# Jumps Trainers in Form, October 2026: Who Is Winning and How the Big Yards Go in Autumn
_Which British jumps yards are in form before the Showcase, the Charlie Hall and Cheltenham in November, and how the big yards fared at this time of year_
*Source: [https://stablebet.co.uk/racing-news/jumps-trainers-in-form-october-2026/](https://stablebet.co.uk/racing-news/jumps-trainers-in-form-october-2026/) ยท last updated 2026-10-22*
The jumps season runs all year, but late October is when the big Saturdays start. Four weekends in a row bring Cheltenham's Showcase (Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October), the Charlie Hall meeting at Wetherby and Down Royal's Festival of Racing (Friday 30 and Saturday 31 October), and Cheltenham's November Meeting (Friday 13 to Sunday 15 November).
We went through our own results database to find which British jumps yards are winning now, and how the big yards have gone over this stretch in each of the last three years. The recent figures run to Wednesday 21 October and agree run for run with our published results files; the earlier years come from our race record, which starts in October 2023.
Dan Skelton is sending out far more winners than anyone else, and Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies are winning with four runners in ten. Two of the biggest names, Nicky Henderson and Paul Nicholls, have hardly started.
## Who is in form: the last 14 and 30 days
Between 22 September and 21 October there were 257 British jumps races and 1,797 runners, a strike rate of 14.3% across the lot. That is the figure to hold each yard against.
Dan Skelton had 128 of those runners and won 29 of the 257 races, about one in every nine. In the 14 days from 8 to 21 October he had 23 winners from 86 runners (26.7%). The next busiest yards, Olly Murphy and Lucinda Russell & Michael Scudamore, had 52 runners each over the 30 days.
The Twiston-Davies yard has the best strike rate of the 20 trainers with at least 20 runners in the 30 days, 17 winners from 42 (40.5%), with 9 from 27 in the 14 days from 8 October. Jamie Snowden and Olly Murphy are both on 25%. Over the 14 days Stuart Edmunds and Charlie Longsdon share the best strike rate of anyone with ten or more runners, four winners from 11 each, too few runs to read much into.
At the other end, Mrs C Williams had 26 runners in the 14 days to 21 October without a winner, and one winner from 34 over the 30 days. Our feed lists that yard under Evan Williams until March 2026 and under Mrs C Williams since; across late October and November from 2023 to 2025 it had 21 winners from 271 runners (7.7%), so a slow autumn is not new there.
| Trainer | 14 days: runs | Wins | Strike rate | 30 days: runs | Wins | Strike rate | 30 days: 2nd or 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Skelton | 86 | 23 | 26.7% | 128 | 29 | 22.7% | 33 |
| Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies | 27 | 9 | 33.3% | 42 | 17 | 40.5% | 13 |
| Olly Murphy | 31 | 8 | 25.8% | 52 | 13 | 25.0% | 18 |
| Lucinda Russell & Michael Scudamore | 22 | 6 | 27.3% | 52 | 9 | 17.3% | 13 |
| Jamie Snowden | 17 | 5 | 29.4% | 28 | 7 | 25.0% | 12 |
| James Owen | 16 | 3 | 18.8% | 31 | 7 | 22.6% | 10 |
| Stuart Edmunds | 11 | 4 | 36.4% | 20 | 6 | 30.0% | 7 |
| Fergal O'Brien | 23 | 3 | 13.0% | 33 | 6 | 18.2% | 6 |
| Mickey Bowen | 14 | 1 | 7.1% | 38 | 4 | 10.5% | 17 |
| Mrs C Williams | 26 | 0 | 0.0% | 34 | 1 | 2.9% | 9 |
| Every British jumps runner | 1,031 | 146 | 14.2% | 1,797 | 257 | 14.3% | |
Source: our results database, British chases, hurdles and bumpers, to 21 October 2026. Non-runners left out; fallers count as beaten.
