls,” Freddie said.

“Winning the Paddy Power Gold Cup on Il Ridoto was the biggest day this season and another horse right up there would be Copperhead – he won four races this season including the veterans’ final.”

Freddie’s mother Kim died aged 43 in 2020 owing to cancer, but he still keenly feels her influence.

“Everything I achieve is for Mum,” said Freddie. “It’s nearly five years ago now and my whole world really got turned around. From then on, I really wanted to give it my best shot, which is what she would have wanted. It’s all for her.”

Freddie thanked his father, Dave, who drives his son to most of his race meetings: “Dad and I really are like best friends as much as father and son. I am thankful for him being by my side and we get through every day together.”

A conditional jockey can “claim” a weight allowance of 7lbs until they have 20 wins, 5lbs until 40 wins and 3lbs until 75 wins (conditional jockeys with fewer than five wins can also claim an extra 3lbs when riding for their own stable).

Callum Pritchard finished second in the conditional jockey championship with 32 winners, Caoilin Quinn was third with 29 winners.

Jump trainers’ championship goes to the wire

The British jump trainers’ championship was decided on the day of the bet365 Jump Finale at Sandown Park and following the sixth race, the bet365 Gold Cup, the prize money standings meant Ireland’s Willie Mullins had an unassailable lead over Dan Skelton, who led going into the final day.

Mr Mullins won his first title last season, becoming the first Irish-based trainer to take the honours since Vincent O’Brien 70 years earlier and has now emulated Mr O’Brien with a second championship.

The final prize money standings were £3,570,991 to Mr Mullins and £3,371,484 to Mr Skelton.

“The last few weeks have been tough and they must have been tough for Dan too – that’s the way things go,” said Mr Mullins.

“I am very happy for all our connections and owners who once again have supported us with their horses.

“It feels special to do something similar to what Vincent O’Brien did, but of course he then and went and also did it on the Flat, which I won’t be doing!”

Having saddled Il Etait Temps to victory in the Grade One bet365 Celebration Chase and Gaelic Warrior to win the Grade Two bet365 Oaksey Chase, Mr Mullins, 68, ended bet365 Jump Finale and the British jump season perfectly when Jump Allen landed the concluding bet365 Handicap Hurdle.

“I am very happy doing what I’m doing and am very happy for the owners, staff and the home team, starting with Jackie my wife,” he said.

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National Hunt jockey Nick Scholfield has announced his retirement from the saddle with immediate effect.

The 35-year-old’s career has spanned almost 20 years and his final ride was aboard Monbeg Genius, owned by his long-term supporter Martin Tedham, in the Randox Grand National on Saturday (5 April).

“As a child, all I ever wanted to do was become a jockey, following in my father’s footsteps,” said Nick, referring to Philip, a popular figure on the Devon and Cornwall point-to-point circuit. “I feel incredibly privileged to have ridden professionally and shared the weighing room with some amazing jockeys over the years.”

Nick enjoyed early success when becoming champion novice point-to-point jockey at the age of 16 and went on to be champion amateur jockey the following year. As a professional, he had 5,500 rides and 670 winners and multiple Grade One victories. These included winning the 2013 Tolworth Hurdle with Melodic Rendezvous, the 2014 Fighting Fifth Hurdle with Irving, the 2016 Future Champions Finale Juvenile Hurdle aboard Adrien Du Pont and the 2017 Doom Bar Maghull Novices’ Chase with San Benedeto.

Nick rode three winners at the Cheltenham Festival on Hunt Ball in 2012, Qualando in 2015 and Sky Pirate in 2021; he said the victory with Hunt Ball was one of the most special wins of his career.

“He was an absolute gentleman – so straightforward and confident. Every time I rode him, I believed we’d win,” he said.

Nick pulled up the Jonjo O’Neill-trained Monbeg Genius three from home in the Grand National on his last ride.

“It was nice to get a ride in the race and for Mr Tedham, who I rode for for 15-plus years, and there’s no better race to have your last ride in,” he said. “It was his dream to have a runner in the National, but unfortunately the ground conditions went against our horse.”

Nick rode for many notable trainers, including Paul Nicholls, Kim Bailey, Jeremy Scott, Jonjo O’Neill and Harry Fry.

“I’ve ridden for 19 years professionally, so it’s a long old time, and it’s probably the right time,” he said.

Nick’s sights are now set on becoming a trainer; he has recently completed his training modules with plans to send his first runners out next season.

“I would like to extend my thanks and express my deep gratitude to so many people who have helped me over the years – the owners, trainers, stable staff, my agents and sponsors,” he said. “They have all supported me throughout my career, many of whom have been with me since my early days as a 7lb claimer. I’m excited for the next chapter as a trainer!”

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The racehorse Langer Dan has been retired with immediate effect following the discovery of an underlying heart problem.

The nine-year-old, trained by Dan Skelton and owned by Colm Donlon, is best known for winning the Coral Cup at Cheltenham Festival in both 2023 and 2024 – a feat never achieved by any other horse. He won £281,952, and six of his 27 runs, finishing second on four occasions and third three times; most of these runs were with Dan’s brother, Harry.

“Unfortunately we have to retire Langer Dan from racing. He has got an unexplainable heart condition – we don’t know how it’s happened, the vets have no idea at how it’s occurred, but he has to stop racing immediately,” said Dan.

Langer Dan was most recently declared a non-runner in the Stayers’ Hurdle at Cheltenham Festival just over two weeks ago owing to a respiratory issue.

“He had a slightly dirty trachea wash during Cheltenham week which was a secondary effect of his heart not working as efficiently as it should,” said Dan.

It was hoped Langer Dan could run in the Grade One William Hill Aintree Hurdle on 3 April, but further veterinary investigation detected a heart issue.

“We’re quite lucky he gave us that indication as his heart rate was never raised and there were no other signs at all. The vets diagnosed a heart problem after further investigation with a heart scanner and it came as a big shock to us all,” Dan said.

Dan thanked Langer Dan’s owner and those who looked after the gelding, including Amber Blythe, who works for the leading trainer at his Alcester base in Warwickshire.

“Colm has been an absolutely brilliant owner to Langer Dan and obviously we want the best retirement for the horse so he is going to live with Amber, who has looked after him, just up the road from the yard – she has done a magical job with him over the years.

“We’ll miss him as he has been part of the furniture here and we’ve been very lucky to have him. Thank you for the wonderful days you gave us.”

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It may have taken young jump jockey Patrick Wadge, 23, nearly two years and 63 races to ride his first winner under Rules, but the winner of last season’s conditional jockeys’ championship is being richly rewarded for his perseverance and patience, securing his first Cheltenham Festival success.

The delighted young Scot landed the 3m 1f Ultima Handicap Chase with the Lucinda Russell-trained Myretown on the opening day of Cheltenham (Tuesday 11 March).

“He was winging fences,” said Patrick of his winning partner Myretown. “Thanks to Lucinda and Scu and the owners – it’s crazy, the opportunities I’ve had, the places I’ve been and the horses I’ve got a ride on. He’s the best horse I’ve ever sat on and I think he might be the best I ever will.”

“Patrick’s early days in the saddle were pathetic!” says mum

The incredible wave he’s riding now is a remarkable turnaround from those barren early days as a rookie jockey when he came close to calling time on his racing career. Born in Gretna, Patrick says “as soon as he left hospital” he was carried round by his mother while she mucked out on his parents’ livery yard, so “from day one all I can remember is horses and I had a great upbringing around them”.

However, his mother describes the future champion’s early career in the saddle as “pathetic!”

“In fact, one day he got off his pony, let it go with all its tack on and said ‘I’m giving up’,” she recalls. “So where it’s come from I’m not quite sure, but we’re really proud of him. He’s worked really hard, he’s just been fantastic, he’s done really well.”

Patrick, who also hunted, showjumped and followed his father’s footsteps into eventing until he was 16, continues, “I certainly wasn’t always the best rider – I’ve had to work hard at it and I’d be up early in the morning riding out before school and mucking them all out. It was the same at Lucinda’s – I grafted to get what I wanted. I’m working now, but it still feels like my hobby too, so it’s good fun.

“I was very lucky that both mum and dad taught, and I always think you can link eventing and racing together – they’re very similar. I wasn’t the most confident of riders when I was younger, but I ended up in point-to-pointing through my older brother Cameron and followed him up to Lucinda’s five years ago – I said I’d come up for the summer and never left. I haven’t looked back since.”

Patrick Wadge: “That season was the be all and end all”

Patrick Wadge’s brother Cameron also started out as a jockey and is now one of the Lucinda’s assistant trainers. But Patrick endured a tough couple of years as an ambitious young jockey and came close to calling time on his racing career as the frustrations mounted during 20 months and 63 races without riding a winner.

“It all started off a bit slow and eventually I told myself it was going to be my last year – if I couldn’t get going a bit and ride a few winners, then I may as well call it quits,” says Patrick. “I just felt I wasn’t really going anywhere. It was call it quits or change place, so that season was going to be the be all and end all – it was certainly the turning point, and I’m very happy it turned out the way it did.”

Having certainly learnt his trade the hard way, finally, at Perth racecourse in April 2022, everything clicked for the determined Scot and he notched up a momentous first winner in a 10-runner novices’ handicap hurdle riding Petite Rhapsody for Lucinda.

“I don’t think it was necessarily me that kept at it, more the people around me who kept me at it – Brian Harding my jockey coach was very good and always supported me because it was a long time and it did get to the point where I thought it was never going to happen. Then all of a sudden it did, so I have to thank everyone who did support me.

“I think a lot of people would agree my racing brain wasn’t really the best back then – I could always get horses to jump, but I was still getting used to the racing side of things, where to place a horse and that sort of thing. But Lucinda kept employing me, so I owe her a lot and that pushed me to keep going and thankfully it paid off. The turnaround in just one or two years is bonkers really.”

