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Barry Geraghty has a string of achievements to his name. He’s a Grand National winner, the second most-successful jockey at the Cheltenham Festival, fourth on the all-time UK and Ireland National Hunt winners list and twice been crowded the Irish jump racing Champion jockey. He is now aged in his forties but he’s still winning many big races. Let’s delve inside the fantastic career of Geraghty and look at his impressive record in the Grand National.
Barry Geraghty: an Overview of His Career
Barry Geraghty recorded his first win back in 1997. Three years later he became the Irish Champion jump jockey. In 2002, he rode Moscow Flyer to victory in the Arkle Challenge Trophy to notch up the first of Cheltenham Festival wins.
Things got even better the following year. Once again he piloted Moscow Flyer to Cheltenham glory – this time in the Queen Mother Champion Chase. He also bagged four more winners at that year’s Festival and guided Monty’s Pass to a 12-length victory in the Grand National making him a fine candidate for Grand National in 2020.
Year-on-year, Barry Geraghty showed his outstanding temperament in the big races. When he added the Champion Hurdle to his win list at the 2009 Cheltenham Festival, he became the first jockey to have been victorious in all four big Cheltenham races as well as being a Grand National winner.
In August 2012, he marked his 1000 Irish win and in 2019, he took fourth place on the all-time winners’ list, with 1875 wins in Britain and Ireland. Of course, that number has grown even more since.
Barry Geraghty Personal Profile
Barry Geraghty was born in 1979, in Pellestown, County Meath, Ireland. He was raised in a family that has horses in its blood. His parents ran Pelletstown Riding Centre, and they’ve also bred and trained some horses themselves. His siblings are involved in the industry too, in various forms.
Now in his forties, punters are wondering when this racing legend will hang up his saddle but Geraghty has made it clear that he’s not ready to call it a day just yet. In April this year, he fell off a horse at Aintree and broke his leg. That injury prevented him from being a Grand National jockey for the 19th time.
Most Memorable Wins
Barry Geraghty has a list as long as your arm of big-race wins. These are a few of the highlights from his glittering career:
| Cheltenham Festival | Year | Horse |
|---|---|---|
| Queen Mother Champion Chase | 2003 | Moscow Flyer |
| Cheltenham Gold Cup | 2005 | Kicking King |
| Champion Hurdle | 2014 | Jezki |
As of 2019, his total number of Cheltenham Festival wins is 38 which includes two Gold Cups.
| Ireland wins | Year | Horse |
|---|---|---|
| Punchestown Champion Chase | 2001 | Moscow Express |
| Irish Gold Cup | 2002 | Alexander Banquet |
| Savills Chase | 2013 | Bobs Worth |
| Great Britain wins | Year | Horse |
|---|---|---|
| Tingle Creek Chase | 2003,2004 | Moscow Flyer |
| Celebration Chase | 2002, 2004 | Cenkos |
| Ascot Chase | 2011, 2012 | Riverside Theatre |
| Grand National Wins | |
|---|---|
| Year | Horse |
| 2003 | Monty’s Pass |
Geraghty’s solitary win in the National doesn’t tell the whole story as to how well he has performed in one of the toughest races in the world. In 2007, he came home 3rd on Slim Pickings.
He has finished 4th on four occasions with Monty’s Pass (2004), Slim Pickings (2008), Thanks Big Fella (2010) and Anibale Fly (2018). This is in addition to two sixth-place finishes and two ninth places. That’s ten top 10 finishes for Barry Geraghty Grand National jockey in 18 races. Not many other riders can match those stats. To see Barry try to reach new heights be sure to tune in to a Virtual Grand National live stream.