## 22 October to 30 November, 2023 to 2025
The six weeks from 22 October to 30 November take in the Showcase, the Charlie Hall and Down Royal weekend, Cheltenham in mid-November and a lot of midweek racing around them. In 2023, 2024 and 2025 combined they held 1,779 British jumps races and 14,699 runners, a strike rate of 12.1% across all of them. Fields are bigger then than now, about 8.3 runners a race against 7.0 in the last 30 days, which is why the average strike rate is lower.
Skelton had the most winners in the three windows, 93 from 550 runners, and his total has risen each year: 19, then 34, then 40. Nicholls had 74 from 331, but his count has gone the other way, from 32 in 2023 to 24 and then 18. Henderson won with almost one runner in four, 52 from 211.
The best strike rate of any trainer with 40 or more runners across the three windows belongs to Jamie Snowden: 44 winners from 143 (30.8%), including 22 from 58 last year. Sam Thomas is next with 20 from 68, then Matt Sheppard and Kim Bailey & Mat Nicholls, both just under 26%.
| Trainer | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | All three | Strike rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Skelton | 19 from 156 | 34 from 171 | 40 from 223 | 93 from 550 | 16.9% |
| Paul Nicholls | 32 from 130 | 24 from 102 | 18 from 99 | 74 from 331 | 22.4% |
| Olly Murphy | 14 from 90 | 25 from 111 | 24 from 129 | 63 from 330 | 19.1% |
| Nicky Henderson | 20 from 73 | 17 from 70 | 15 from 68 | 52 from 211 | 24.6% |
| Joe Tizzard | 12 from 82 | 21 from 94 | 18 from 85 | 51 from 261 | 19.5% |
| Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies | 20 from 75 | 14 from 91 | 16 from 89 | 50 from 255 | 19.6% |
| Fergal O'Brien | 14 from 95 | 15 from 96 | 16 from 119 | 45 from 310 | 14.5% |
| Ben Pauling | 8 from 81 | 14 from 90 | 22 from 106 | 44 from 277 | 15.9% |
| Jamie Snowden | 12 from 47 | 10 from 38 | 22 from 58 | 44 from 143 | 30.8% |
| James Owen | 6 from 34 | 17 from 57 | 12 from 77 | 35 from 168 | 20.8% |
| Every British jumps runner | 566 from 4,951 | 606 from 4,796 | 607 from 4,952 | 1,779 from 14,699 | 12.1% |
Wins from runners, 22 October to 30 November each year, British jumps races only. Each feed name is counted on its own: the Lucinda Russell yard, under its old and new licence names together, had 45 winners from 288 runners (15.6%), level with Fergal O'Brien on winners. Source: our results database.
## Quick starters and slow burners
For the ten yards with the most British jumps winners across the last two full seasons, we set each one's strike rate from 22 October to 30 November against its figure for the whole season. Our season runs May to April, our own cut of the data, and 2023-24 starts in October because our record does.
Jamie Snowden is the only one of the ten whose autumn strike rate beat his season's figure in all three years: 25.5% against 19.9%, then 26.3% against 21.1%, then 37.9% against 24.9% last season. Nicky Henderson, Paul Nicholls and the Twiston-Davies yard were each higher in two of the three. Olly Murphy and Neil Mulholland were lower in all three: Murphy 18.6% in last season's window against 20.6% over the season, Mulholland 6.9% against 12.4%.
Dan Skelton barely moves, within three points either way each year, from about 1,000 runners a season. Snowden's autumn windows held 38 to 58 runners, so each of his numbers is a small sample.
## Cheltenham, Wetherby and Down Royal
### Cheltenham
Cheltenham's October and November meetings together, 2023 to 2025, come to 99 races over 15 days in our record. Dan Skelton had 12 winners from 63 runners and Nicky Henderson 8 from 32, a quarter of his runners. Henry de Bromhead won with 5 from 25. Ben Pauling has one winner from 37 runners at these meetings and Fergal O'Brien two from 39.