Patrick Wadge: “I’ve had great people supporting me”

As well as Lucinda and Brian, Patrick credits Lucinda’s partner eight-times champion jockey Peter Scudamore and agent Wilson Renwick for guiding him through his breakthrough season last year, when he was entrusted with Lucinda’s top mare and subsequent Grade One winner Apple Away in a Listed race and has gone on to enjoy great run of five successes with his yard favourite Traprain Law, including second in a Grade Three Chase. H&H also caught up with Patrick last year when he enjoyed a remarkable sequence of six winners from seven runners.

“The backing you have as a young jockey nowadays is unreal – I’ve had great people supporting me,” he acknowledges. “Between Scu, Derek Fox, Brian who has been there since the start, and Lucinda who has been very good to me – she’s very understanding of horses. Her yard has really grown over the past few years, going down south and winning on the big days, and it’s a brilliant place to work and they’re only getting bigger and stronger.

“I joined Wilson at the start of last year and it really took off from then, he got me some nice rides and he gives me great advice after racing, so if I ever feel like I’ve made a mistake or done something wrong – he’s there, he’s honest and he’ll tell me the truth.

“Scu is brilliant too – sometimes he’s a wee bit old fashioned in his ways, he keeps it simple, but what he says works. It’s brilliant having those kind of people behind you, helping you to improve.”

“I rode 24 lots that day!”

Patrick Wadge says working at two-time Grand National-winner Lucinda Russell’s yard is a “busy place to be”.

“It’s hard work and you have to graft, but she and Scu are some characters,” he says. “Obviously there are days when the stress is high, but they’re great to be around and they get stuck in with us too – Lucinda’s out there at 6am, mucking out, riding out and mingling with the yard. You can talk to them about anything. They’re brilliant people and deserve what they get.

“I’ll always remember one day it snowed and a lot of people couldn’t get into work, I was unfortunately one of those people who could get into work, and I was at the main yard at Arlary and I was the only lad riding, everyone else was mucking out. That day I rode out 24 lots, so that was a hard day! But that’s the way it works – if you work hard, you knuckle down and you graft, you get stuff in return.”

Traprain Law: the “great character” Patrick owes it all to

Talking about the wonderful Traprain Law, a multi-winner at Ayr and Kelso, Patrick describes him as a “great character” and the horse he owes it all to.

“You always get told, there will be one horse – it might not be your first winner, although you always remember your first winner – who will be your breakthrough horse and then you’ll hit the roll and for me it was Traprain Law,” explains Patrick.

“I’ve ridden him since day one and watched him develop. The first day he ran I thought he’d be something big and he got beaten by a horse rated 80 and I thought ‘Well that’s me completely wrong’. But we just had to figure him out and work out how he goes – he’s a front runner and he likes soft ground and all sorts of stuff.

“He’s such a lovely horse and every time I feel like we’ve got the grasp of him, he gives you a bit more, so he’s exciting going into next year, because this year he was very good over fences and didn’t put a foot wrong – he won twice and was placed twice. Everyone likes him on the yard.

“He’s such a friendly horse – you can stand in his box and he’ll rest his head on your shoulder, he’s a big gentleman. But when you ride him, he’s not one you’d put anyone on because he’s quite hot-headed and he’s all wound up, he’s quite a jazzy horse. But he’s just likeable, really sweet and honest.”

Future aspirations: “This story just keeps getting better and better”

Having been third in the championship the previous season, Patrick Wadge became the third rider from Scotland to claim the prestigious conditional jockeys’ title in 2024, following Lucy Alexander in 2013 and Craig Nichol in 2016. As well as Lucinda Russell, Patrick also rode winners for trainers Jennie Candlish, Iain Jardine, Martin Todhunter and Michael and David Easterby.

Speaking ahead of the current season, Patrick revealed some trepidation about the next steps in this remarkable journey.

“Next season is the scariest one, it’s hard to think that probably next year I’ll lose my claim. But ambitions-wise it would just be to busy as I can be,” says Patrick. “It would be lovely to follow on and go and do what Sean Bowen and Harry Cobden have done, but it’s easier said than done.

“So I’d love to get as much sport as I can, build every year, improve on every season and try to get some nice horses behind me. I’ve got a few with Lucinda that could maybe go on and run in Graded races next season, so it would be nice to win one of them. But another year like this would be great.

“They say there’s a story behind everything and mine just keeps getting better and better,” says Patrick. “It doesn’t happen for everyone so I feel so lucky it happened for me, it’s a great job to be in. I’ve had the opportunity to ride some amazing horses this past season and horses like Apple Away are ones that come round once in a lifetime.

“It’s amazing to be here and an unbelievable position to be in.”

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If you’re gearing up for race day and want to catch every thrilling moment from a front-row perspective, having a pair of the best binoculars is a game-changer. Think of it like having a personal front-seat upgrade – you get to see every gallop, every stride, and every burst of speed without having to scramble for a better view.

There are plenty of options out there to suit different needs. In this guide to the best binoculars for horse racing we’ll give you all the information you need to pick the best binoculars to enhance your enjoyment at the races, whether you’re heading to Cheltenham Festival or your local track. If you’re a bit befuddled by the numbers and specifications, here’s a super-simple explainer.

Best binoculars for horse racing: H&H’s quick guide

Best value binoculars: Nikon Prostaff P7 10×42

Best compact binoculars: Steiner BluHorizons 10×26

Best premium pick: Canon 10×30 IS

Best budget pick: Olympus 8×25 WP

Nikon Prostaff P7 10×42

Magnification: 10x

Objective lens diameter: 42mm

Weight: 645g

RRP: £259

Reasons to buy

• Sharp, high-contrast images with multi-coated lenses
• Waterproof and fog-proof, ideal for all weather conditions
• Comfortable rubber-armoured grip for secure handling

Reasons to avoid

• Slightly heavier than some compact models
• Higher magnification can make it harder to keep a steady image without a tripod

The Nikon Prostaff P7 10×42 is a solid all-rounder, perfect for racegoers who want crisp, detailed views without jumping to a premium price bracket. The multi-coated optics and phase-corrected roof prisms enhance brightness and clarity, helping you track fast-moving horses with ease.

Built to handle the elements, these binoculars are waterproof and nitrogen-filled, meaning you won’t have to worry about misting up in damp conditions. The textured rubber coating ensures a comfortable and secure grip, even on a long day at the races.

With 10x magnification, you’ll get up-close views of the action, but if you struggle with a steady hand, a lower magnification model might be easier to use. However, for those looking for a high-quality pair that balances performance, durability, and affordability, the Nikon Prostaff 7S is a great pick.

Steiner BluHorizons 10×26

Magnification: 10x

Objective lens diameter: 26mm

Weight: 310g

RRP: £199

Reasons to buy

• Ultra-compact and lightweight
• Auto-adjusting light technology for glare-free viewing
• Rugged, rubber exterior for durability

Reasons to avoid

• Smaller objective lens lets in less light in low-light conditions
• 10x magnification can be tricky to keep steady in a compact model

The Steiner BluHorizons 10×26 is perfect for racegoers who want a lightweight, pocket-sized binocular without sacrificing performance. The lens automatically adjusts brightness to reduce glare – ideal for those sunny days at the track.

While the 10x magnification provides fantastic close-up views, the smaller 26mm objective lens means they perform best in bright daylight. If you want something compact that’s easy to carry but still powerful enough for a detailed view, these are a great option.

Canon 10×30 IS

Magnification: 10x

Objective lens diameter: 30mm

Weight: 600g

RRP: £469.99

Reasons to buy

• Image stabilisation tech (IS) for a steady view
• Crisp, high-contrast optics
• Comfortable, ergonomic design for extended use

Reasons to avoid

• Battery-powered stabilization requires replacements
• More expensive than non-stabilized models

The Canon 10×30 IS stands out with its image stabilisation technology, which compensates for hand movements, delivering a steady, shake-free view. This makes them perfect for following the action, even at higher magnifications.

The 30mm objective lens balances portability and light-gathering ability, making them a solid mid-range option. If you struggle to keep binoculars steady but want the benefits of 10x zoom, these are the best horse racing binoculars for you.

Olympus 8×25 WP

Magnification: 8x

Objective lens diameter: 25mm

Weight: 260g

RRP: £109.99

Reasons to buy

• Extremely lightweight and compact
• Waterproof design for all-weather use
• Budget-friendly without sacrificing quality

Reasons to avoid

• Lower magnification compared to others on this list
• Small objective lens limits brightness in dim conditions

The Olympus 8×25 WP is one of the most compact and affordable options on this list, making it a great pick for casual racegoers. Despite its small size, the optics are surprisingly sharp and its waterproofing ensures durability.

If you’re after something lightweight that still provides clear and stable viewing, these are an excellent choice for the price.

Zeiss Terra ED 8×42

Magnification: 8x

Objective lens diameter: 42mm

Weight: 725g

Reasons to buy

• Wide field of view
• Exceptional optics with ED glass for high contrast and sharp details
• Waterproof and nitrogen-filled for durability

Reasons to avoid

• Higher price point compared to similar models
• Slightly bulkier than compact binoculars

The Zeiss Terra ED 8×42 is a premium choice for those who want exceptional clarity and a wide field of view. The ED glass enhances contrast and reduces chromatic aberration, meaning you get razor-sharp images with true-to-life colors.

With 8x magnification, you get a broader perspective, making it easier to track horses in motion. They’re slightly larger than some competitors, but if optical quality is your top priority, these are worth the investment.

Steiner Wildlife 8×24

Magnification: 8x

Objective lens diameter: 24mm

Weight: 350g

RRP: £189

Reasons to buy

• Lightweight and compact for easy carrying
• Wide field of view for tracking movement
• Robust, rubber design

Reasons to avoid

• Smaller objective lens limits brightness in low light
• Not as powerful as larger models

For racegoers who want a balance between portability and performance, the Steiner Wildlife 8×24 could be the one for you. The 8x magnification offers a steady, wide view, making it easier to track moving horses.

