The Irish jumps season may not be over just yet but in truth, the race to be Champion jumps jockey has been over for quite some time.

Paul Townend has already hit treble figures on 104 wins, 35 ahead of Davy Russell in second, who is in turn eight ahead of Rachael Blackmore in third.

This is Townend’s first season as stable jockey, in an official sense, to Willie Mullins, following the retirement of Ruby Walsh last year. With that came a new pressure but as Mullins said after the Gold Cup, the Cork man has had a nice preparation for the role in recent years, regularly filling the void left by Walsh who was unfortunately injured regularly towards the end of his career.

If the season was to end now, Townend has impressive numbers even without what you’d expect to be a strong show at Punchestown. His 104 wins so far this season have come from just 326 rides, which equates to a very healthy 32% strike rate. To put that into context, Ruby Walsh could only better that once, in the 2016/17 season with a huge 35% return.

Fortitude

Townend rode nine Grade 1 winners, five of which came at the Cheltenham Festival. He once again showed he has the mental fortitude for the position having received some criticism for his ride on Benie Des Dieux in the Mares’ Hurdle and having ridden no winners until Ferny Hollow in the Champion Bumper on Wednesday.

He was excellent in nursing Min’s stamina in the Ryanair Chase but his highlight performance was undoubtedly on Al Boum Photo, who he delivered to win back-to-back Gold Cups in a very tactical and relatively slowly run race.

It was a performance that led many former professionals to compare him favourably with Ruby Walsh but that sort of comparison should probably end now. Townend is his own man, a top-class jockey and at the age of just 29, he has the potential to join the list of great Irish jumps jockeys by adding many more titles in the near future.

Davy Russell has had another good season. His 69 wins from 354 rides represents a healthy 19% strike rate and remember he was bizarrely cast aside by Gigginstown early in the season. After leaving the Cheltenham Festival with no winner for the first time last season, Russell rode three winners there this year and was excellent in the Marsh Chase on Samcro in particular.

The Cork jockey has six top-level wins to his name this season, half of which are accounted for by the brilliant Envoi Allen, and he will look forward to retaining that partnership next season.

Rachael Blackmore didn’t hit the same heights as last year, but has had another very good season with 61 wins so far. A big part of her success last season was a very fast start but injuries prevented that this term and it wasn’t until June 21st that she rode her first winner of the season at Downpatrick.

Nonetheless, she will look back fondly at some big days on Honeysuckle, who won Grade 1s and Fairyhouse, Leopardstown and Cheltenham. The pair remain unbeaten in nine starts and will continue to be a huge attraction wherever they show up next season.

Conditionals

If racing did resume this term, the conditional jockeys’ championship isn’t over just yet, although Darragh O’Keeffe does hold a lead of eight over Kevin Brouder.

O’Keeffe made hay when the sun shone last summer, riding plenty for J.P. McManus when Mark Walsh was on the sideline and he had 40 winners by early October, an extraordinary amount for a conditional.

There was talk of him contending for the main championship but since then his momentum has slowed down completely and he has only added eight winners. A few injuries haven’t helped him and he remains a very talented rider, so hopefully he can build again next year.

Brouder has had a much more sustained level of progression this season and can count himself unlucky if indeed he stays in second place. His current haul of 40 winners would win this title most years.

He can be proud of some brilliant performances, most notably his wins on Thosedaysaregone and Treacysenniscorthy at the Dublin Racing Festival.