Fern O'Brien(5)

That improvement is not a fluke. The partnership with trainer Fergal O'Brien — no relation — has become the engine of her career. Across 80 races together, they have combined for 14 wins, a win rate of around 1 in every 6, and it is the kind of working relationship that tends to snowball: the more a trainer trusts a jockey with their horses, the more opportunities arrive, and the better both look as a result. When you consider that nearly half of all her career winners have come from this single yard, you start to understand just how central that connection is to everything she is building.

There are also some specific conditions where she looks especially dangerous. On fast, dry ground she has won 2 of just 3 races — a 67% record that is a tiny sample but a striking one. And at Ludlow racecourse, she has won 3 times from 9 rides, which is 1 in every 3 attempts. For context, most jockeys are delighted to win 1 in 5 at any track they visit regularly, so dominating a course at that rate hints at real local knowledge and course-craft.

The (5) after her name is a weight allowance — a small advantage given to less experienced riders to help them compete against established jockeys. As she racks up more winners, that allowance will reduce and eventually disappear. The fact that her win rate is climbing sharply while she still holds that advantage suggests she is developing into a jockey who will not need it for much longer.