Oisin McSweeney

The headline moment came on 19 September 2025 at Ayr, where McSweeney won one of the top races in Britain — a Class 1, which is as good as it gets on these shores. One top-level winner in four years might sound modest, but plenty of professional jockeys never get near a race of that quality. Landing one at Ayr, a track with a serious reputation, is the kind of result that gets you noticed and keeps the phone ringing.

His most consistent source of winners has been the yard of trainer Adrian Paul Keatley. Across 96 races together, that partnership has produced 16 wins — a win rate of roughly 1 in every 6, which is considerably better than McSweeney's overall average. That tells you something important: Keatley trusts him with live chances, and McSweeney delivers more often than not when the horse beneath him has a real shot. A tight, productive partnership like this is often how a young jockey gets the experience and confidence to move up a level.

There are two other things worth flagging about his riding. He handles wet, muddy ground particularly well — 2 wins from just 7 races in the worst conditions, which works out at roughly 1 in every 3.5 rides. That is a striking number and suggests he keeps horses balanced and settled when conditions get difficult, which is a genuine skill. And at Catterick Bridge specifically, he has won 4 races from 14 visits — again, well above his overall average. Some jockeys simply read certain tracks better than others, and Catterick appears to suit his style.

At 100 career winners and still only four years in, McSweeney looks like a jockey on an upward curve. The trajectory this season points firmly in the right direction.