Designed for rugged use, the rubber coating ensures a secure grip, even in wet conditions. While the smaller objective lens means they’re best suited to bright daylight, their lightweight design makes them easy to carry all day.

Celestron Outland X 10×42

Magnification: 10x

Objective lens diameter: 42mm

Weight: 624g

RRP: £95

Reasons to buy

• Great value for a 10×42 model
• Waterproof and fog-proof for all-weather use
• Rubber coating for a secure grip

Reasons to avoid

• Image clarity not as sharp as premium models
• Slightly heavier than some alternatives

For those on a budget, the Celestron Outland X 10×42 provides decent magnification and a robust, waterproof design at a low price point. They don’t match the clarity of higher-end options, but they’re solid for casual use.

How to choose a pair of binoculars for horse racing

There are plenty of binoculars available. Some are super compact and easy to carry around, which is perfect if you want to keep things light and hassle-free. Others, however, pack a bit more power with higher magnification and even image stabilisation to make sure you don’t miss a detail – even if your hands are a little shaky from all the excitement. It all comes down to what kind of experience you’re after.

“A decent pair of binoculars are your best accessory at the races,” explains Horse & Hound’s racing editor Jennifer Donald. “If you’ve a vested interest in a particular horse, whether as a punter, keen spectator or owner, nothing beats zooming in and following all the action.”

Gemma Redrup, Horse & Hound’s point-to-point editor adds: “In the absence of a big screen at most point-to-point fixtures, binoculars really help you keep abreast of the action within a race – and can therefore make you the envy of many as a result!”

Understanding binocular numbers: what do they mean?

When you pick up a pair of binoculars, you’ll often see a set of numbers printed on the body – something like “8×32” or “10×42”. At first glance, these might seem confusing, but they’re actually the key to understanding how your binoculars will perform.

The first number represents the magnification. An 8x magnification means objects will appear eight times closer than they are to the naked eye, while 10x magnification brings them ten times closer. The “x” simply stands for “times magnification”.

The second number refers to the diameter of the objective lens (the lens furthest from your eyes) in millimeters. For example, in 8×32 binoculars, the 32mm objective lens determines how much light enters the binoculars. A larger lens allows more light in, which means a brighter, clearer image, especially in low-light conditions.

What binoculars are best for horse racing?

It might seem like bigger is better when it comes to magnification, but that’s not always the case. While higher magnification provides a closer view, it also has trade-offs. Without a large enough objective lens, the image can appear darker and less clear, especially in low light.

For horse racing, you’ll want a balance between magnification and stability. Anything over 10x can amplify natural hand movements, making the image shaky and difficult to track fast-moving horses. Heavier binoculars can also become tiring to hold for long periods.

For the best race-day experience, 8x or 10x magnification with a 32mm–42mm objective lens is ideal – giving you a clear, steady view without unnecessary weight.

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On our 162nd episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, which is sponsored by a new campaign from British racing called HorsePWR, we speak to six-time champion jumps racing trainer, Nicky Henderson. He reflects on his greatest moments on the racecourse, plus his favourite horses and he talks about what he has learnt during 30 years as a trainer. We hope you enjoy listening.

Episode 162, of our popular audio service The Horse & Hound Podcast, which is sponsored by a new campaign from British racing called HorsePWR, is now live.

Each episode is available for H&H fans to listen to via your favourite podcast app, as well as here on the website. Search for “The Horse & Hound Podcast” in your preferred podcast app and click subscribe to be notified about each new episode.

• View all episodes of The Horse & Hound Podcast

On our 162nd episode of The Horse & Hound Podcast, we speak to six-time champion jumps racing trainer, Nicky Henderson ahead of the upcoming Cheltenham Festival. He reflects on his greatest moments on the racecourse, plus his favourite horses and he talks about what he has learnt during 30 years as a trainer.

• We would love to hear your feedback on all our podcasts, so please do send your thoughts to pippa.roome@futurenet.com

Horse & Hound Podcast: episode 162

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Three-time Cheltenham Festival winner Delta Work, who finished runner-up in last year’s Grand National, has died at the age of 12 following a bout of colic.

Trained by Gordon Elliott, Delta Work won the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase at Cheltenham Festival in 2022, beating Tiger Roll in the process, and he won the same race 12 months later too. He also won the Pertemps Final at the Festival in 2018.

Mr Elliott said: “Sadly Delta Work died this morning as a result of colic. After showing signs of colic he was brought to Fethard Equine Hospital and was operated on but sadly there was nothing that could be done for him.

“Everyone here is gutted by this news. He was such a huge favourite of the yard and he gave us so many memorable days over so many seasons. As a five-time Grade One winner and a triple Cheltenham Festival winner he was everything you could hope for in a racehorse.”

Delta Work ran in the famous Gigginstown colours of maroon with a white star belonging to Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary.

“It was an honour and privilege to train him for Michael and Anita O’Leary,” said Mr Elliott. “We will be lucky to come across a horse of such class, versatility and longevity again.”

Delta Work amassed £957,599 in prize money, winning 12 of his 40 career starts, and he was placed on 12 other occasions. He won five Grade Ones over fences, including the Savills Chase and Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown during the 2019-20 campaign.

Delta Work was last seen finishing fourth in the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham last month and he was being geared up for the Cross Country Chase at next month’s Cheltenham Festival.

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Irish jockey Michael O’Sullivan has died as a result of the injuries he suffered in a fall at Thurles Racecourse in County Tipperary on 6 February.

The 24-year-old had been in an induced coma in intensive care at Cork University Hospital since the fall at the final fence with Wee Charlie in a 2m handicap chase, after which the remainder of the card was abandoned. Michael was treated on the track at Thurles, then transferred by air ambulance to hospital, but he never regained consciousness and died surrounded by his family.

Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) chief medical officer Dr Jennifer Pugh said: “Michael sadly passed away in the early hours of Sunday morning (16 February) surrounded by his loving family in Cork University Hospital. We extend our appreciation to the multidisciplinary teams who provided the best of medical care to Michael, both on the racecourse and in Cork University Hospital. Michael’s family took the decision to donate his organs at this incredibly difficult time, but in doing so made a choice that will make a real difference to the lives of other patients and their families.

“I have had the privilege of knowing Michael through his amateur and professional career and his dedication, modesty and kind nature always made him a pleasure to be around. Michael’s success and his humility will have inspired many and I share the feeling of loss today with all those who knew him.

“Michael’s family would like to reiterate their gratefulness for all the support they have received in the last couple of days and express their appreciation to the local community and racing family. The O’Sullivan family have asked for privacy at this time.”

Michael began his riding career on the point-to-point circuit and was crowned champion under-21 rider in 2019. He rode 95 winners in Britain and Ireland under Rules, plus a handful in France, since his first racecourse win on Wilcosdiana at Cork in April 2018 in a hunter chase with a horse trained by his uncle, Eugene.

Michael turned professional in September 2022. He won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham Festival in March 2023 aboard Marine Nationale, who was trained by long-term supporter Barry Connell, and the Fred Winter with Jazzy Matty, trained by Gordon Elliott, at the same meeting. He also became champion conditional in Ireland that season.

IHRB CEO Darragh O’Loughlin said: “Michael was an exceptionally talented young rider who was always popular in the weighing room. Michael will be deeply missed by everyone in racing who had the pleasure of knowing him. Our hearts go out to Michael’s family, especially his parents Bernadette and William and his brother Alan, who will feel his loss most keenly.”

British Horseracing Authority acting chief executive Brant Dunshea also paid tribute to the jockey. He said: “I was devastated to learn of the death of Michael O’Sullivan and speak for all involved in British racing when I say that our thoughts and deepest condolences are with his family and friends at this awful time.

“The bonds between the British and Irish racing communities are deep and this unspeakable tragedy will doubtless have a profound impact on many people on both sides of the Irish Sea.”

As a mark of respect to Michael, the fixture at Punchestown today and the point-to-point fixtures at Knockanard, Nenagh and Tinahely have all been cancelled.

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Sir Gino, who was favourite to win the Arkle Chase on day one of next month’s Cheltenham Festival, has been ruled out for the rest of the season after picking up a ligament infection.

The five-year-old, trained by Nicky Henderson and owned by Joe and Marie Donnelly, has been admitted to equine hospital as a result of the injury, which he sustained last week and meant he was declared a non-runner in Saturday’s (8 February) Game Spirit Chase at Newbury.

“Unfortunately Sir Gino’s situation has deteriorated somewhat and he has been admitted to the equine hospital,” said Mr Henderson. “An infection has invaded the ligaments in his near hind leg. This will require lengthy treatment that will sadly rule him out of any further racing this season.

“This is a dreadful blow to Joe and Marie Donnelly and everybody at Seven Barrows but we will be doing everything possible to help this incredible bright light back to full fitness next season.”

It is the second successive Festival Sir Gino has missed after being pulled out of last year’s Triumph Hurdle as health issues plagued Henderson’s Seven Barrows yard.

After a seriously impressive chase debut when he beat Ballyburn to win the Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase at Kempton over Christmas, Sir Gino was made favourite for the Arkle. That victory added to his unbeaten record of six victories, including the Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle last November when deputising for stable mate Constitution Hill.

Despite missing his intended Cheltenham prep-run at Newbury over the weekend, Sir Gino was as short as 8/11 in the betting for the Arkle, but in his absence, the Willie Mullins-trained Majborough now heads the betting at a general 8/13, with L’Eau Du Sud 5/1 second favourite.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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John Hales, who had a long-standing association with both showjumping and racing, has died at the age of 85.

John was British Showjumping president between 2005 and 2008, and was also one of the sport’s most successful owners. Notable horses that belonged to John included Nick Skelton’s superstar Arko III, who won in excess of £1m during his illustrious career. John also owned Russel II, who with Nick represented Great Britain at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, and a number of other showjumpers throughout his life, who he enjoyed alongside his wife Pat and daughter Lisa.

