UK time :

Mr J L Gleeson

Four years into a professional riding career and already with a top-level Cheltenham winner on his CV — Mr J L Gleeson is moving in the right direction, and moving there quickly. Since taking out his licence in 2021, he has ridden 78 career winners, and the trajectory is pointing firmly upward. Last season he was winning roughly 1 in every 6 or 7 races. This season, that has jumped to 22 winners from 115 rides — roughly 1 in every 5 — which is a meaningful leap in a sport where margins are everything.Based on TrackLab's analysis
Quick facts
Role
Jockey
Record
22 wins from 115 races
Win rate
19.1%
Top trainer
Best course
Punchestown (28.6% from 14 races)
Best ground
Soft to heavy (wet)

📊 Key numbers

A snapshot of this jockey's performance over the last 12 months
115
Races
22
Wins
19.1%
Win rate
avg ~10%
43.5%
Top-3 rate
avg ~30%

🔍 Full analysis

Our model's view, based on this jockey's record and recent runs
TrackLab's jockey breakdown

That Cheltenham win stands out as the headline moment so far. Cheltenham is the sport's most demanding stage, a track that rewards nerve, timing, and judgement in equal measure, and landing a Class 1 race there tells you Gleeson can perform when the occasion is biggest. Many riders spend entire careers without a winner at the festival track. Having one at this stage of his career is a serious credential.

The partnership with trainer Emmet Mullins tells an interesting story. Two wins from 21 rides together — winning 1 in roughly every 10 — might not look spectacular on paper, but the volume of rides from one yard shows a trainer who trusts him enough to keep putting him up. In this game, getting the opportunities in the first place is half the battle.

Where Gleeson really catches the eye is in the conditions that others find miserable. On very wet, muddy ground — the kind of racing day that soaks you to the bone just watching — he wins 3 from 10, or 30% of the time. That is 1 in every 3 races, which is a remarkable return and suggests either a sharp instinct for riding in those conditions or a talent for getting the best out of horses that handle the mud well. Either way, when the forecast is bad, it is worth paying attention to where his name appears in the racecard.

His record at Wexford is similarly worth noting — 3 winners from just 7 rides there, which works out at well over 40%. Some jockeys simply suit certain tracks, perhaps because of the shape of the bends or the way the ground typically rides, and Wexford looks to be one of those places for Gleeson. Still only four years in, with a Cheltenham winner already banked and his numbers improving season on season, the best is almost certainly still to come.

📈 Form trend

How this jockey's win rate has changed month by month
Monthly win rate
2025–2026
23.1%
Apr
26.7%
May
22.2%
Jun
28.6%
Jul
33.3%
Aug
22.2%
Sep
10%
Oct
14.3%
Nov
0%
Dec
12.5%
Feb
21.4%
Mar
6.2%
Apr

🎯 Where this jockey does best

Results split by ground, race level and track shape
🌧 Ground
Soft to heavy (wet)
Loves
Good (a little give)
Good to yielding (mild give)
Yielding (slightly soft)
Ok
Yielding to soft (damp)
Ok
Soft (muddy)
Ok
Good to soft (some give)
Unknown
Heavy (very wet)
Avoids
Standard (all-weather)
Avoids
🏅 Race level
Class 5 (entry-level)
Unknown
🏟 Track shape
Left-handed, long straights
Loves
Left-handed, tight turns
Loves
Right-handed, long straights
Ok
Right-handed, tight turns
Ok
Right-handed, tight
Ok
Long straights
Unknown
Right-handed, hilly
Avoids

🏇 Trainers

The trainers they work with most, most rides first
Emmet Mullins Main partner
9.5%
Win rate
2/21
Wins / rides
31.6%
Win rate
6/19
Wins / rides
26.3%
Win rate
5/19
Wins / rides
15.4%
Win rate
2/13
Wins / rides
50%
Win rate
3/6
Wins / rides
66.7%
Win rate
2/3
Wins / rides
50%
Win rate
1/2
Wins / rides
50%
Win rate
1/2
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/2
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/2
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/2
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/2
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
John C McConnell
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides
0%
Win rate
0/1
Wins / rides

⭐ Top horses

The highest-rated horses linked to this jockey right now
Form: 143
1%
Form: 2
Form: 1-4
Form: 41
Form: -P4141
Form: 1-072
Form: 222
Form: 423
Form: -62312
Form: 530-93

🏟 Course record

Win rate at each course, most races first
CourseRacesWinsWin rate
Punchestown 14 4 28.6%
Clonmel 8 0 0%
Wexford 7 3 42.9%
Listowel 7 3 42.9%
Leopardstown 5 2 40%
Cork 5 1 20%
Thurles 5 0 0%
Limerick 5 0 0%
Galway 5 0 0%
Naas 4 3 75%
Tipperary 4 2 50%
Killarney 4 1 25%
Bellewstown 4 1 25%
Sligo 4 1 25%
Ballinrobe 4 0 0%
Tramore 4 0 0%
Fairyhouse 3 0 0%
Cheltenham 3 0 0%
Navan 3 0 0%
Gowran Park 3 0 0%
Roscommon 3 0 0%
Kilbeggan 2 1 50%
Laytown 2 0 0%
Dundalk 2 0 0%
Down Royal 2 0 0%
Perth 1 0 0%
Aintree 1 0 0%
The Curragh 1 0 0%

📅 Recent results

The last 20 results, most recent first
30 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
—
29 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
6th
29 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
—
28 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
17th
28 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
Won
28 Apr
Punchestown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
3rd
24 Apr
Kilbeggan · Long Distance (2m+) · Good_To_Yielding
6th
20 Apr
Tramore · Long Distance (2m+) · Good_To_Yielding
2nd
18 Apr
Bellewstown · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
3rd
16 Apr
Limerick · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft_To_Heavy
6th
15 Apr
Leopardstown · 1m1f – 1m2f · Yielding
3rd
14 Apr
Clonmel · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding
3rd
10 Apr
Aintree · Long Distance (2m+) · Good_To_Soft
5th
6 Apr
Fairyhouse · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding_To_Soft
11th
4 Apr
Fairyhouse · Long Distance (2m+) · Yielding_To_Soft
8th
2 Apr
Clonmel · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft
4th
31 Mar
Limerick · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft
4th
26 Mar
Clonmel · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft
3rd
26 Mar
Clonmel · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft
3rd
22 Mar
Limerick · Long Distance (2m+) · Soft_To_Heavy
3rd