Jack Kennedy and Paul Townend © Photo Healy Racing
Presentations to the six National Hunt champions will be made by Mr Martin Heydon TD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and TD for Kildare South, on the final day of the 2023/2024 season at Punchestown on Saturday afternoon.
The race to become champion jockey is going down to the wire with Jack Kennedy and Paul Townend engaged in an enthralling battle. Heading into the first day of the season-ending Punchestown festival, Kennedy leads reigning champion Townend by seven winners with their tallies standing at 122 and 115 respectively.
Regardless of what transpires over the coming days, both jockeys have had terrific seasons. They have each recorded personal best tallies and enjoyed multiple Grade 1 and big-race success.
As he chases his first championship win, Jack Kennedy has registered a three-figure tally for the first time. Runner-up to Paul Townend in last season’s title race, Jack went to the head of the jockeys’ championship for the first time this term in late October, edging upwards of 20 winners clear until early January. He recorded Grade 1 successes on Gerri Colombe, Teahupoo, Farren Glory, Found A Fifty, Caldwell Potter and Irish Point.
Paul Townend heads into the Punchestown festival with the most enviable book of rides as he bids for a sixth consecutive title and a seventh win in all. He has easily bettered his previous highest tally of 109 winners, set in the 2018/2019 season. Paul’s big winners at home include three Grade 1 successes on State Man, two on Galopin Des Champs with El Fabiolo, Grangeclare West, Ballyburn and Jade de Grugy also winning at the highest level.
There will be a familiar look to the podium on Saturday with JP McManus, Willie Mullins, Patrick Mullins and Jody Townend all retaining their crowns. Danny Gilligan is a new name on the roll of honour as he becomes champion conditional jockey.
The champions for the 2023/2024 National Hunt season are:
Champion Owner: JP McManus
Champion Trainer: Willie Mullins
Champion Jockey: TBC
Champion Conditional: Danny Gilligan
Champion Amateur: Patrick Mullins
Champion Lady Amateur: Jody Townend
For the 21st time and for the fourth season running, JP McManus is Champion Owner. In Ireland, he enjoyed Grade 1 success with last season’s BoyleSports Irish Grand National winner I Am Maximus, Dinoblue, Fact To File and Spillane’s Tower while Common Practice, Harvard Guy, Hercule Du Seuil and Mirazur West also recorded notable wins in the Limerickman’s famous hooped colours.
Willie Mullins is crowned champion trainer for the 18th time on the back of another record-breaking season. Dominating from start to finish, Willie surpassed last season’s record tally of 237 winners with over a month of the season remaining and is on track to top 250 winners this time. With a tally of 4,371 winners, he is also on track to become Ireland’s winningmost trainer as he closes in on Dermot Weld’s longstanding record of 4,376. Contributing to his Irish championship success, State Man was a three-time Grade 1 winner while Galopin Des Champs boasts two Grade 1 wins of his own. Both horses played their part as Mullins won all eight Grade 1 races at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown in February. Ballyburn, El Fabiolo, Fact To File and Gaelic Warrior were among his stable stars to also win at Grade 1 level.
From Athenry, Co Galway, Danny Gilligan is crowned champion conditional jockey in his first full season in the National Hunt game. Success on Tullybeg in the McHale Mayo National at Ballinrobe in the opening weeks of the season set him up for a remarkable run of handicap wins. He took the Tote Galway Plate on Ash Tree Meadow, the Liam Healy Memorial Lartigue Hurdle at the Listowel Festival on Samui and the winter highlight at Navan, the Bar One Racing Troytown Handicap Chase, on Coko Beach. At the Leopardstown Christmas Festival, Danny won the Grade 2 Mercedes-Benz South Dublin Juvenile Hurdle on Kala Conti.
For the 16th time, record-breaker Patrick Mullins is crowned champion amateur. He goes into the Punchestown festival on the 58-winner mark, the joint second-highest tally of his career. Patrick was a Grade 1 winner once again when winning the Guinness Faugheen Novice Chase on Gaelic Warrior at the Limerick Christmas Festival. He also landed notable Listed bumper wins on Aurora Vega, trained by Willie Mullins, and on the Tom Cooper-trained Shuttle Diplomacy. He won the valuable Tattersalls Ireland Sales Bumper on Kopek Des Bordes and also partnered notable novice hurdlers Readin Tommy Wrong and Mystical Power to win bumpers in the very early weeks of the season.
For the fourth season running, Jody Townend is the champion lady amateur rider. She also partnered subsequent Grade 1 novice hurdle winner Readin Tommy Wrong to win a bumper as the season started and Fleur Au Fusil gave her a second success in the Grade 2 Coolmore NH Sires EBF Mares INH Flat Race at the Dublin Racing Festival at Leopardstown in February. Jody gained her biggest win over hurdles when partnering Captain Cody to win the Grade 2 Paddy Kehoe Ceilings Novice Hurdle at Fairyhouse on Easter Sunday, the first of two winners at the course’s Easter Festival.
Horse Racing Ireland Chief Executive, Suzanne Eade, said: “This week we can reflect on another wonderful National Hunt season and I offer my congratulations to our confirmed champions JP, Willie, Danny Gilligan, Patrick and Jody. Jack Kennedy and Paul Townend are serving up a wonderful conclusion to the jockeys’ championship and their battle adds an exciting dimension to what is always a thrilling week at the Punchestown festival.
“While it is our champions that get the praise at this time, we are not forgetting the many others whose exploits have raised our spirits over the past year. My thanks to those working behind the scenes and to everyone whose efforts make the Irish racing and breeding industries the success they are.”