“John was a great character, you couldn’t ask for a better owner,” Nick Skelton told H&H. “He loved to win and when he won, he celebrated, but if he lost he was magnanimous in defeat. Whether it was showjumping or racing, horses were John’s life.”

John’s instantly recognisable racing silks of yellow with a red star were also carried to victory by many horses, most famously by the indomitable One Man, who the Hennessy Gold Cup, two King Georges and the 1998 Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Neptune Collonges also won the Grand National under Daryl Jacob for John and trainer Paul Nicholls, winning by a nose in 2012.

Paul Nicholls confirmed his death this morning (31 January).

“It is with great sadness to report that John Hales passed away last evening” he said. “A great man and a fantastic owner and friend for many people. Thoughts with his wife Pat and his wonderful family. He will be missed by so many in racing. RIP John.”

Other horses that John enjoyed success with include Azertyuiop, who won the Champion Chase in 2004. He had further Cheltenham Festival victories with Paul Nicholls and jockey Ruby Walsh, with Noland and Al Ferof in the Supreme, and Politologue secured him a third Champion Chase when ridden by Harry Skelton in 2020.

More recently, John joined Sir Alex Ferguson, Peter Done and Ged Mason in the ownership of Protektorat, who won the Ryanair Chase at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival. John was at Windsor racecourse to enjoy his last winner 12 days ago, when Harry Skelton rode Protektorat, for brother Dan Skelton, to a 22-length win over Venetia Williams’ Djelo in the Fleur De Lys Chase.

John co-founded the Golden Bear Toys company in 1979, which went on to produce products from major children’s shows such as Teletubbies, Basil Brush, Thomas The Tank Engine and In The Night Garden.

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Star novice chaser The Jukebox Man, who is trained by Ben Pauling and owned by footballing royalty Harry Redknapp, has been ruled out of the Cheltenham Festival in March after picking up an injury. It also means that the seven-year-old gelding, who has won over £172,000 in his nine starts under Rules, will not be seen on a racecourse for the remainder of this season.

Ben Pauling issued a statement on Tuesday (28 January) saying: “The Jukebox Man has this morning sustained an injury during his routine exercise that will sadly rule him out for the season.

“At this early stage, the feedback from our veterinary team and the specialists is positive that we can look forward to seeing him return in the autumn.

“It is a huge blow for all involved and every care is being taken for one of our stable’s leading lights. We will update you on his recovery in due course.”

The seven-year-old was two from two over fences, having won the Grade Two John Francome Novices’ Chase at Newbury, and the Grade One Kauto Star at Kempton on Boxing Day.

He had been a 9-2 shot for the Brown Advisory on the Wednesday of the Festival.

Ben issued a further update saying: “It is a huge blow to the team, it’s safe to say we’re gutted. When you get a horse of his calibre it is tough to take but hopefully we get him back for the early part of next season. When you start the season the way he did of course we were dreaming of all the big races to come in the spring, it was so exciting. But it is important to emphasise that it is not career-ending and he has very few miles on the clock overall.

“It won’t change our thoughts with him for next season and we can dream over the summer with plans for him. It’s why this sport is such a great leveller – there are huge highs and then you can suddenly be brought back to earth. You have to stay level.

“I’m gutted for Harry Redknapp too. He’s such a supportive owner and it wasn’t a pleasant phone call this morning. He’s such a great mate and has always backed us, we talk most days but today’s chat wasn’t enjoyable. He was obviously gutted by it.”

• To stay up to date with all the breaking news from major shows throughout 2025, subscribe to the Horse & Hound website

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Successful former National Hunt horse Saint Calvados secured an “emotional” victory for his connections, almost three years after his last victory in the Grade Two Oaksey Chase at Sandown.

After training Saint Calvados under Rules, Harry Whittington, who specialises in pre-training these days, has enjoyed the winner’s enclosure once again, this time in point-to-points.

The 12-year-old Saint Calvados, who has won over £400,000 in races including two Grade Two and one Grade Three wins, showed his talent remains when winning the 2m 4f men’ s open under Nick Orpwood at the Percy meeting at Alnwick, Northumberland, yesterday (26 January).

“It was very emotional,” said Harry, who last sent this son of Saint Des Saints out in February 2021 before the horse was moved to Paul Nicholls by his former owners, Kate and Andrew Brooks. “I don’t think I ever cried when he won previously, but I definitely did today. It’s so nice to have him back.

“I said to his owner, David Maxwell, that I’d love to have him in retirement and he sent him to me a year ago. I’ve been hunting him most of this winter and he absolutely loves it.

“My staff call him King Calvados because he is on every supplement going and there’s no stone left unturned to keep him looking great. He looked his old self going through the race and never saw a rival.”

The gelding is Harry’s only pointer, and gets a lot of attention at Harry’s Lambourn base.

“I ride him out first lot and then he goes in the field all day,” added Harry. “He takes the pre-trainers out round the grass gallops and loves it. He is very special to us.”

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Standing out from the countless bays, chestnuts, brown and occasional grey racehorses at Windsor Racecourse on Friday (17 January) was this very distinctive equine blonde bombshell.

The Hughie Morrison-trained Secret Squirrel grabs the attention as soon as he arrives at the racecourse with his eye-catching flaxen mane and tail. Such an unusual colouring is a rare commodity in the racing world where the purity of the thoroughbred genes is strictly maintained, meaning any out-of-the-ordinary equines tend to cause quite a stir.

Secret Squirrel: he’s a winning racehorse as well as boasting those silky locks

But this six-year-old chestnut gelding, who is owned and was bred by the trainer’s wife Mary Morrison, isn’t just a beautiful looking horse as he’s proving very successful on the track, too.

Ridden by Nico de Boinville at Windsor last Friday, he cruised to victory in the valuable Fitzdares Sovereign Handicap Hurdle, his fifth career success.

“He’s a hardy horse and he just kept going,” said the jockey after the race. “He’s got his own mind and it’s just a case of working with him rather than against him. I thought he jumped great and I’m very lucky to come in for the ride.”

“Tough since the day he was born – he’d knock you over as a foal”

It was another proud moment for connections, with the trainer explaining that Secret Squirrel was a bossy foal – they even backed him slightly early because he was such a handful in his youth.

“He’s been tough from the day he was born, he’d walk up to you and knock you over,” said the trainer of the eye-catching gelding. “But all congratulations to the breeder and owner, it’s nothing to do with me!”

Mary bred the Stimulation-sired Secret Squirrel out of the three-times raced mare Trigger Point, who, like her Ascot Gold Cup-winning sire Double Trigger, also boasts a flaxen mare and tail while Secret Squirrel’s great-grandfather is the distinctive light chestnut Derby winner Generous.

Unlike Double Trigger, whose near-blonde mane was usually plaited on the racecourse, Secret Squirrel is raced unplaited and connections have even let his silky locks grow slightly longer than normal so we can all appreciate his elevated hair game to full effect – it really wouldn’t look out of place in a shampoo commercial. He is a true stunner and we fully expected him to flick his mane to the photographers as he swaggered into the winner’s enclosure.

What is a flaxen mane and tail?

Horses with flaxen manes and tails come in various shades of chestnut colouring but remain distinct from palomino horses. Flaxen is believed to be polygenic, which means it is influenced by multiple genes and can result in various strengths of the flaxen traits in offspring, although other studies have indicated that the flaxen trait is inherited as a recessive gene.

But the flaxen trait is certainly strong in racehorse Secret Squirrel’s family. Giving the gelding a run for his money when it comes to silky golden locks is his full-brother Secret Sniper, a four-year-old who has been placed in two bumper races so far, and who has the same near-blonde coloured mane and tail.

So look out for this pair of bombshells at a racecourse near you – Secret Squirrel is entered for the William Hill Newbury Handicap Hurdle at Newbury next Saturday (8 February), where he will hope to build on his hurdle wins at Windsor, Taunton and Kempton.

Yes, this just-stepped-out-of-the-salon racehorse has well and truly captured our hearts.

*Update: 27 February* Following a fall at the final flight of hurdles at William Hill Newbury Handicap Hurdle at Newbury on 8 February, Secret Squirrel has been diagnosed with a fractured to the lumber vertebrae in his back. He is described as “comfortable” although he will require a long period of box rest while he recovers.

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Sir Gino is a National Hunt racehorse who seemingly has the world at his feet with an unbeaten record so far. Here we find out a little bit more about this rising star, who has shown an impressive turn of speed and slick jumping over both hurdles and fences…

1. Sir Gino is a bay gelding, who was foaled on 10 April 2020.

2. He is trained by multiple champion trainer, Nicky Henderson.

3. The French-bred gelding was found by former jockey Jerry McGrath in France on behalf of Mr Henderson.

4. Sir Gino is owned by Marie Donnelly and runs in her familiar yellow and black colours, which were also carried by the likes of Grade One winner Shishkin, among others.

5. He is by the stallion It’s Gino, out of the mare Anzi Star, who is by Anzillero.

6. Jean-Paul and Marie-Odile Deshayes bred this striking gelding.

7. He has won all six of his racecourse starts to date, amassing £261,506 in prize money.

8. Sir Gino ran once in France at the start of his career, before moving to Mr Henderson’s. Since then, he has won two Grade Ones and two Grade Twos.

9. He first came to most of the public’s attention when winning the Grade Two JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle in impressive style at Cheltenham Racecourse’s Festival Trials Day on Saturday 27 January 2024. After the victory, Mr Henderson said: “He has all the attributes and he shows it to you.”

10. More recently, Sir Gino was the eight-length winner of the Grade One Fighting Fifth Hurdle at Newcastle in November 2024.

