Brian Hughes ended the 2021/22 National Hunt season with his second Jockeys’ Championship.
The man from County Armagh proved once again that he was the leading rider in his sport with an impressive campaign.
Hughes rode over 200 winners in a season for the first time in his career. He became only the fourth jockey in history to reach that milestone. Peter Scudamore, Tony McCoy and Richard Johnson all managed it before him, so he joins very good company with the record.
Unlike when he won his first title, Hughes got the chance to celebrate his success at Sandown on the final day of the season. He was presented with the trophy by Richard Hammond.
Hughes will now be preparing for the next season in the sport. One of the few disappointments from the 2021/22 campaign was that he did not have a ride in the Grand National at Aintree. He will be hoping that is not the case in 2023. Noble Yeats is the 16/1 favourite in the betting UK on race and with regular jockey Sam Waley-Cohen now retired, that ride could be up for grabs.
Hughes Has Formed a Great Partnership with McCain
The Champion Jockey has been known as one of the leading riders in the north for a number of years now. He is based in Teeside and he has great knowledge of the northern tracks in the UK.
One of the partnerships Hughes has developed is with Donald McCain. The trainer had 155 winners last season and many of those have been ridden to success by the County Armagh-born jockey.
Although a lot of his rides have been for McCain, Hughes is a freelance jockey, so his agent Richard Hale works hard throughout the season to ensure he has as many bookings as possible up and down the UK.
After his title success in the 2021/22 campaign, Hughes estimated he has done between 70,000-80,000 miles on the road across the season to get to racecourses. It’s an example of one of the sacrifices the Champions Jockey has had to make to get to the position he is at.
County Armagh Rider the One to Beat Again in 2022/23 Season
Hughes finished 99 winners ahead of his nearest rival last season, as he ended the standings on 204 successes, with Sam Twiston-Davies next best with 105. His rivals are going to have to show a huge improvement on their tally to get close to the defending champion.
If he remains injury-free, Hughes is likely to have a great chance of clocking up another 200 winners next season. He will be riding with a lot of confidence, and he is not afraid to travel across the UK, if he believes he has a chance of a winner or two on a racecard.
Hughes has established himself as one of the most successful sports stars from Armagh. If he continues to dominate his sport over the next few years, he could end his career as one of the best jumps jockeys ever.
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