Ben Clarke

The headline result came on 17 January 2026, when Clarke won a Class 1 race at Ascot — one of the most famous venues in world racing. He had already ticked off Haydock Park at the same level back in February 2022, just a year into his career. Two top-level wins in four years tells you this is not a yard content to operate quietly in the background. Clarke has already shown he can prepare a horse for the biggest occasions and get the job done.

What makes the current moment particularly interesting is the trajectory. His win rate has climbed from 12% last year to 15% this season, and the last two weeks have been exceptional — 2 winners from just 5 runners, a 40% hit rate that is nearly three times his season average. That kind of run is not just luck; it usually means something is clicking in the yard.

Clarke also has clear strengths worth noting. On wet or slightly soft ground, his horses win 1 in every 4 races — 5 from 20 — which is significantly better than his overall average and suggests he knows exactly how to prepare a horse for a testing day. At Exeter specifically, he has won 3 from 9 runners, a record that makes his horses well worth following whenever they travel there.

His most productive relationship with a jockey is with Toby McCain-Mitchell, who has ridden 29 horses for the yard and turned 5 of them into winners — roughly 1 in every 6. The partnership with Secret Des Lune has produced 1 win from 3 races together, a combination that will be worth watching if they line up again. Clarke is a trainer on the rise, and the numbers are starting to reflect it.