11. Sir Gino made the transition to jumping chase fences look effortless when winning over them on his first attempt in the Grade Two Wayward Lad Novices’ Chase at Kempton in December 2024. Mr Henderson said after this victory: “So far, he’s done nothing wrong and he’s unblemished. He’s always been a very, very talented horse and he has so much scope.”

12. Sir Gino is currently hot 8/11 favourite for the Arkle – a Grade One two-mile novices’ chase – at Cheltenham Festival in March 2025.

• Do you think Sir Gino will add another win to his CV at the Cheltenham Festival? Send your thoughts to hhletters@futurenet.com for a chance to be published in Horse & Hound, including your name, nearest town and county. Letters may be edited for clarity and length
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Proving that winning horses come in every shape and size is “18hh-plus” giant racehorse Jeannot Lapin.

The towering chestnut point-to-pointer, who had failed to win in three starts in Ireland, was bought by owner Dominic Jones for just £3,000 at the Doncaster sales.

He made his racecourse debut for trainer Gearoid O’Loughlin in a 2m 1f chase at Leopardstown recently at odds of 150/1 and, ridden by Ricky Doyle, he cruised home to win by two-and-a-half lengths, leaving a field of classy rivals trailing in his wake.

Connections haven’t been able to accurately check the height of the French-bred six-year-old son of Doctor Dino because their measuring stick only goes up to 17.3hh, but their best guess was that he was a quarter of an inch over 18hh.

“He felt at home like he was a proper horse – for a small yard anyway – I’m sure if he’d been in Willie Mullins’s or a bigger yard, he’d have just been any other horse,” said O’Loughlin, who trains mostly pointers and does pre-training from his small yard at Dunshaughlin, Co. Meath. “He’s a bit of a stand-out in our yard at the moment anyway.

“I didn’t think he’d win a beginner’s chase round Leopardstown in the early days, but as we got closer, up to the last two months, I felt he was entitled to be there anyway.

“Obviously his price didn’t reflect it but we all had a few quid on him at a big price!” he said. “Our aim was to be in the first six. So we’re over the moon.

“I said to Ricky Doyle before the race, he’s a great jumper so use his jumping and hold on to him for as long as you can – I had nothing at home to take him off the bridle, so he was never off it.”

Giant racehorse Jeannot Lapin: from the same family as Epatante

Trainer Gearoid O’Loughlin spotted Jeannot Lapin at the Doncaster Sales and was attracted to his pedigree – his dam Ultra Bonne is out of the same mare that produced the mighty mare Epatante, a Grade One-winning hurdler for Nicky Henderson.

“Sam Curling [point-to-point trainer, where Jeannot Lapin started his racing career] told me he had the makings of a good horse, if you can get him right,” said O’Loughlin. “It all just came together.”

O’Loughlin originally took him hunting to get his qualifying hunter certificate for point-to-points but thought a shorter trip than three miles might be the key to the big-framed chestnut gelding.

“His homework was very good. [His owner] Dominic Jones did a great job with him over the summer, fed him and built him up,” he explained.

Dominic Jones is no stranger to surprise winners as his horse Sawbuck equalled the record for the longest-priced winner in Britain and Ireland when landing a maiden hurdle at Punchestown in 2022 at odds of 300/1.

But connections are now very much living the dream with Jeannot Lapin and he’s entered for the Grade One Leopardstown Goffs Irish Arkle Novice Steeplechase at the start of February, and the equivalent race at the Cheltenham Festival is now a realistic target.

“It’s a bit of a story, but it’s a great story,” summed up O’Loughlin.

Watch this space!

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Thirty-four-year-old National Hunt trainer Billy Aprahamian is a man on a mission.

“We’ve got 18 in training this year – I’d love to have 22 next year and keep the horses running consistently with some winners,” says Billy, who is based in the picturesque village of Adstone, in Northamptonshire.

Since setting up shop as a trainer in 2022, Billy has sent out 11 winners – seven of those since the start of this season in April, with his career ever gaining momentum. And it was his youth that set him onto a life completely immersed in horses.

“My family has always been horsey. I was terrified of my first pony, but as I got older, my horses became increasingly wild and I became braver. I think, like any young boy, something needs to be a bit more exciting than just ‘ponies’ and I got introduced to polo when I was about 10 years old. That grew and grew and took hold of my family and by about the age of 16, I was playing semi-professionally,” says Billy, whose best handicap was two. “I finished school at 18 and played full-time for three years in some good high level matches, but came to the conclusion when I was 21 that it wasn’t going to be what I was going to do for the rest of my life, because I just wasn’t good enough.

“At 21, I gave up the polo and didn’t really know where I was going – I had always been a follower of National Hunt and loved jump racing and a couple of years after that, I thought I’d get a pointer and give point-to-pointing a crack. I bought a horse called Endofdiscussion from Paul Webber and we won our first race and from there, I was hooked. At that point in time, I didn’t think training racehorses was going to be a job, I just loved the sport and wanted to ride as much as possible.”

Billy’s next move was to join the Army.

“That was an itch I always wanted to scratch,” he confesses. “I think the idea of the Army is brilliant – it’s a great grounding for any man or woman who wants to go on and further themselves in any career, whether you’re in service for three years, five years, or 50 years.

“I was 24 and I thought ‘let’s go and charge around with guns for a bit and life will work itself out’.”

During his time in the Army, Billy went all over the world, spending time in the jungle in Belize and Thailand, as well as being based in France, Kenya, Germany and throughout the UK.

“I started off as a Rifle Platoon Commander, then Machine Gun Platoon Commander and finished off at Catterick at the Infantry Training Centre as the adjutant in the 2nd Battalion, which, at that stage of your career, you start to become more office-bound, and at that point I knew I was done – I’d had the fun part of leading a platoon in the Irish Guards.”

Billy says that by that point, he’d got the idea of moving into a career of training racehorses into his head.

“But I had no idea how I was going to go about it – how on Earth do you go from being in the Army to setting up a training yard? You can’t just go from one to the other – you need to go and be an assistant trainer somewhere.”

He tried to gain experience in as many yards as possible, including spending some time with Harry Whittington.

“I spoke to Harry a lot about wanting to train racehorses and he said that if I could get ‘down there’, that would be the best place to go, while he was pointing straight down the hill in the direction of Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrow’s yard,” explains Billy.

“So I emailed Mr Henderson and asked if I could go in and ride out, and at the time, was hoping to ride in the Grand Military race at Sandown, if they had a horse that was suitable.”

Mr Henderson responded to say Billy, who was still in the Army at this point, could go into Seven Barrows and ride out.

“I went into Mr Henderson’s as many mornings each week as I could while I was based an hour away at Hounslow. A horse called Baden became available for me to ride in the Grand Military and Mr Henderson and the horse’s owner Major Hanbury very kindly gave me the ride and we won. From there, it sparked a conversation between Mr Henderson and I and he asked me what I wanted to do after the Army. I replied ‘I want to come and be your assistant!’ to which he replied he might have a job for me.”

Billy left the Army and joined Seven Barrows with the idea he wanted to train. He pinpoints riding Santini, who won almost £500,000 in prize money during his career, as his favourite horse who he rode every day while working for Mr Henderson.

“He was such a monkey and he would clown around; bucking, farting, jumping, which Mr Henderson loved to see,” smiles Billy. “He was so slow at home and we couldn’t find a horse slow enough to work with him, but you’d put him on the track and he would gallop forever. The best day was when he won the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham in 2020, which he won really well, beating Bristol De Mai and then he went on to just get pipped in the Gold Cup at Cheltenham [where he was beaten by a neck by Al Boum Photo] a couple of months later.”

What prompted Billy to make the daunting jump from working as Mr Henderson’s assistant to setting up shop on his own?

“I had a half-mile wood chip gallop at home in Northamptonshire and eight stables, but that was it,” he states. “But while I was working at Seven Barrows, my now wife, Helena, and I had our first child, Ophelia, and I think that brought the move for me to train forward a bit – Helena is a small animal vet and her practice is in this area and the plan was always for us to come home, so it seemed like a good time to make the move.

“When I started out as a trainer, I had two pointers, and we went to the sales and bought a couple of stores [unbroken three-year-olds] and a couple of horses in training, so we started out with five or six.”

Billy’s first winner as a National Hunt trainer came with Conceal in October 2022, not long after taking out his licence.

“Oh my God, that was such a good day,” says Billy of training his first winner. “He was my fourth runner out the door and a 50/1 shot. I thought he was in good health and I’d ridden him in point-to-points and I always thought he just didn’t quite stay the three miles. So I put him in a 2½ mile race around the galloping track at Uttoxeter and I said to James [Bowen, jockey], ‘just lob away’ and he won by a nose.”

By his own admission, it took Billy a long time to secure another winner – eight months.

“That was something I hadn’t previously comprehended, having been at Seven Barrows. I hadn’t appreciated how hard it is to go from nothing to being established. I questioned absolutely everything in the time it took between training our first and second winner, but you have to stick with your system and not change anything, because if you start changing everything left, right and centre, you can’t find the continuity.

“It takes so much time, but when you get down to the nitty gritty of it, those early horses I had were either running off too high a [handicap] mark or they just weren’t really racehorses.

“It’s been ****ing hard to get going – I’ve definitely had the hardest two years of my life, with a young family and trying to get the ball rolling; it was agonising – I would almost rather gone back to [Army training at] Sandhurst than to go through that all over again. But you put your head down and drive on and there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

Billy is feeling more confident now, though, and the results this season show why – over 50% of his runners have either won or been placed.

“I feel like we’re sort of there now, and hopefully we can cement a nice bit of form from start to finish throughout the season, with the horses running consistently. Now our facilities are all in place and we’ve got some better bloodstock, we can prove that training successful racehorses is something we can do.”

His quest for glory was given a further boost at the start of this season when former National Hunt trainer Paul Webber, who was a neighbour to Billy’s yard, announced his retirement.

