2024 was an enlightening year for racing fans on both the flat and over jumps, and there were plenty of Horse Racing Trainers that emerged as ones to watch going forward.
Horse Racing Trainers: 5 Huge Trainers to Watch for 2025
A number of them marked themselves out as shrewd operators well worth keeping an eye on in the year to come, while others reaffirmed their status as the top dogs in their respective codes. A new year provides new opportunities and we’ve picked out five trainers who have the capacity to grow their reputations further in the next twelve months. Three National Hunt and two Flat handlers have made the list, so there’s something to cater to everyone’s tastes.
Hot Horse Racing Trainers: Ed Bethell
Ed Bethell has quickly established himself as a young trainer to follow and he had a particularly noteworthy 2024. The consistency of Bethell’s runners was a notable theme and the fact that they ran to their marks more often than not.
Stable star Regional earned Bethell his first Group 1 success in the 2023 Sprint Cup at Haydock and went on to finish second in the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot last year. Sprinters often improve with age so further progress and more Group 1 success cannot be ruled out for him.
Horse Racing Trainers: George Boughey
There has been significant investment in the George Boughey operation over the winter and that will only heighten expectations once the Flat season gets under way in the spring. Despite being one of the younger Flat handlers around, it hasn’t taken long for Boughey to confirm his status as a trainer to follow.
More major success looks to be on the cards for Boughey, who has the backing of some very prominent and big-spending owners. Coolmore purchased classy sprinter Believing for 3,000,000 guineas and she will continue to be trained by Boughey in the upcoming campaign.
Horse Racing Trainers: Harry Derham
The start of the season has quite literally been a washout for jumps trainer Harry Derham. His gallop was flooded in the autumn and it has taken time and money for a replacement to be put in. In addition to that misfortune, Derham vaccinated his horses in early December, which can lead to a quiet spell on the track, but the yard should be ready to roll now.
The nephew of 14-time champion trainer Paul Nicholls, Derham has already gained the support of some useful trainers and has surrounded himself with some wise heads including Grand National-winning trainer Oliver Sherwood, who joined as his assistant in the summer. Watch out for an improvement in form of Derham’s runners as the jumps campaign reaches fever pitch.
Horse Racing Trainers: Oliver Greenall & Josh Guerriero
A small but shrewd operation, this training duo have proved themselves to be excellent at sourcing horses who have disappointed at other yards and squeezing improvement out of them. One such big improver is White Rhino, who began last season on a handicap mark of 74 and now finds himself running off 141.
He fell early when upped to Grade 1 level in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase at Kempton over Christmas but should be up to winning a nice prize in time.
Horse Racing Trainers: James Owen
Dual-purpose handler James Owen is definitely a name to follow in 2025. The Newmarket-based trainer does particularly well with juvenile hurdlers and East India Dock looks like a serious candidate for the Triumph Hurdle in March. His strike-rate is usually decent and he has built a good relationship with top jockeys Harry Cobden and Sam Twiston-Davies.
More success could be on the agenda in 2025 and, as he’s still learning his craft, there is still scope for him to move up the ranks as gains more experience.
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