Ben Jones named in top ten for career prize money
A JOCKEY from Carmarthenshire has been named among the highest earners in horse racing ahead of this year’s Cheltenham Festival.
Research by betting community OLBG has revealed the current top ten names in the Jockeys’ Championship who have accumulated the most career prize money.
Among them is Carmarthenshire rider Ben Jones, who ranks ninth on the list with career earnings of more than £5 million.
The rankings are topped by Sam Twiston-Davies, whose career prize money totals more than £23.6 million. The 33-year-old has enjoyed a highly successful career with more than 1,600 wins to his name.
His most notable victories include the Queen Mother Champion Chase, the King George VI Chase and the Scottish Grand National. His most recent Cheltenham victory came in 2023 when he won the Broadway Novices’ Chase riding The Real Whacker.
Second on the list is Harry Skelton, who has earned more than £22.1 million during his career and has recorded almost 1,500 wins.
In recent years Skelton and his brother Dan Skelton have become one of the most successful partnerships in jump racing, helping to cement his place among the sport’s leading riders.
Also featuring in the top ten are Harry Cobden, Brian Hughes, Sean Bowen, Gavin Sheehan, Jonathan Burke, James Bowen and Danny McMenamin.
Ben Jones’ inclusion in the list highlights the growing impact of Welsh jockeys in the sport as the racing world prepares for one of the biggest events in the jump racing calendar.
The Cheltenham Festival, held annually at Cheltenham Racecourse in Cheltenham, attracts the world’s best horses, trainers and jockeys and is one of the most prestigious meetings in British horse racing.
