Cheltenham would not be complete without the jockey’s and with it comes a tight battle to be the leading rider at the Festival each year. BETDAQ’S JOHN SHERIDAN looks at the prospective chances of the top jockeys and the BETDAQ market this year.


Although over the last 10 years only four riders have won the title with Ruby Walsh taking most with six between 2004 and 2013. Barry Geraghty, Robert Thornton and Graham Lee are the only other riders on the list and you would have to go back as far as 1998 to see when the great AP McCoy took home the title last. This shows how competitive the Leading Jockey list is.

With Ruby Walsh currently trading as short as 1.56 on BETDAQ, he is the most popular choice with the punters but we are going to look at the Jockeys who ride the track best and rarely leave without a winner.

Ruby Walsh

rubywalshThis is the most obvious place to start with the winningmost Jockey at the Cheltenham Festival and the leading Jockey for the past three years at the Festival.

Walsh has for the last number of years had a book of rides that would be the envy of the majority of his weigh room counterparts and to a certain extent this year is sure to be no different despite not having the powerful Paul Nicholls yard behind him. Even without that, the Kildare native still had the likes of Hurricane Fly, Annie Power, Quevega, Champagne Fever, Vautour and so many more in his book of rides and is currently trading at 1.56 on the BETDAQ Exchanges to be top jockey at the Festival.

If you ask many of the top riders for advice at riding around Cheltenham and most will tell you to follow Ruby. He knows his way around Prestbury Park like the back of his hand and he is definitely the first jockey to be followed at next week’s Festival.

Although his week could be defined by how he fares on Tuesday, his book of rides is so strong that he has such a good chance of getting on the board at least once on the opening day.

Vautour looks as if he is heading to the Supreme, Champagne Fever in the Arkle, Hurricane Fly in the Champion Hurdle, Quevega in the Mares Hurdle and he is sure to have two decent rides in the three mile Handicap Chase and the Rewards4Racing Novices Handicap Chase at the end of the card.

The rest of his week looks quite strong but regardless of anything else, Ruby Walsh is the man to follow in the Cotswolds and should get a couple of winners on the board throughout the week.

Richard Johnson

richardjohnsonDickie Johnson is one of the best jump jockeys never to have been Champion. He has had the grave misfortune of having to compete directly with AP McCoy for the Championship for more than a decade and has been runner up the majority of times during that period.

Cheltenham is one place that Johnson rarely comes away from without a winner. Having won on the likes of Flagship Uberalles, Captain Chris, Snap Tie, Looks Like Trouble and Rooster Booster, Johnson has a record that is second to none around Cheltenham and looks to have quite a solid set of rides once again.

One thing about Richard Johnson is that he is one of just two jockeys riding at the moment (the other being Barry Geraghty) that has won all four Championship races at the Festival.

One of Johnson’s main hopes for the Festival is sure to be with Triumph Hurdle hope Le Rocher who is currently trading at 7.6 on the BETDAQ Exchanges. He also has a decent ride in former Champion Bumper winner, Cheltenian who could run in either the Supreme or the County Hurdle. He is more likely to go for the County and is one to follow in the Johnson book.

Although Dickie, trading at 40.0 on BETDAQ is unlikely to have enough winners to be crowned Leading Jockey over the four days, he is a man to follow around the track. He rarely leaves without a winner and is one to keep an eye on in the Handicaps if he’s on a big priced horse.

Bryan Cooper

bryancooperThe new number one Jockey to the powerful Gigginstown Stud string, Bryan Cooper stormed onto the headlines 12 months ago when riding three winners, including a double on the Friday at the Festival.

Cooper shot to fame and fortune with three foot perfect rides on Ted Veale, Benefficient and the breathtaking win from Our Conor in the Triumph Hurdle. Although he is not likely to take the ride on any of these three this time around, he is set to have a good bunch of rides with the likes of Last Instalment, First Lieutenant and Trifolium.

The Gigginstown team, in general, come away with at least one winner each year and although they don’t appear to have the same strength in their string at present, but this year’s Festival is not a vintage Festival so there is an opportunity there for them to steal a prize when in other years, they may not have been quite so fortunate.

Bryan Cooper is one of the most talked about jockey’s riding at the moment and is widely regarded as the successor to Ruby Walsh and Tony McCoy as the biggest name in the game in the years to come. He rides exceptionally well and appears to handle the big days very easily and certain to be one to keep an eye on.

Tom Scudamore

tomscuEven though Tom Scudamore has just the one Cheltenham winner to his name courtesy of Salut Flo in the Byrne Group Plate in 2012, he goes to the Festival this year with possibly his best book of rides.

Scudamore, this year, has the added bonus that he will be able to take the mount on the horses owned by the Johnson family as Timmy Murphy is set to miss the Festival due to injury so Scudamore will take a plum ride on Red Sherlock in either the Albert Bartlett or the Neptune. Along with this one, David Pipe’s stable jockey also has good rides with the likes of €450,000 purchase, Un Temps Pour Tout and Vieux Lion Rouge.

These are three horses that look set to be well fancied runners no matter what races they run. All things considered, this year looks like the perfect time for Scudamore to enhance his Cheltenham portfolio.

Noel Fehily

noelChampion Hurdle winning rider, Noel Fehily is widely regarded as one of the most underestimated jockeys in the weigh room. Fehily has had a really strong association with Paul Nicholls this season which includes the ride on Gold Cup second favourite Silviniaco Conti.

The Irishman also has a strong set of rides for the likes of Harry Fry, which includes Rock On Ruby in the Arkle while Fehily is also likely to take the mount on the Oliver Sherwood trained Deputy Dan. His rides for Nicholls include leading fancies, Irish Saint and Abbyssial who both look quite solid and if all these run to scratch, Fehily could be one that could trouble Ruby Walsh for the top spot at this year’s Festival.


gplus3NEW !!!

You can now follow BETDAQ updates on Google+

For further details – CLICK HERE


Did you know that as well as checking the realtime prices on BETDAQ below – you can also log into your account and place your bets directly into BETDAQ from BETDAQ TIPS.

Bet via BETDAQ mobile below