Wales and The West have won the 2024 Racing League following the final fixture of the season at Southwell. It is the second time in three years that the team has been successful in the league.
Jamie Osbourne managed Wales and The West in the 2024 Racing League. The experienced trainer’s team included jockeys Jack Mitchell, Kieran O’Neill and Pat Cosgrave. They regained the trophy after recording a treble at Southwell in the finale meeting.
Ian Williams got Wales & West off to a flyer
Osbourne opted to use his joker card in the opening race at Southwell on the Ian Williams-trained Dancing In Paris. That ensured his team scored double points when the four-year-old gelding scored by just under two lengths.
Edward-Smyth Osbourne helped Wales & The West extend their lead in the second race as his horse Noodle Mission won a 7f handicap contest by a narrow margin. He finished ahead of the two favourites Kodi Lion and Grand Karat respectively.
The title was sealed in the penultimate race of the evening when Fantasy Believer provided Wales and The West their third winner on the card in a handicap over 1m3f. Ed Walker’s runner finished the race powerfully following a slow start to get up when it mattered.
Osbourne hoping to carry his form into 2024/25 campaign
Before picking up his trainer’s licence, Osbourne was a jockey who rode at the highest level. In 1997 he finished second in the British Jockeys’ Championship after riding 131 winners. Like many jockeys in the 90s and 00s, it was not enough to match Tony McCoy.
Major wins for Osbourne came in the Hennessy Gold Cup, Arkle Challenge Trophy, Queen Mother Champion Chase and Irish Grand National. His career in the saddle came to an end after a fall at the 1999 Cheltenham Festival.
As a dual-purpose trainer, Osbourne did not have to wait long for his first Group One victory as he won the Dewhurst Stakes in 2003 with Milk It Mick. This latest victory as the Wales and West manager will give the now Lambourne-based trainer a lot of confidence going into the 2024/25 National Hunt season. Everybody in the sport will be bidding to take the British Jump Trainers’ Championship title off Willie Mullins this year.
Team event divide’s opinion
The Racing League has divided opinion in horse racing since it launched in 2021. However, it is something enjoyed by all the jockeys, trainers and owners involved in the competition every Thursday evening in August.
Owners in the sport appreciate the higher-than-average prize money that the Racing League brings and the community aspect of being part of a wider group. Some of the horses involved in the competition were from racehorse ownership syndicates in the UK such as RaceShare. You can buy shares in horses today from as little as £33 which may ensure you are involved in the Racing League in 2025.
The Racing League is supported by broadcaster partner ITV Racing which ensures all the meetings in the competition are on free-to-air terrestrial television. Each racecourse involved also offer discounted tickets for those looking to attend the meetings.
Wales and The West will defend their crown in 2025 when the league returns in early August.
