From the master trainers to a beaten 1-25 favourite: the record-breakers of 2023
John Randall looks back at the record-breaking events in the past year
In an article first published earlier this week exclusively for Racing Post Members' Club subscribers, Racing Post historian John Randall looks back at 12 record-breaking events that happened in the world of horseracing in 2023. This has now been made free to read for users of the Racing Post app as our Sunday Read.
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1 Aidan O'Brien
In breaking records and reaching career milestones, Aidan O'Brien had an awesome year in 2023, even by his superlative standards. Having scored a record-extending ninth Derby victory with Auguste Rodin, he became the first trainer to win 100 Classics in Europe when that colt followed up in the Irish Derby on July 2.
His Classic century comprised a record 49 in Ireland, a record 42 in Britain, and nine in France. His current tally is 102 in a roll-call headed by Classic Park in the 1997 Irish 1,000 Guineas.
Having started his training career in 1993, O'Brien scored his 4,000th win world-wide with Henry Longfellow in the National Stakes on September 10 en route to his 25th consecutive Irish Flat trainers' title and 26th in all.
Three of his new records – for the most wins by a trainer at Royal Ascot, and in the Eclipse and Irish Oaks – had been held by Sir Michael Stoute.
The master of Ballydoyle scored his unique 83rd Royal Ascot triumph via Paddington in the St James's Palace Stakes on June 20, and in July notched his seventh victory in both the Eclipse Stakes (with Paddington; Stoute and Alec Taylor had won the race six times) and the Irish Oaks, thanks to Savethelastdance.
Champion two-year-old City Of Troy became his record-equalling eighth winner of the Dewhurst Stakes, and Auguste Rodin then landed the Breeders' Cup Turf, making him the first trainer to win any Breeders' Cup race seven times.
2 Golden Sixty
Golden Sixty became the world's leading prize-money earner when winning the Hong Kong Mile for the third time at Sha Tin on December 10.
It took his lifetime earnings to £16,183,375, beating the record of £14,564,743 by the great Australian mare Winx. He won the biggest prize of his career with a performance that equalled his peak Racing Post Rating of 129.
An eight-year-old Australian-bred gelding trained by Francis Lui and ridden by Vincent Ho, Golden Sixty has been Hong Kong's Horse of the Year for the last three seasons and has won 26 of his 30 races. One of his defeats was at odds of 1-100.
3 Willie Mullins
Although it went unremarked at the time, Willie Mullins set what may be the most significant of all his many trainers' records with a combined Ireland/GB score of 245 in the 2022-23 jumps season, beating Martin Pipe's tally of 243 in 1999-2000.
Of those, he won 237 in Ireland, surpassing his own Irish jumps record of 212 in 2017-18; the biggest contributor was six-time winner Easy Game. He won eight races in one day, April 9, and 17 at the Punchestown festival.
His Irish prize-money of €7,299,665 beat his own 2018-19 record and gave him his 16th consecutive trainers' title and 17th in all; the biggest contributors were State Man and I Am Maximus. That was quite apart from his triumphs in Britain, which included the Cheltenham Gold Cup (Galopin Des Champs) and Queen Mother Champion Chase (Energumene).
The Closutton maestro, who started training in 1988, scored his 4,000th career win with Bronn at Fairyhouse on January 28.
4 Doom
Doom acquired the unenviable distinction of being the joint shortest-priced loser of all time in Britain when beaten at odds of 1-25 at Ripon on September 5.
Trained by William Haggas, Doom had run subsequent Oaks winner Soul Sister to a head as a juvenile and looked a certainty in a two-horse race for this maiden fillies' event, but she and Tom Marquand were beaten a length by debutante Karmology. She atoned by taking a Listed race in France.
Royal Forest, second in the Clarence House Stakes at Ascot in September 1948, was the only previous 1-25 loser in Britain. The quirky two-year-old, winner of the Coventry Stakes, was ridden by Gordon Richards.
