Gavin Sheehan

The standout part of that CV is his record at the top level. Twenty Class 1 victories — the biggest, most prestigious races in the sport — at venues like Cheltenham, Newbury and Sandown Park tells you that Sheehan is not just a volume rider picking up winners in smaller contests. He turns up on the biggest days and delivers. That was on show again recently: a Class 1 win at Chepstow on 27 December 2025, another at Warwick on 7 February 2026, and a winner at Haydock Park on Valentine's Day. Three high-profile victories in the space of seven weeks suggests a jockey very much in form and in demand.

His partnership with trainer Jamie Snowden is one of the most productive in jump racing right now. From 233 rides together they have produced 63 winners — a win rate of 27%, or better than 1 in every 4 races. To put that in perspective, Sheehan's overall win rate is 1 in 5, so when he teams up with Snowden's yard the results improve dramatically. That kind of consistency between a jockey and trainer usually comes from genuine trust and shared understanding of how horses should be ridden.

There are also some interesting patterns in where and when Sheehan excels. On fast, dry ground he has won 8 of just 17 races — nearly 1 in every 2 — which is a remarkable conversion rate and suggests he rides with particular confidence and precision when conditions are quick. At Sedgefield, a tight, sharp track in County Durham that rewards tactical intelligence, he has won 4 times from 9 rides. Nearly half his rides at that course have ended in victory, which is the kind of local knowledge you simply cannot fake.

Four years in, 422 winners, and 20 wins at the highest level — Sheehan is already operating well above the average, and the trajectory suggests he is still improving.