“Paul is a good family friend and when I knew he was retiring, I approached him to ask him about the future and we agreed he would come on as my assistant and bring some of his horses and their owners with him and it’s all worked well from there. He has brought over some fantastic owners, which pretty much doubled my string. I think without the amalgamation of mine and Paul’s yard, it would have been an incredibly tough year, but we suddenly went from eight running horses to 18 running horses,” explains Billy.

“Paul’s was the first yard I rode out at. We stand on the gallops now laughing about the boll*ckings he used to give me when I was a teenager! Having him on board is brilliant and the experience he brings is a great help, especially in terms of settling me and helping me to believe what I’m doing is ok. Training is tough and you have to be so realistic about everything.”

When asked to pinpoint his career highlight so far, Billy can’t pick one specific winner or moment.

“There was a shift in momentum at the beginning of this season in May – the horses were running well at the end of last season and we were getting there – and then they just kept running well and I felt like we were working it out. That would be my career highlight so far,” he states, keen to give credit to the team he has around him, including head girl, Cara Spencer. “She’s terrific – organised, wise beyond her years and a proper grafter.”

And what about plans moving forwards?

“When I originally set up here following my time at Mr Henderson’s I thought I wanted to have 60, 80, 100 horses in training, but now I really want to focus on quality.

“I’d love to have some horses in some big Saturday races with live chances – that would be amazing.”

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Irish raider Bainbridge pounced late on Il Est Francais, who had led from flag fall until the final fence, to top the Ladbrokes King George VI results at Kempton today (26 December).

The Joseph O’Brien-trained eight-year-old, who is owned by long-term racing supporter Ronnie Bartlett, was ridden by Paul Townend today. It was a well-executed plan by the trainer and connections as this race became this horse’s target after his Champion Chase win at Punchestown in April.

“It’s dream stuff to win a King George,” said Mr O’Brien, son of the great trainer, Aidan. “It’s really special and I grew up watching races like this. Paul gave him a great ride and I feel a bit for JJ [Slevin], who has an association with the horse but had commitments in Ireland.

“It is a special win – he’s been a special horse for a number of years and is such a dream. Speed is emphasised here more than some places and I think that panned out well for him, but I did think Il Est Francais had gone and won. Paul got him into a great rhythm which helped him to stay.”

Paul Townend said: “I felt I could catch Il Est Francais – I thought it was really on at the second-last.”

Prior to today, the last time Banbridge ran over three miles was when finishing 12th of 14 runners in the Sefton Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree in April 2022.

“Stamina was a question mark going into this so I was conscious to keep a hold of him,” continued Paul.”

French runner Il Est Francais, who won the Grade One Kauto Star Novices’ Chase on this day last year for trainers Noel George and Amanda Zetterholm, owners Richard Kelvin-Hughes and Hara De Saint-Voir and jockey James Reveley, put considerable distance between himself and the rest of the field for the majority of this year’s King George VI. His jumping was exemplary, bar the last, where he got in a little tight, which cost him momentum and gave the advantage to the fast-approaching Banbridge.

“It’s a shame because he pinged every fence but he was running out of petrol two out and I couldn’t ask him for a big one at the last, but I still felt I might win,” explained James, who ultimately finished second, 1¾ lengths down. “He ran his heart out.”

The Venetia Williams-trained L’Homme Presse run a great race to finish 11¾ lengths behind the winner in third under Charlie Deutsch. This was a valiant performance by this nine-year-old, owned by Dfa Racing, having last been seen finishing fourth in this year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup in March.

“He ran really well on his first run back,” said Charlie. “The front two managed to keep going but he ran all the way to the line and I was over the moon with him.”

The 11/4 favourite, Spillane’s Tower, who is six years old, ran a little greenly under Mark Walsh for trainer James Joseph Mangan to finish fifth in the King George VI results, while The Real Whacker ran a solid race under Gavin Sheehan for trainer Patrick Neville to finish fourth.

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On Boxing Day (26 December), we will be treated to the sight of some of the greatest National Hunt horses currently in training in the UK going head-to-head in the King George VI Chase, a horse race that has become synonymous with Boxing Day.

Here are 13 things you need to know about this great race…

1. The King George VI Chase first ran in 1937 and was named after the newly crowned king.

2. The first race was won by Southern Hero who, to-date, remains the oldest winner of the race at 12 years old.

3. It is held during the Christmas Festival at Kempton Park Racecourse in Surrey.

4. The race is over a distance of three miles and consists of 18 chase fences.

5. It was only run twice before World War II, during which Kempton Park was closed for racing and used as a prisoner-of-war camp.

6. The most successful horse to run in the King George VI is Kauto Star (pictured top alongside Long Run), who won it a remarkable five times (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011).

7. The leading jockey of the King George VI Chase is Ruby Walsh, who won it five times — all aboard Kauto Star.

8. The leading trainer over the race’s history is Paul Nicholls — See More Business (1997, 1999), Kauto Star (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011), Silviniaco Conti (2013, 2014), Clan Des Obeaux (2018, 2019) and Bravemansgame (2022).

9. The great grey, Desert Orchid won the race four times before bowing out in the 1991 race. He attended Kempton Park to parade every Boxing Day until his death in 2006, aged 27.

10. It is a Grade One race and this year offers £148,098 in prize money to the winner.

11. The race will be shown live on ITV and RacingTV at 2.30pm.

12. The current betting market for the 2024 running of the race has Spillane’s Tower, who is trained by Irish trainer James Joseph Mangan, as the favourite, in what is a top class line-up for this season’s renewal.

Who are the runners in the 2024 race?

Let’s take a look at this year‘s runners and riders, plus their odds, so that if you fancy it, you can have a flutter.

These runners and riders, plus the odds, are correct as of 23 December. Odds may vary depending on your bookmaker.

Horse: Spillane’s Tower | Jockey: Mark Walsh

Trainer: James Joseph Mangan | Odds: 7/2

Horse: Grey Dawning | Jockey: Harry Skelton

Trainer: Dan Skelton | Odds: 5/1

Horse: Il Est Francais | Jockey: James Reveley 

Trainer: Noel George & Amanda Zetterholm | Odds: 5/1

Horse: Banbridge | Jockey: TBC 

Trainer: Joseph Patrick O’Brien | Odds: 6/1

Horse: Corbetts Cross | Jockey: Mr Derek O’Connor 

Trainer: Emmet Mullins | Odds: 12/1

Horse: L’Homme Presse | Jockey: Charlie Deutsch

Trainer: Venetia Williams | Odds: 12/1

Horse: Envoi Allen | Jockey: Rachael Blackmore 

Trainer: Henry De Bromhead | Odds: 16/1

Horse: Bravemansgame | Jockey: Harry Cobden 

Trainer: Paul Nicholls | Odds: 20/1

Horse: Juntos Gananmos | Jockey: Felix De Giles 

Trainer: D Cottin | Odds: 22/1

Horse: The Real Whacker | Jockey: Gavin Sheehan 

Trainer: Patrick Neville | Odds: 33/1

Horse: General En Chef | Jockey: Benjamin Gelhay 

Trainer: Noel George & Amanda Zetterholm | Odds: 100/1

How do I place a bet on the King George VI Chase?

Follow our complete guide on how best to bet to find out more.

18+, T&C Apply, BegambleAware, Commercial Content.

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If you fancy having a flutter on a horse race but don’t know where to start, we’re here to help.

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Al Dancer, who won the 2024 Badger Beer Chase in memorable fashion this month when leading from start to finish, has been retired aged 11.

The grey, who is owned by Dai Walters, “picked up a little niggle” in the Badger Beer at Wincanton, his trainer Sam Thomas confirmed.

“Which means he’s going to miss the rest of the season and, with him turning 12 in January, we felt it was only fair for the horse to be retired on a good note,” he said.

Al Dancer will remain at Mr Walters’ stables near Cardiff, where Mr Thomas trains.

“He’s 11 but he’s like a four-year-old on the gallops every day,” said Mr Thomas. “He’ll have a great life now and, when he’s fully healed, he’ll no doubt be a fantastic lead horse for all the youngsters.”

Al Dancer won £319,996 during his 31-race career, notching up 10 victories including the 2019 Betfair Hurdle when trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies. He moved to Mr Thomas’s yard for the 2021-22 season and went on to win the 2022 Grand Sefton Chase at Aintree, four days after Mr Walters and Mr Thomas were involved in a helicopter crash in which the former suffered serious injuries.

“It was only a couple of days after the helicopter crash that he won the Grand Sefton, so he knows how to raise everyone‘s spirits,” said Mr Thomas. “He’s been mega throughout his career and has done so much for me personally, and certainly for Mr Walters. I’m truly grateful for having him.”

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National Hunt trainer Nicky Henderson has revealed that Constitution Hill is lame so the 2023 Champion Hurdle victor is “unlikely” to make his seasonal reappearance in the BetMGM Fighting Fifth Hurdle next Saturday (30 November).

“I’m afraid I have to report that we have a problem with Constitution Hill,” Mr Henderson said. “He’s currently lame.”

The announcement comes after the seven-year-old, owned by Michael Buckely, took part in a racecourse gallop at Newbury on Tuesday morning and was unable to quicken to match stable companion Sir Gino under the urges of Nico de Boinville.

“This wasn’t immediately apparent after his gallop at Newbury on Tuesday, but for the last 48 hours he has been sore but for what reason we are still unaware,” said Mr Henderson. “I’m currently investigating.

“This, as I’m sure everybody will appreciate, is a tragic problem for us. We have to report where we are and he is still under investigation.

“We’re trying to find the reason for it, which is not apparent, and we will keep everybody posted, but at this stage, you’d have to say he is unlikely to make next Saturday at Newcastle.”

Constitution Hill was last seen winning the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton Park last December. This was followed by a curtailed season owing to ground concerns, a respiratory problem and then suspected colic, so the gelding, who is unbeaten under Rules, has only run five times over the past two years.