5 Constitution Hill
When Constitution Hill carried out his demolition job in the Champion Hurdle on March 14, he became the shortest-priced winner in the history of a race first run in 1927. His odds of 4-11 made him a hotter favourite than Sir Ken, who was 2-5 when clinching the second of his three titles in 1953.
In giving trainer Nicky Henderson a record-extending ninth victory in the race, Constitution Hill was awarded the best Champion Hurdle-winning RPR since those ratings were introduced in 1987, as his mark of 177 beat Istabraq's 175 in 1998. The highest RPRs in any hurdle race have been achieved by Istabraq (181) and Big Buck's (178).
6 Paul Nicholls
Paul Nicholls was Britain's champion jumps trainer for the 14th time with a prize-money haul of £3,646,585. Thanks to place-money in the very last race of the season at Sandown on April 29, he beat by the tiny margin of £74 the record he himself set in the glory days of Kauto Star, Denman and Master Minded in 2007-08.
His biggest contributor was Bravemansgame, and he is now only one behind Martin Pipe's record tally of 15 British titles.
7 John Kiely
John Kiely became the oldest trainer to win a race at the Cheltenham Festival when A Dream To Share landed the Champion Bumper on March 15. The Waterford handler was enjoying his first success at the meeting at the age of 85 years 314 days.
8 Valiant Force
When Valiant Force, trained by Adrian Murray and ridden by Rossa Ryan, landed the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes at odds of 150-1 on June 22, the colt equalled the records for the longest-priced winner at Royal Ascot and the longest-priced winner of any British or Irish Group race since the European Flat Pattern was created in 1971.
Both records were set by Nando Parrado in the 2020 Coventry Stakes.
9 Gordon Elliott
In the Troytown Chase at Navan on November 19 Gordon Elliott became the first trainer ever to have 14 runners in one race. He had declared 15 horses but one was withdrawn at the start; he won the race with Coko Beach.
Elliott himself had set the previous best with 13 runners in the 2018 Irish Grand National. Willie Mullins equalled it later that month in a Punchestown handicap hurdle.
10 Julie Camacho
Julie Camacho has beaten the British Flat prize-money record for a female trainer in a year with a haul of £1,299,533. Most of it was earned by champion sprinter Shaquille, the eccentric Commonwealth Cup and July Cup winner.
The previous Flat record was £1,076,350 by Lady Cecil in 2014. The overall record remains £1,567,452 by Venetia Williams over jumps in 2021-22.
11 Bob Baffert
When National Treasure edged home in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on May 20, Bob Baffert broke the trainers' record for the most victories in the second leg of the US Triple Crown.
The first of Baffert's eight Preakness winners was Silver Charm in 1997, and his others have included Triple Crown heroes American Pharoah and Justify. He had previously shared the record with Wyndham Walden, who achieved his seven wins between 1875 and 1888.
12 Grand National
The seven members of The Ramblers, the syndicate that owns Grand National winner Corach Rambler, include university student Cameron Sword, who, at 21, became the youngest owner to win the race, surpassing Bryan Burrough, who was 23 when triumphing with Corbiere in 1983.
The Grand National was run on April 15, the latest date in its long history. And a record 26 of the 39 runners were trained in Ireland – five more than in 2022.
More Sunday Reads:
Fur coats, Bentleys and bus passes: meet the flamboyant former king of the betting jungle
Adele Mulrennan: 'My heart was pounding and my mouth was dry - I was so nervous'
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- 'I want to be sick. I want to cry. I want to punch something. My golden opportunity has evaporated'
- 'I've been prepared to put my balls on the line. Sometimes things have worked out. Sometimes they haven't'
- 'Other people look at eyes and ears and fetlocks but for me it's bottoms - it all started with John Francome and it seems as good a system as any'
- Sir Mark Prescott: 'At Ascot, you couldn't see anything wrong with British racing – and yet we know there are terrible troubles'
- Oisin Murphy: 'Having my counsellor is a big help - I don't feel anything I bring to her is too much'