The last two weeks have been even more encouraging. One winner from six rides works out at roughly 17% — well ahead of his season average — which hints that Dunne may be hitting a particularly sharp patch of form right now. Jockeys talk about confidence breeding confidence, and when the numbers are trending in the right direction on a short-term basis too, that is usually a good sign.
His most reliable working relationship is with trainer Tom Gretton, for whom he has ridden 22 times and won 3 — a win rate of around 14%, which beats his overall average. That is the kind of partnership that tends to grow over time: a trainer who keeps putting a jockey up is a trainer who trusts him, and trust in racing is currency. His best individual partnership, though, is with a horse called Bective Abbey — two wins from just four races together. Winning half your races with any horse is a genuinely impressive record and suggests a real understanding between the two.
Geographically, Warwick stands out. Four winners from 13 runners at that track works out at just over 30% — three times his season average. That is a remarkable number. Whether it is the shape of the course, the type of races run there, or simply that he tends to get good rides at Warwick, that record marks it out as somewhere to pay close attention when his name appears in the racecard.
At 69 career winners and still only four years in, Dunne is at the stage where reputations start to solidify. The numbers this season suggest a jockey who has genuinely stepped up a level — and the smart money, so to speak, is on that continuing.
| Course | Races | Wins | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntingdon | 22 | 3 | 13.6% |
| Uttoxeter | 21 | 0 | 0% |
| Stratford-on-Avon | 19 | 3 | 15.8% |
| Market Rasen | 14 | 3 | 21.4% |
| Warwick | 13 | 4 | 30.8% |
| Fontwell Park | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Worcester | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Taunton | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Southwell | 12 | 1 | 8.3% |
| Wincanton | 11 | 2 | 18.2% |
| hereford | 9 | 1 | 11.1% |
| Ludlow | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Fakenham | 8 | 2 | 25% |
| Newbury | 8 | 0 | 0% |
| Newton Abbot | 7 | 0 | 0% |
| Newcastle | 6 | 0 | 0% |
| Aintree | 6 | 0 | 0% |
| Lingfield Park | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Exeter | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Bangor-on-Dee | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Kempton Park | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Hexham | 4 | 1 | 25% |
| Doncaster | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Ffos Las | 4 | 0 | 0% |
| Leicester | 3 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Catterick Bridge | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Cheltenham | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Chester | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Chepstow | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Sedgefield | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Wetherby | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Kelso | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| York | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Plumpton | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Goodwood | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Epsom Downs | 1 | 0 | 0% |