The Paddy Power Gold Cup went to Paul Nicholls with Stage Star in 2023 and Il Ridoto in 2024, and to Skelton with Panic Attack last year. The October meeting's fields are in our [Cheltenham Showcase 2026 preview](/racing-news/cheltenham-showcase-2026-preview/), and the [November Meeting guide](/racing-news/cheltenham-november-meeting/) has the Gold Cup day's race times.
### Wetherby
Our record holds 257 jumps races at Wetherby since October 2023. Skelton has 20 winners from 83 runners there, nine of them from 36 runners in late October and November. Of trainers with ten or more runners there, Jamie Snowden (10 from 23) and James Owen (7 from 18) have the best strike rates, on small numbers. The [Charlie Hall Chase](/racing-news/charlie-hall-chase/) has had three different winning trainers in three years, from fields of four to six: Gentlemansgame for Mouse Morris in 2023, The Real Whacker for Patrick Neville in 2024 and Djelo for Venetia Williams in 2025.
### Down Royal
Down Royal is in Northern Ireland, outside every British figure on this page. Gordon Elliott leads the course in our record with 41 jumps winners from 174 runners, and 21 from 70 at the autumn meeting over the last three years. De Bromhead has won the [Down Royal Champion Chase](/racing-news/down-royal-champion-chase/) twice with Envoi Allen, in 2024 and 2025, after Elliott won it with Gerri Colombe in 2023. On their runs in Ireland and Northern Ireland over the 30 days to 21 October, de Bromhead had 9 winners from 55 runners (16.4%) and Elliott 9 from 72 (12.5%).
## What the numbers can and cannot tell you
A strike rate records what a yard has done. The bookmakers see the same results and price the runners with them in mind. Across the three late-autumn windows above, a level stake on every British jumps runner at starting price lost about 26p in the pound.
The numbers work best as background: who is sending out winners now, and who has done well at this time of year before. Our StableBet Ratings for each day's cards are on the [AI race predictor](/ai-race-predictor/today/), with the model's public record on its [track record page](/ai-race-predictor/track-record/). They are published to test the model in public.
### Bet responsibly
The jumps season brings big Friday and Saturday cards for weeks on end, and it is easy to bet more than you meant to. Set a budget before the meeting and stick to it, and treat any free bet as part of that budget rather than extra. The odds favour the bookmaker over time, whichever yard is in form. If gambling stops being fun, free confidential support is available from [BeGambleAware](https://www.begambleaware.org/) on 0808 8020 133. 18+.
## Frequently asked questions
### Which jumps trainer is in the best form right now?
On winners, Dan Skelton, by some way: 29 from 128 runners in British jumps races over the 30 days to 21 October. On strike rate, Nigel & Willy Twiston-Davies lead every trainer with at least 20 runners in the 30 days, with 17 winners from 42 (40.5%). The average across all British jumps runners was 14.3%.
### Are Nicky Henderson and Paul Nicholls out of form?
There is too little to go on. Nicky Henderson has had five British jumps runners in the 30 days to 21 October without a winner, and Paul Nicholls ten runners and one winner. From late October to November over the last three years, Henderson won with 52 of 211 runners (24.6%) and Nicholls with 74 of 331 (22.4%).
### Does studying the form actually change anything?
It helps you understand a race, and the bookmakers have read the same results before they price it up, so trainer form shows up in the odds. Across the three late-autumn windows on this page, backing every runner at starting price would have lost money. Trainer form is one piece of context, alongside the horse's own record, the trip and the ground. Our model's ratings and public record are on the [AI race predictor](/ai-race-predictor/today/).
### Which trainers do best at Cheltenham in October and November?
Taking the Showcase and the November Meeting together from 2023 to 2025, Dan Skelton had the most winners, 12 from 63 runners, and Nicky Henderson the better strike rate, 8 from 32. Paul Nicholls won the Paddy Power Gold Cup in 2023 and 2024, and Skelton won it in 2025. These are small samples from six meetings.