Chris Hayes

The headline figures for the last 12 months are 49 winners from 574 races, which works out at roughly 1 in every 12 — about 9%. That might not sound earth-shattering at first glance, but 574 races in a single season is a heavy workload, and converting nearly one in ten of those into wins takes both skill and the trust of trainers who keep putting him back in the saddle. That trust is clearly there.

His most reliable partnership is with trainer D.K. Weld, where the numbers sharpen noticeably. From 144 races together, they have won 15 times — that's roughly 1 in every 10, a 10% win rate, which is a meaningful step up from his overall average. When a jockey and trainer click, you tend to see that kind of improvement. It suggests Weld's horses suit Hayes's style, and that the yard backs him with its better animals.

The two moments that stand out most in his career so far are wins at Epsom Downs and Ascot — two of the most prestigious venues in the sport. These are top-level races, the kind where the best horses in the country turn up, where the prize money is serious, and where reputations are made. Winning at either track once would be something to talk about. Winning at both, just four years in, is a real statement.

At 251 career winners and still clearly on the rise, Hayes is the kind of jockey whose name is worth knowing before everyone else catches on.