“I have to confirm to everybody this is not a retirement call – he is not – he was bright and breezy after his gallop but we have this issue,” said Mr Henderson.

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The Betfair Chase at Haydock Park is Britain’s first Grade One National Hunt steeplechase of the season and is the first real opportunity of the campaign for horses with the potential to join chasing’s elite to demonstrate their talent.

Two key horses to note ahead of this year’s contest are Grey Dawning – trained by Dan Skelton and ridden by Harry Skelton – and last year’s Venetia Williams-trained winner Royale Pagaille, who will once again be ridden by Charlie Deutsch.

“While Saturday is very important, we’re not going there apprehensive, we are excited, hopeful that he’s a really good horse and as good as a staying chaser that we’ve had,” Dan Skelton said to SportsBoom ahead of Grey Dawning’s tilt at the Betfair Chase.

The rain that is forecast for the area on Saturday – between 11mm and over 20mm – would really play to the strengths of Royale Pagaille, who revels in soft conditions and knows his way around this track very well.

When is the 2024 Betfair Chase?

The race gets underway at 3.05pm on Saturday 23 November – get your tickets here.

How to watch the race

If you’re looking forward to settling down to watch the race from home, then be sure to tune into ITV. Their coverage gets underway at 1pm on the main ITV channel.

Key race facts

The prestigious Betfair Chase is the first Grade One National Hunt steeplechase of the winter season, run over 3 miles 1.5 furlongs with 19 fences. It is held at Haydock Park in Lancashire in late November and is a highlight of the early National Hunt season.

What is the prize money for winning?

The winner of the 2024 Betfair Chase will take home £116,029.

Who are the runners in the 2024 race?

Horse: Grey Dawning | Jockey: Harry Skelton

Dan Skelton 

Royale Pagaille | Jockey: Charlie Deutsch

Venetia Williams

Ahoy Senor | Jockey: Derek Fox 

Lucinda Russell

Bravemansgame | Jockey: Sam Twiston-Davies 

Paul Nicholls 

Limerick Lace | Jockey: Keith Donoghue 

Gavin Cromwell

Capodanno | Jockey: Brian Hayes 

Willie Mullins 

Hewick | Jockey: Gavin Sheehan 

John Joseph “Shark” Hanlon

The Real Whacker | Jockey: Brian Hughes 

Patrick Neville

Gold Tweet | Jockey: Gabin Meunier 

Gabriel Leenders

What are the betting odds for this year’s runners?

The following odds are correct at the time of publishing and may vary depending on who your bookmaker is.

Grey Dawning: 11/4

Royale Pagaille: 4/1

Ahoy Senor: 6/1

Bravemansgame: 10/1

Limerick Lace: 10/1

Capodanno: 12/1

Hewick: 12/1

The Real Whacker: 16/1

Gold Tweet: 20/1

How do I place a bet on the Betfair Chase?

Follow our complete guide on how best to bet to find out more.

Recent winners

2023: Royale Pagaille

2022: Protektorat

2021: A Plus Tard

2020: Bristol De Mai

2019: Lostintranslation

2018: Bristol De Mai

2017: Bristol De Mai

2016: Cue Card

2015: Cue Card

2014: Silviniaco Conti

2013: Cue Card

2012: Silviniaco Conti

2011: Kauto Star

Winning-most trainer, horse, jockey and owner

The all-time leading Betfair Chase trainer is Paul Nicholls, who has won it a total of six times to-date. Kauto Star is the most successful horse in the Betfair Chase. The gelding, who was trained by Paul Nicholls, won the race four times – 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2011. The top all-time Betfair Chase jockey is Ruby Walsh, who won a total of four times – three times on Kauto Star (2006, 2009 and 2011) and once on Silvianaco Conti (2012).

The history of the Betfair Chase

The event was established in 2005, and it originally served as the first part of a bonus scheme called the Betfair Million. Its sponsor, Betfair, offered a sum of £1,000,000 to leading contenders for successful performances in two subsequent races.

The initial version of the Betfair Million was awarded if the winner of the Betfair Chase went on to win both the King George VI Chase and the Cheltenham Gold Cup. The Lexus Chase was included as an alternative second leg for the next two years, and Kauto Star won the prize by taking the original route in 2006–07. The format was changed in 2008–09, when the bonus became available to any first-three finisher achieving first or second at the Cheltenham Festival and then winning the Grand National. The Betfair Million was dropped the following year. The £1,000,000 bonus returned as the “Chase Triple Crown” in 2015 when Jockey Club Racecourses offered it to any horse winning the race, the King George VI Chase and Cheltenham Gold Cup. Cue Card won the first two legs of the 2015–16 bonus but fell when in contention at Cheltenham. Since 2016 the Kauto Star Trophy has been awarded to the owner of a horse completing the Chase Triple Crown.

The Betfair Chase is familiarly known by its sponsored name, but its registered title is the Lancashire Chase. It is now the first Grade One event of the British National Hunt season. Prior to 2017 it was run over a distance of about three miles. The distance was increased to allow a longer run from the start to the first bend.

The original Lancashire Chase was first run at Manchester Racecourse in 1884.

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National Hunt trainer Kim Bailey on welcoming young racegoers and differing financial rewards between the Flat and the jumps

With the Flat racing season concluding, there’s now a huge amount of jump racing to look forward to. However, much change is just around the corner and we need to be ready for it.

Cheltenham appointed Guy Lavender as its new CEO but we are still awaiting news of a new chairman of The Jockey Club, and chairman and CEO at the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) – three high-profile positions that need filling.

We also have a new government and, after the budget, finances for trainers have become more difficult, especially those operating on a smaller scale. I worry for the future of my fellow trainers and, for that matter, farmers.

Looking on the bright side, we saw some tremendous jump racing on both sides of the Irish Sea last weekend. The battle between Envoi Allen and Hewick for the Ladbrokes Champion Chase at Down Royal was a real heart-stopper while at Wetherby The Real Whacker and Bravemansgame fought out the finish of the Charlie Hall Chase, but it was the former’s front-running tactics that stole the day.

At Ascot we showed off our top horse Chianti Classico. He won in the mud at the Cheltenham Festival and you can never be too sure that your horse has held his ability after a race like that, but on Saturday he jumped off in front and was never headed. It was a hugely impressive performance, especially carrying top weight of 12 stone.

Ascot might be better known for its royal meeting, but there are few better jump tracks in the country for owners, punters and spectators, and they have a very forward-thinking team running it.

A divide in rewards

Jump racing may be more popular than its Flat counterpart for spectators, but there is a huge divide when it comes to rewards. I can hark on about prize money all day but that is not the real difference – the Flat boys have an international market to enjoy when it comes to selling horses.

It seems that every horse is for sale at the right price, and although the same can be said for the Irish point-to-point trainers selling us jump trainers a horse, the Flat trainers really do enjoy a huge bonus when their horses are sold for enormous prices. The US and Far East market is strong, but the Australian market is huge. Last week’s Tattersalls horses in training sales were record-breaking, as were their yearling sales.

We in the jump racing world do not have that luxury, but we do hold our sport to our hearts.

Younger blood

Racing needs new people coming to the races and especially younger people, which is why I must applaud Dom Matcham. Through his company Invades, which encourages and brings university students to their local racecourses, he has encouraged nearly 100,000 young racegoers to tracks around the country this year, including 5,000 at Cheltenham three weeks ago from local universities.

Dom is no fool as he knows that racing is exciting, but add drink, music, fun and a party and you have a great mix for a fun day out. How many will come racing again? I am sure they will and a 10% return would be a great start.

It is the way forward even if us older chaps might not approve. But we were all young once and, turn the clock back, and we would have loved that kind of opportunity rather than being taken by our parents and told to be quiet and behave!

One to follow

It’s hard to believe that three weeks ago we were nearly flooded at Thorndale and now we’re crying out for rain. Some of my treasured horses like Trelawne are desperate to get going but need soft winter ground. This huge home-bred fell in the race Chianti Classico won at Cheltenham and I really believe he is a horse to follow for the season.

We had a great day at Worcester a few weeks ago with a treble and all three horses in Law Of Supply, Clondaw General and The Kemble Brewery hold higher options in time. We don’t have a full house at the moment, but the horses we have offer so much. There’s lots to look forward to.

● How did you get into horseracing? Are the same avenues open for young people now? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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Istabraq, the three-time Champion Hurdle winner, has died at the “ripe old age” of 32 following a long retirement at the home of his owner, JP McManus.

The racing legend won 23 of his 29 starts over hurdles, and the hearts of thousands of fans.

A statement from Mr McManus said that Istabraq sadly died at 1.15am on Thursday (25 July).

“He was a very special horse who gave us many great days of fun and enjoyment,” he said, thanking Lara Hegarty, Johnny O’Brien and all the staff at Martinstown “who took such fantastic care of him over many years”.

“We are pleased that we gave him a good celebration for his most recent birthday in May. He leaves [my wife] Noreen, myself and the family with wonderful memories.”

Istabraq won two of his 11 starts on the Flat for John Gosden, but it was in the second era of his racing career that his talent would truly shine through.

John Durkan bought the Sadler’s Wells son in 1996 as a four-year-old out of the Gosden stable, where he had worked as the trainer’s assistant. Mr Durkan had just taken out his training licence and recognised Istabraq’s talent, but was then diagnosed with leukaemia.

He recommended Aidan O’Brien take on the horse’s training. Just 15 months later, Mr Durkan died aged 31, just before the horse won the 1998 Irish Champion Hurdle.

Istabraq was narrowly beaten on his debut over hurdles yet showed such promise that he contested a Grade One hurdle at Fairyhouse two weeks later, which he won – along with his next nine starts.

He was ridden by Charlie Swan throughout his career over hurdles, who credited the gelding’s jumping style as the mark that set him apart from his rivals.

