Sean Bowen's best rides of the 2024-25 title-winning season

Sean Bowen ends the year with 180 winners and the success-hungry Welshman is already targeting 200 when the music stops in 12 months’ time. He was badly hampered in his bid for a first jump jockeys’ championship when forced to miss several weeks due to injury last season but has not looked back and while a lot of the hard yards were made before winter even set in, his title-winning campaign has included several striking moments.

From last summer right through to Resplendent Grey at Sandown on the final day on Saturday, Bowen has been operating at an extraordinary level and signed off with a 32% (18-56) strike-rate for the month of April.

Everyone will have their favourites but here are my standout moments from a man seemingly destined to be at the top of the tree for years to come.

Shallow River - Carlisle, Pertemps Network Handicap Hurdle (December 15 2024)

Comparisons have already been made with Sir Anthony McCoy and you can see why but I wouldn't be an a rush to pigeon-hole Sean Bowen as a rider of pure brute force and determination (not that AP was either, of course).

He has a wonderful clock in his head too, more on that below, but Shallow River's win at Carlisle before Christmas was admittedly in essence down to Bowen's insane will-to-win and bombproof attitude.

They quickened away from this horse approaching the last flight and it just looked like the race hadn't panned out in his favour, but a top rider doesn't just accept their fate and he turned the race on its head with a power-packed drive on the long run-in.

Moon d'Orange – Cheltenham, Betfair Exchange Handicap Chase (January 25 2025)

It just never looked on for Moon D’Orange. On three or four occasions his goose appeared cooked.

When you consider how ponderous he was over the first three or four fences (soon adrift of the rest of the field), and also how well the pace tends to hold up at the intermediate trip over fences on the New Course at Cheltenham, it was a truly remarkable victory.

Once again Bowen was in no mood to concede defeat, even after another fiddly error four out intensified the task ahead. That’s presumably when the well-punted 7/2 favourited touched 44.0 on the Betfair Exchange, but there was more drama to come.

Not only did Moon D’Orange jump markedly left at the next fence, he then suddenly seemed to latch onto the bridle and started to motor on levelling into the straight. The horse took the penultimate obstacle well before blundering badly at the last and yet somehow the partnership with Bowen remained intact.

The rider also still had his stick in hand despite nearly being ejected from the saddle and he was able to galvanise the horse one final time to repel the persistent challenge of Grandeur D’ame who had been more prominent throughout and went down fighting.

Booster Bob – Newbury, BetVictor Greatwood Gold Cup (March 1 2025)

Another valuable Saturday handicap chase and more Bowen madness.

Booster Bob was about five lengths adrift and bumped along after the very first fence and it came as no shock whatsoever to learn that he was out to 880 on the Exchange at some point during the race.

Almost 20 lengths detached and “not travelling well at all” according to Ian Bartlett on comms, it’s hard to know what was going through Bowen’s head as he must have at least considered pulling the horse up when still miles behind on touching down after the fifth-last.

The decision to stick with it paid off handsomely, Booster Bob responding a little bit like Moon D’Orange on straightening for home, and the admirable Barty went up another octave when he eventually spotted what was unfolding approaching the final fence. From tailed off, to nailed on.

Think Ruby Walsh on Tidal Bay or McCoy on Mr Mole, this was another prime example of what can happen when you combine a slightly quirky horse with a genius of a jockey.

Haiti Couleurs – Fairyhouse, BoyleSports Irish Grand National Chase (April 21 2025)

Bowen recently stated that he doesn’t get much chance to ride out in a morning, he lives so far away from any of the stables and is just too busy getting to the racecourse to find the time. In a sense, I wonder if that’s almost helped him become such a fine judge of pace as he’s rarely just working away at military medium sort of speed.

Instead, he's race-riding almost through and through. With that, he seems hyper-sensitive to the fractions being set up front and while both Moon D’Orange and Booster Bob obviously came from the clouds to beat tiring rivals in the nick of time, Bowen underlined the fact he can also pull off a prominent ride in a fiercely-fought contest when judging it to a nicety on Haiti Couleurs at Fairyhouse.

He’d been required to ride Resplendent Grey for Olly Murphy in the National Hunt Chase so missed out on Rebecca Curtis’ horse - one Bowen had ridden for his three previous starts - at Cheltenham, but it didn’t affect him. Confidence looked higher than ever, in fact, and the progressive Haiti Couleurs gave his rider a glorious spin.

It was just Bowen's third ever ride at the track, for a little further context.

Fairlawn Flyer – Perth, QuinnBet Highland National Handicap Chase (April 25 2025)

Recency bias? I’ll hear nothing of the sort!

Although… what a couple of weeks it’s been for the champ, including victory aboard this fellow for father Peter and older brother Michael in the Highland National on the final afternoon of the three-day Perth Festival.

Twice a winner under the yard’s claimer Shane Fenelon in March, Fairlawn Flyer was far from fluent in the fencing department in Scotland but was evidently given breather after breather and his jockey just kept him interested before throwing the kitchen sink his way after the jumping was done.

The stable has enjoyed its best season since 2019 and have clearly had a helping hand from one of the best in the business, Sean riding 18 winners, 15 seconds and 24 thirds for them.

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