Duke Silver

His career took its first meaningful turn at Wexford in late October 2024, when he landed his debut win. But the highlight to date came at Leopardstown on 28 December 2025 — a big stage on one of Irish racing's most important days of the year. Winning at Leopardstown on St Stephen's Day tells you this is a horse capable of stepping up when the occasion demands it, and that win will have done his confidence no harm at all.

Recent form, reading from his last six races, is a mixed bag: a third, a twelfth, a sixth, a seventh, that Leopardstown win, and then a fourteenth before it. The tendency to run well one day and disappear the next is a familiar puzzle with horses like Duke Silver — there is clearly talent in there, but consistency remains elusive. He raced just one day ago, so he is right in the thick of his season.

His most regular partner in the saddle is J J Slevin, who has ridden him in 10 of his 23 races and won once together — a 10% win rate, or 1 win from every 10 rides. That is a functional partnership rather than a sparkling one, though Slevin clearly knows this horse well by now. Behind the scenes, Duke Silver is trained by Joseph Patrick O'Brien at Owning Hill in County Kilkenny — one of Irish jump racing's powerhouse operations. O'Brien's yard has already sent out 154 winners this season alone, which is a remarkable number and a sign of just how much ammunition they have. For a horse like Duke Silver, being part of a stable that busy means he has plenty of competition for the best opportunities — but it also means he is in professional hands that know exactly where to place him to give him the best chance of winning again.