The British Jumps Jockeys Championship is awarded to the rider with the most winners over the designated jumps jockeys’ championship season. This season traditionally begins at Uttoxeter in early May and ends at the Sandown Jumps Finale fixture in late April of the following year.
In the race for the jumps jockeys’ title, all winners are treated equally, whether they come in a lowly selling hurdle or under the Grade 1 spotlight of the Cheltenham Festival. This winners-based format differs from the Jumps Trainers’ Championship, which goes to the trainer who amasses the most prize money during the season.
The list of previous winners of this coveted award is peppered with all-time greats, including the incomparable Tony McCoy, who claimed the title in 20 consecutive seasons between 1995/96 and 2014/15 – every single year that he was a professional rider.
2025/26 - Sean Bowen
Building on the momentum of his first title, Sean Bowen enjoyed a sensational 2025/26 to turn the championship into a one-horse race. Registering 20+ winners in nine of the 12 months, his final total of 241 was the most since the 258 of Tony McCoy in 2002/03. Bowen’s highest-profile wins came aboard Haiti Couleurs in the Welsh Grand National and Denman Chase. Harry Skelton produced another solid performance in the year his brother Dan claimed a first trainers’ title. Sean’s younger brother James made it a family affair on the podium with a career-best third-place finish.
- 1st - Sean Bowen - 241
- 2nd - Harry Skelton - 127
- 3rd - James Bowen - 105
2024/25 - Sean Bowen
Having lost out in such frustrating circumstances in 2023/24, Sean Bowen made no mistake in 2024/25. Averaging a winner per day in November, the Welsh rider already had a century in the bag by Christmas. With no injury concerns, he finished with a flourish to run out a comfortable winner from Harry Skelton, with defending champion Harry Cobden dropping to third. Highlights of the year for Bowen included wins in the Long Distance Hurdle and bet365 Gold Cup, while his biggest success came aboard Haiti Couleurs in the Irish Grand National.
- 1st - Sean Bowen - 179
- 2nd - Harry Skelton - 142
- 3rd - Harry Cobden - 117
2023/24 - Harry Cobden
The pivotal moment of the 2023/24 season came when Sean Bowen suffered a knee injury at Aintree on Boxing Day. Following an electric start to the season, Bowen already sat on 129 winners by New Year's Day. However, with his injury sidelining him for all of January, he could only look on as Cobden reduced the deficit to 12. By 11 February – only a few days after Bowen returned – Cobden had drawn level. Keeping up the momentum, “Hollywood Harry” had built himself a 10-win lead by the end of February. Bowen outscored Cobden over the final two months, but only by enough to close the gap to seven.
- 1st - Harry Cobden - 164
- 2nd - Sean Bowen - 157
- 3rd - Brian Hughes - 122
2022/23 - Brian Hughes
A third title in four seasons for Brian Hughes, who comfortably fended off a pair of new challengers in the shape of Harry Cobden and Sean Bowen. Hughes once again built a significant cushion during the summer jumps season. Racking up 76 winners by the end of September, he sat 45 ahead of Cobden and 20 ahead of Bowen. Outscoring Bowen 36 to 25 in the October-to-December period, Hughes remained in control through the crucial spring months. Cobden threatened a charge with 28 winners in November but made no further inroads on Hughes’ lead.
- 1st - Brian Hughes - 165
- 2nd - Sean Bowen - 125
- 3rd - Harry Cobden - 117
2021/22 - Brian Hughes
A dominant season from Brian Hughes, who started well with 59 winners over the summer jumping campaign and never looked back. 20+ winners in October, November, December, February and March saw him pull well clear of the competition to win a second title. With only four wins at Listed level or above, Hughes' runaway victory was built on consistent success at the smaller tracks. Sam Twiston-Davies achieved the best result of his career to pip defending champion Harry Skelton for second. Skelton endured a slow start, with only 16 winners over the first four months, and was never within touching distance of Hughes.
