Winning The National Hunt Races That Count
- theturtle
- 30 Dec 2023
“When you see a horse with ability, you mind that ability and produce it on the days that count.” - Willie Mullins.
The “days that count”, are the races often televised by ITV. These are the races owners want to win and provide trainers and jockeys with the opportunity to self-publicise with pre and post race interviews.
Winning televised races is a key factor that can make or break a trainer, as success helps retain existing and attracts new owners.
This article looks at the National Hunt trainers that have the best record in televised UK races during the period 2021-2023.
Winning Trainers
In terms of number of winners, 4 trainers lead the field with 50+ winners over
the period.
- Paul Nicholls has the most winners with 79.
- Nicky Henderson has the best strike rate with 18%.
- Willie Mullins has the worse return on investment with -29%.
- Dan Skeleton has the poorest strike rate of the 4 with 12%.
Profitable Trainers
If you had backed all the runners of the 4 trainers mentioned previously, you would have averaged a -24% ROI.
Here are the trainers that have achieved a much better ROI with their runners in ITV televised races.
Both Matt Sheppard and Hughie Morrison have had decent strike rates and huge ROIs for their small number of runners in televised meetings.
Lucinda Russell, Evan Williams, Venetia Williams, Nigel Twiston-Davies and Donald McCain are regular televised race winners, with double figure number of wins and a positive ROI.
Course Trainers
A number of trainers target certain courses in search of televised winners. Below you will see the most profitable course winning trainers.
