What really sets Watson apart, though, is that he is not just winning ordinary races. He has landed 14 top-level races in his career — the kind that matter most, at venues like Ascot, Newbury and Ayr. In the last year alone he has won at that level three times: at York in August 2024, Doncaster in September 2024, and Newbury as recently as April 2025. These are not soft targets. These are the biggest stages in British racing, and Watson keeps showing up on them.
His partnership with jockey Hollie Doyle is one of the most productive combinations in the sport right now. Together they have produced 31 winners from 196 rides — winning at a rate of roughly 1 in every 6 — and when Doyle is in the saddle for a Watson horse, it is worth paying attention. It is the kind of combination where trainer and rider clearly understand each other well.
The most striking thing happening right now, however, is Watson's current form. Over the last two weeks his runners have won 8 times from just 23 attempts — that is more than 1 in every 3, compared to the 1 in 8 he has been averaging all season. A short-term spike like that often means a yard is in peak condition, with horses fit, happy and ready to run. It is the sort of purple patch that punters dream about stumbling across.
There are also a couple of specific patterns worth knowing. Watson's horses perform particularly well on wet or muddy ground, winning 3 of 15 races in those conditions — a 1 in 5 rate that is markedly better than his overall average. And at Chepstow in Wales he has won 3 times from just 10 runners, which suggests he knows exactly how to target that track. Four years in, Watson already looks like a serious long-term force.
| Course | Races | Wins | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lingfield Park | 60 | 10 | 16.7% |
| Wolverhampton | 60 | 9 | 15% |
| Kempton Park | 45 | 5 | 11.1% |
| Newcastle | 32 | 5 | 15.6% |
| Southwell | 29 | 3 | 10.3% |
| chelmsford | 27 | 4 | 14.8% |
| Goodwood | 20 | 1 | 5% |
| Great Yarmouth | 14 | 2 | 14.3% |
| Ascot | 14 | 0 | 0% |
| Newbury | 13 | 2 | 15.4% |
| Doncaster | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Newmarket | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| York | 13 | 1 | 7.7% |
| Windsor | 12 | 1 | 8.3% |
| Salisbury | 11 | 1 | 9.1% |
| Chepstow | 10 | 3 | 30% |
| Leicester | 9 | 1 | 11.1% |
| Nottingham | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Catterick Bridge | 7 | 1 | 14.3% |
| Bath | 7 | 1 | 14.3% |
| Ffos Las | 7 | 0 | 0% |
| Haydock Park | 7 | 0 | 0% |
| Brighton | 6 | 1 | 16.7% |
| Ripon | 6 | 1 | 16.7% |
| Hamilton Park | 6 | 0 | 0% |
| Carlisle | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Epsom Downs | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Sandown Park | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Redcar | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Thirsk | 5 | 1 | 20% |
| Beverley | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Pontefract | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Ayr | 4 | 2 | 50% |
| Musselburgh | 4 | 1 | 25% |
| Stratford-on-Avon | 3 | 0 | 0% |
| Aintree | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Sedgefield | 2 | 0 | 0% |
| Fakenham | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| Warwick | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| Dundalk | 1 | 1 | 100% |
| The Curragh | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Wetherby | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| hereford | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Uttoxeter | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Fontwell Park | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Exeter | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Chester | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Ludlow | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| Naas | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| chantilly | 1 | 0 | 0% |
| meydan | 1 | 0 | 0% |