The quality is there alongside the quantity. Balding has won 70 top-level races across his career, at some of the most prestigious venues in British racing — York, Newmarket, and Ascot among them. He landed two Class 1 races in the space of a week last October, at Newmarket on the 11th and Ascot on the 18th, which tells you this is a yard that can compete at the very highest level when it matters. Those are the races that attract the best horses in the country, and Balding keeps showing up and winning them.
The partnership with jockey Oisin Murphy is one of the most productive in the sport right now. Across 292 rides together, they have combined for 71 wins — that is 24 wins for every 100 times they team up, or roughly 1 in every 4 races. That kind of consistency between a trainer and jockey is rare. It suggests a genuine working relationship built on trust and understanding rather than convenience.
On a smaller scale, Balding has also shown a sharp eye for placing horses where they can win. At Brighton he has sent out just 5 runners and taken 3 winners — 3 from 5 is not a fluke, it is surgical. His partnership with a horse called The Cursor is similar in spirit: 2 wins from 6 races together, a record that suggests he knows exactly what that horse needs and how to get the best from it.
Four years in, 736 winners, 70 top-level victories, and a win rate that is still climbing — Andrew Balding is not a trainer who looks like he is settling for what he has already achieved.
| Course | Races | Wins | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kempton Park | 109 | 22 | 20.2% |
| Newmarket | 79 | 10 | 12.7% |
| Ascot | 72 | 10 | 13.9% |
| Southwell | 69 | 14 | 20.3% |
| Lingfield Park | 67 | 10 | 14.9% |
| Newcastle | 63 | 22 | 34.9% |
| Goodwood | 61 | 9 | 14.8% |
| Newbury | 58 | 10 | 17.2% |
| York | 54 | 12 | 22.2% |
| Chester | 53 | 15 | 28.3% |
| Wolverhampton | 46 | 12 | 26.1% |
| Sandown Park | 39 | 9 | 23.1% |
| Doncaster | 36 | 7 | 19.4% |
| Windsor | 31 | 3 | 9.7% |
| Haydock Park | 30 | 6 | 20% |
| Salisbury | 25 | 4 | 16% |
| chelmsford | 25 | 1 | 4% |
| Great Yarmouth | 21 | 2 | 9.5% |
| Epsom Downs | 19 | 3 | 15.8% |
| Bath | 15 | 4 | 26.7% |
| Leicester | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Nottingham | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Ffos Las | 10 | 1 | 10% |
| Chepstow | 6 | 1 | 16.7% |
| Brighton | 5 | 3 | 60% |
| Redcar | 5 | 2 | 40% |
| Catterick Bridge | 5 | 2 | 40% |
| Beverley | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Carlisle | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Thirsk | 4 | 3 | 75% |
| Ayr | 3 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Musselburgh | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Pontefract | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Hamilton Park | 2 | 1 | 50% |
| The Curragh | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| abu_dhabi | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| sha_tin | 1 | 0 | 0% |