Thomas Cooper

Cooper took out his licence in 2021 and has built steadily to 24 career winners. This season he has sent out 8 winners from 77 runners, meaning he wins roughly 1 in every 10 races — and that figure matters more when you see the direction of travel. Twelve months ago his win rate sat at around 6%, or about 1 in every 17. Getting from there to 1 in 10 in a single season is a meaningful step forward, not a fluke.

What stands out most is what happens when the ground gets soft. On wet or muddy ground, Cooper's horses win 2 from 7 races — that's a 29% win rate, or roughly 1 in every 3.5 runners. For context, most trainers would be delighted with 1 in 10 on any ground. Whether that reflects a deliberate policy of targeting those conditions or simply a stable full of horses that handle the mud well, the effect is real and worth watching whenever the forecast turns wet.

His most regular partnership is with jockey Daniel King, though the numbers there are still developing — 1 win from 11 rides together, which works out at just under 1 in 10. That is broadly in line with Cooper's overall figures, so King isn't the magic ingredient so much as a trusted, familiar presence in the saddle.

The headline, though, remains those two consecutive days at Cheltenham. Winning a top-level race at the sport's most celebrated venue is the benchmark every British trainer measures themselves against. Winning two of them in 48 hours, four years into your career, tells you that Cooper isn't just filling out his record — he's building something worth paying attention to.