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John David Riches

Four years into his training career, John David Riches is a man still building — but the numbers this season suggest something is starting to click. After a difficult spell where he was winning just 1 in every 50 races, he has lifted that to 5 winners from 60 runners this season, a win rate of around 1 in every 12. That might not sound like a revolution, but in horse racing, quadrupling your win rate in a single year is exactly the kind of momentum that gets people paying attention.Based on TrackLab's AI analysis
Quick Facts
Role
Trainer
Based
Pilling, Lancs
Record
5 wins from 60 races
Win rate
8.3%
Top jockey
Best course
Catterick Bridge (18.2% from 11 races)
Best going
Soft (muddy)

📊 Key Numbers

A snapshot of this trainer's performance over the last 12 months
60
Races
5
Wins
8.3%
Win rate
avg ~10%
33.3%
Place rate (top 3)
avg ~30%

🔍 Full Analysis

TrackLab's AI-generated assessment based on career data and recent form
TrackLab's Trainer Breakdown
Auto-Generated

The most interesting entry in Riches' record is how his yard performs when the ground gets wet. On soft or muddy ground, he has won 2 from just 6 races — that's 1 in every 3, a figure that would be the envy of trainers with far longer CVs. It suggests a real eye for placing horses in conditions that suit them, which is one of the sharpest tools a trainer can develop early in their career.

His most reliable ally in the saddle is jockey Sean Kirrane, who has partnered Riches' horses in 24 races and ridden 2 winners — a win rate of roughly 1 in 12, which mirrors the yard's overall season average. That consistency matters. When a trainer and jockey find a working rhythm, horses tend to be produced better, and races are targeted more intelligently.

The partnership with Good Karma tells a more complicated story: 1 win from 12 races together is a modest return, but the fact that this horse features as his standout partnership says something about the size of the operation Riches is running. These are early days, a yard finding its feet, and individual horses carrying a lot of the weight. Whether Good Karma becomes the horse that grows alongside the yard, or simply a stepping stone to better things, only time will tell.

Riches is four years in, winning more often than he was, and quietly thriving when the rain comes down. The foundations are there.

📈 Form Trend

How this trainer's win rate has changed month by month
Monthly win rate
2025–2026
0%
Mar
0%
Apr
0%
May
0%
Jun
22.2%
Jul
0%
Aug
0%
Sep
33.3%
Oct
0%
Nov
0%
Dec
0%
Feb
0%
Mar

🎯 Where This Trainer Thrives

Performance broken down by ground, class, and track type
🌧 Ground Conditions
Soft (muddy)
Loves
Good to soft
Loves
Standard (all-weather)
Ok
Good (firm-ish)
Ok
Standard to slow
Good to firm
Avoids
🏅 Competition Level
Class 5
Class 6
🏟 Track Shape
Left-handed, tight turning
Loves
Left-handed, wide and galloping
Ok
Right-handed, undulating
Left-handed, undulating
Right-handed, tight turning
Avoids

🏇 Jockey Partnerships

The riders they work with most, sorted by rides together
Sean Kirrane First Choice
8.3%
Win rate
2/24
Won / Rode
16.7%
Win rate
2/12
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/8
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/4
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/4
Won / Rode
100%
Win rate
1/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
Jack Nicholls
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode
Shay Farmer
0%
Win rate
0/1
Won / Rode

Top Horses

The strongest horses currently associated with this trainer
Form: 26-553
Form: 88118-
Form: 8524-0
Form: 27167-
Form: 5470-3
Form: 000607
Form: 597

🏟 Course Record

Win rate at each course, sorted by number of races
CourseRacesWinsWin rate
Wolverhampton 15 1 6.7%
Catterick Bridge 11 2 18.2%
Newcastle 9 0 0%
Redcar 7 0 0%
Thirsk 5 1 20%
Hamilton Park 5 0 0%
Doncaster 2 0 0%
Beverley 2 0 0%
Pontefract 1 1 100%
Ripon 1 0 0%
Haydock Park 1 0 0%
Southwell 1 0 0%

📅 Recent Results

The last 20 results, most recent first
23 Mar
Wolverhampton · 5f – 6½f · Standard
2nd
23 Mar
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
7th
17 Mar
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
2nd
3 Mar
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
3rd
24 Feb
Newcastle · 7f – 1m · Standard
5th
6 Feb
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
11th
6 Feb
Wolverhampton · 5f – 6½f · Standard
5th
5 Feb
Southwell · 1m1f – 1m2f · Standard
9th
2 Dec
Newcastle · 1m1f – 1m2f · Standard
6th
1 Dec
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
4th
24 Nov
Newcastle · 7f – 1m · Standard
7th
7 Nov
Newcastle · 7f – 1m · Standard
6th
4 Nov
Redcar · 5f – 6½f · Good
2nd
3 Nov
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
8th
28 Oct
Catterick Bridge · 5f – 6½f · Soft
5th
28 Oct
Catterick Bridge · 7f – 1m · Soft
Won
27 Oct
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
2nd
20 Oct
Wolverhampton · 7f – 1m · Standard
Won
17 Oct
Redcar · 7f – 1m · Good
7th
14 Oct
Newcastle · 5f – 6½f · Standard
8th