The headline moments, though, are the two top-level victories at Ascot and Epsom Downs. These are two of the most famous venues in British racing — Epsom is where they run the Derby, Ascot where the sport practically puts on its Sunday best — and winning at that level tells you Hayes can perform when the stage is biggest and the competition is fiercest. Two wins from four years is not a flood, but it proves he belongs in those conversations.
His most productive relationship has been with trainer D K Weld, and the numbers there are notably better than his overall average. From 184 rides together they have produced 25 winners — about 1 in every 7, compared to roughly 1 in 10 across the rest of his book. That kind of uplift is not accidental. When a jockey and trainer develop a real working understanding — shared instincts about how a horse should be ridden, mutual trust in tight moments — it tends to show in the results, and it does here.
At 65 winners this season from 668 rides, Hayes is operating as a busy, reliable professional rather than a headline-grabbing superstar — but that is no small thing. Volume and consistency at this level are hard to maintain, and the fact that he is already at 244 career winners after just four years suggests the best chapters of his story are still ahead.
| Course | Races | Wins | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dundalk | 140 | 10 | 7.1% |
| The Curragh | 108 | 7 | 6.5% |
| Leopardstown | 65 | 9 | 13.8% |
| Naas | 51 | 5 | 9.8% |
| Navan | 45 | 6 | 13.3% |
| Gowran Park | 43 | 3 | 7.0% |
| Cork | 37 | 4 | 10.8% |
| Galway | 30 | 3 | 10% |
| Roscommon | 24 | 3 | 12.5% |
| Bellewstown | 21 | 1 | 4.8% |
| Limerick | 19 | 2 | 10.5% |
| Down Royal | 17 | 2 | 11.8% |
| Tipperary | 13 | 2 | 15.4% |
| Fairyhouse | 13 | 2 | 15.4% |
| Ballinrobe | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Sligo | 8 | 2 | 25% |
| Killarney | 7 | 1 | 14.3% |
| Tramore | 4 | 2 | 50% |
| Thurles | 3 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Ascot | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Listowel | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Punchestown | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Clonmel | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| York | 1 | 0 | 0% |