“When he was airborne, he’d get his back legs out very quickly. He was like a motorbike going over a ramp and landing on the back wheel. Istabraq’s hindlegs would often touch down first, before his forelegs,” he told H&H for a legends feature in 2021.

“When that happened, he’d land running. Most horses land on their forelegs; they have to take that extra half-stride to get their hindlegs back underneath them. Whereas Istabraq, he’d be away from the hurdles in a flash. It made all the difference.”

His Champion Hurdle victories came three years on the bounce between 1998 and 2000. He also won the Irish Champion Hurdle on four occasions, the Aintree Hurdle, the Punchestown Champion Hurdle, and many more major races.

He was retired in 2002, after he was pulled up in the Champion Hurdle as it transpired that he had sustained a tendon injury.

Istabraq lived out his remaining 21+ years in retirement at Mr McManus’ Martinstown Stud. He celebrated his 32nd birthday in May this year with bunting, carrots and cake, surrounded by his connections.

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Retirement for Istabraq

Cheltenham saw Istabraq's triumphant career come to an end as J P McManus announces the triple champion hurdlers' retirement

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Champions: Full Gallop,  a new six-part documentary series showing jockeys “as you have never seen them before”, comes to TV screens tomorrow (19 July) at 9pm on ITV1 and ITVX.

Going behind the scenes with jockeys, trainers, owners and horses as they compete in the 2023-24 jumps season, the series features contributions from key players including trainers Paul Nicholls, Nicky Henderson, Willie Mullins and Dan Skelton and jockeys such as Harry Cobden, Sean Bowen, Harry Skelton and Bryony Frost at key meetings including the Cheltenham and Grand National festivals.

The series takes in all the elements that make racing such a compelling sport, from charismatic owners to the trainers and stable staff who invest so much in the welfare of their horses.

Produced by South Shore, supported by Flutter and Racecourse Media Group (RMG), the series has been given access to all areas from weighing rooms to stable yards as viewers are invited to follow the thrills, emotion and drama both on and off the racetrack.

The first episode will chart the build-up to and outcome of the King George VI at Kempton on Boxing Day as the programme attempts to follow the success of other sports documentaries, such as F1’s Drive To Survive and tennis’ Break Point.

RMG chief executive Martin Stevenson this week described the launch of the docuseries as a “huge opportunity” for racing.

He said: “The question is how can we build on this. I hope everybody will love it and we can talk about the next series. The way these things work best is to build them over a number of series and to really draw people into the stories so it becomes one of the ways they enjoy the sport.

“We want people at home to be able to engage with racing and to see it in a different way, to get a glimpse behind the scenes and experience the grit and the glory.

“We hope to ultimately widen the sport’s fanbase. Racing is clearly facing some challenges, but it still has a huge audience and if we can get a decent fraction of the people who enjoy jump racing engaged then we’ve succeeded.”

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Find out everything you need to know about British jump jockey Harry Cobden, from his age to what he likes doing in his spare time, plus some of his big winners

1. Harry Cobden was born on 5 November 1998.

2. He was born into a farming family and has always been based in Somerset.

3. Not keen on his academic studies, he decided to miss his English GCSE exam and instead went to Leicester racecourse where he rode a 33/1 winner. Thankfully his dad had bet £20 on it.

4. He started riding professionally in the 2014/15 season, initially working for Anthony Honeyball and joined Paul Nicholls a year later. Harry first went into Paul’s yard when he was 13 as it is only 10 minutes from his family home.

5. He won the Conditional Jockeys’ Championship in 2016/2017.

6. He has achieved 24 Grade One wins to-date. These have come aboard the likes of Tingle Creek winner Politologue, King George VI winners Bravemansgame and Clan Des Obeaux and Ascot Chase winner Cyrname.

7. As of 19 July 2024, he has won 883 races.

8. He was a keen pony racer growing up and rode a number of winners from the age of nine.

9. Aside from racing he owns over 13 acres of farmland and employs two full-time gamekeepers to run a shooting business. He managed to buy this land thanks to the money he earned from his first Grade One win on Irving in 2016, as well his champion conditional title at the end of that season. He is also a keen cattle farmer.

10. He fractured his neck in a fall at Market Rasen when he was 18 years old.

11. He won the 2023/24 jockey’s championship.

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The “brave and honourable” decision has been made to retire multiple Grade Two-winning chaser Nube Negra from racing.

Trained by Dan Skelton and owned by Terry Spraggett, the 10-year-old most memorably beat the indomitable Altior en route to winning the Desert Orchid Chase at Kempton in 2020. He recorded a further two Grade Two victories and was close to Grade One glory when finishing second to Put The Kettle On in the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham Festival in 2021.

Dan said: “The decision has been made to retire Nube Negra from racing. The brave and honourable decision has been made for all the right reasons. He’s sound, in excellent health and gets to have a fun retirement.”

Nube Negra’s story is a slightly unusual one.

“He was an unknown horse from Spain who showed up and took his owners on some wonderful days, winning seven races, back-to-back Shloer Chases at Cheltenham and was the first horse to beat Altior over two miles in the Desert Orchid Chase,” said Dan.

“Nube Negra will be heading to Somerset to a family friend of Terry’s for a summer of grass and will be ridden again in the autumn.

“We wish Nube Negra the best of luck in his life after racing. It was a pleasure to have him at Lodge Hill. He’s taken on a fabulous journey.”

Nube Negra won £398,570 during his 34-race career and last ran at Sandown in April where he finished fifth of seven in the Grade One Celebration Chase under his usual jockey Harry Skelton.

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Top National Hunt horse Shishkin has been put down following an accident.

The dual Cheltenham Festival winner, who was trained by Nicky Henderson and owned by Joe and Marie Donnelly, fractured a hind leg after becoming cast in his stable on Sunday evening (28 April).

Mr Henderson said: “Tragically we’ve lost Shishkin this evening after he got cast in his stable and fractured his hind leg. Everyone involved with Seven Barrows, particularly his owners, Joe and Marie Donnelly, Jaydon [Lee, Shishkin’s groom], Nico [de Boinville, Shishkin’s jockey] and George [Daly, Mr Henderson’s assistant] are obviously devastated that such a great horse, friend and warrior has gone.”

Shishkin won 14 races from 21 starts, earning £798,668, with his career highlights including victories in the 2022 Clarence House Chase at Ascot, the 2021 Arkle at Cheltenham Festival, the 2020 supreme novices’ hurdle, also at Cheltenham Festival, and the 2023 Ascot Chase. The 10-year-old was due to have a tilt in the Punchestown Gold Cup in Ireland on Wednesday.

“He was due to leave for Punchestown tomorrow morning but sadly this is now not to be,” said Mr Henderson.

“He was an absolute superstar and his CV is testament to that – except the King George is not in it, even though we believe it should have been,” Nicky continued, referencing the fact that Nico de Boinville was unseated from Shishkin at the second last in the 2023 King George when in contention. “The Supreme Novices’ Hurdle and the Arkle were his Cheltenham highlights, but the battle with Energumene in the Clarence House at Ascot was probably his greatest.

“This is a very sad night. He was our star and we will never forget him. Thank you Shishkin for the wonderful memories.”

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Al Boum Photo won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 2019 and 2020 for trainer Willie Mullins and earnt over £1m in a glittering career for Marie and Joe Donnelly. His winning tally included three Grade One victories, including the Ryanair Gold Cup at Fairyhouse in his novice chase campaign in 2018. And he is now thriving in his new career as a riding horse with Louise Duffy.

“I’m very lucky to have him,” says Louise of ‘Boum’, who was retired from racing after pulling up in the 2022 French Gold Cup at Auteuil by jockey Paul Townend after jumping poorly.

Boum is the third racehorse that Louise, who juggles riding with a full-time office job, has taken on from Willie Mullins. She previously retrained Grade One winners Arvika Ligeonniere and Assessed with the former competing successfully to CCI2*-L level.

“I was tentatively looking for another horse to retrain as Arvika Ligeonniere was getting older, so I text Jackie [Mullins – Willie’s wife] to see if they had any horses looking for a new home,” explains Louise. “She let me know Boum and [fellow Grade One winner] Melon were going to be retired, but that it wasn’t public knowledge.

“I went to try them at Willie’s yard at Closutton and Boum was the one I got on best with. He’d enjoyed his summer holiday in the field with Galopin Des Champs and I picked him up in August 2022.”

Since then, Louise and Boum have been enjoying getting to know each other and most recently took part in the Stepping Stones to Success Thoroughbred event class at Wexford Equestrian. This comprised a BE90 dressage test followed by showjumping and cross-country on an all-weather surface over a course of 80-90cm, which they completed successfully.

“He hasn’t done a huge number of competitions as I’ve given him time to find his feet in his new job,” says Louise. “His first event was at the Tattersalls Ireland July Show in 2023, where he took part in the novice showing series. There were 25 horses in the class and we finished fourth – I was over the moon. We were meant to do two or three one-day events at the end of last year, but the wet weather put paid to that.”

Louise, who is based in Co. Meath, 30 minutes north of Dublin Airport, says that Boum can be “fresh, spooky and cheeky”.

“But he has incredible intelligence and has such a work ethic, which can sometimes be his undoing as he tries so hard. But he’s got such an ability to learn and is a real athlete.

“He has no idea how good he could be and he is still finding his feet. He has obviously come from a busy yard so riding out on my own at home was an adjustment for him to start with, but it’s just been a case of giving him time to build up his confidence.”

Boum is, unsurprisingly, a big fan of carrots too.

“He loves cuddles and carrots – he is a real carrot radar and sniffs them out,” laughs Louise, who is hoping that Boum will take to eventing. “He loves having questions to answer and having to think. I’d never say never to showing, but I think he will really enjoy eventing and some working hunter classes too.”

You might also be interested in:

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‘Pulled up more often than tights’: former racehorses celebrated in new careers

‘The kindest horse with the biggest heart’: Grand National winner helped rider rediscover her joy in eventing

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