Jump Season Preview: Who Will Win The Jockeys Championship? We’re heading into the latter stages of September now and there will soon be a focus shift, as Jumps racing begins to take priority in a month or so. It’s time for fans of that discipline to come out of hibernation and we have another exciting season ahead of us. It’ll surprise no one to hear that Willie Mullins’ main man Paul Townend was crowned champion jockey last season and he came top with a very comfortable margin, with second-place Sam Ewing 41 winners behind his total of 108. The make-up of this season’s championship depends once again on one very significant factor - the fitness of Jack Kennedy. He has been very unlucky in recent years and more injury woes last season which scuppered his chances of competing. If Kennedy can get a clear run this time around, there’s a good chance that Townend won’t have it all his own way. Here we take a look at how the championship battle will play out and who could be the one to come out on top. Paul Townend Obviously Townend is going to be in the mix once again, as he has any number of superstar and talented prospects to ride throughout the season. Willie Mullins’ stranglehold only gets stronger every year and that situation is expected to improve. The one thing the chasing pack have in their favour is the fact that he often picks and chooses when he rides, which gives the others plenty of opportunities when he’s not around. Jack Kennedy As stable jockey to Ireland’s second biggest yard, Kennedy will no doubt have plenty of opportunities to ride winners. Gordon Elliott may need to have a better season than last time around and Kennedy’s fitness will be put to the test once again. Provided he stays injury-free, it could be a close battle between him and Townend, especially as Kennedy is much more likely to pick up outside rides which could give him an advantage. Darragh O’Keeffe One man to look out for this season is the current championship leader Darragh O’Keefe. He has already ridden 37 winners and is currently 17 ahead of second-placed Phillip Enright. Rachael Blackmore’s retirement has opened plenty of doors for him and he is taking advantage. O’Keefe now gets the pick of Henry de Bromhead’s strong string and if anyone is going to force a three-way battle, he looks well set to do so. Keith Donoghue and Mark Walsh The continuous growth of the Gavin Cromwell yard is good news for Keith Donoghue, who finished third last season If Cromwell goes on to have another excellent year, Donoghue will be up there once again and could even surpass last season’s total. Mark Walsh gets to ride all of JP McManus’ best horses and that’s obviously an excellent position to be in. He did ride less than 50 winners last season, however, and he’ll need to improve significantly in order to mount a challenge this time around. Who loses out? Working under the assumption that Jack Kennedy remains injury-free, last year’s runner-up Sam Ewing is likely to drop out of contention. Many of his 67 winners would’ve been ridden by Kennedy and those opportunities will dry up now. Phillip Enright and Alex Harvey currently sit in second and third respectively, but once the autumn and winter period kicks into overdrive, they might find it hard to maintain their current positions. Prediction: It’s getting harder for Willie Mullins to keep his battalions of superstars separate, so more regular forays into Britain’s big races could be on the cards this year. Townend could find himself travelling over more often if that is the case and Kennedy could pull ahead in the championship as a result.