- 1st - Brian Hughes - 204
- 2nd - Sam Twiston-Davies - 105
- 3rd - Harry Skelton - 104
2020/21 - Harry Skelton
A new man topped the table in 2021. Backed by his brother Dan’s training operation, Harry Skelton built on his previous third and second place finishes to claim the title for the first time. With the season starting two months later than usual, due to the lingering impact of COVID-19, Skelton achieved his tally of 152 in only 10 months. Brian Hughes made his usual solid start and had an 18-winner advantage at the end of October. Skelton was 21 behind at the end of January but caught fire in springtime, with an incredible 77 winners across February, March, and April. Striking with Langer Dan at the Cheltenham Festival, Protektorat (Manifesto Novices’ Chase) and My Drogo (Mersey Novices’ Hurdle) then provided Skelton with a Grade 1 double at the Aintree Grand National Festival.
- 1st - Harry Skelton - 152
- 2nd - Brian Hughes - 142
- 3rd - Harry Cobden - 123
2019/20 - Brian Hughes
Brian Hughes claimed his first championship in the COVID-19-shortened season of 2019/20. With a 20-winner lead at the end of March, the absence of racing in April is unlikely to have made any difference to the destination of the title. Johnson’s chances of winning for a fifth time suffered a setback in August, when he rode only two winners from 50 rides. When Johnson missed time due to breaking his arm in January, the path was clear for the ultra-consistent Hughes to pull away. Hughes' seasonal highlights all came before Christmas, with the low-key jockey bagging four Grade 2 wins between October and December.
- 1st - Brian Hughes - 142
- 2nd - Richard Johnson - 122
- 3rd - Sam Twiston-Davies - 99
2018/19 - Richard Johnson
Richard Johnson surged past the 200-winner mark for the second time in his career to claim his fourth and final title in 2018/19. Flying out of the traps with 69 winners between May and July, Harry Skelton held a 26-winner lead over Johnson in the early stages. However, he couldn’t maintain that pace, with single-figure hauls in September, January and February denting his chances. Johnson, in contrast, was relentless, hitting 10+ winners in every month, including a spectacular 34 in October. The Warren Greatrex star Le Bague Au Roi provided Johnson with his sole domestic Grade 1 success in the Kauto Star Novices’ Chase.
- 1st - Richard Johnson - 201
- 2nd - Harry Skelton - 178
- 3rd - Brian Hughes - 146
2017/18 - Richard Johnson
2017/18 repeated the pattern of 2016/17. Bagging 12 or more winners in every month bar July, Johnson slowly but surely forged clear of the field. Brian Hughes came with a late charge, firing in 96 winners between November and March, but a slow start to the season had left him with too much to do. Harry Skelton enjoyed a breakout season to finish on the podium for the first time. Native River was once again the star of the show for Johnson, with the Colin Tizzard superstar winning the Denman Chase and coming out on top in a memorable battle with Might Bite in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
- 1st - Richard Johnson - 176
- 2nd - Brian Hughes - 142
- 3rd - Harry Skelton - 131
2016/17 - Richard Johnson
Richard Johnson may have been the most relieved rider in the weighing room when Tony McCoy announced his retirement at the end of the 2014/15 season. Having finished second to the all-time great on an incredible 16 occasions, Johnson won his first championship in 2015/16. Having finally claimed top spot, Johnson wasn’t about to let it go without a fight. Consistency won the day for Johnson, who registered 10+ wins in 11 of the 12 months of the season. Brian Hughes was red-hot in racking up almost 100 winners between October and March, but a failure to match Johnson in the early season saw him settle for second. Highlights for Johnson included Defi Du Seuil’s win in the Triumph Hurdle and Native River’s brilliant double in the Hennessy Gold Cup and Welsh Grand National.
- 1st - Richard Johnson - 189
- 2nd - Brian Hughes - 144
- 3rd - Sam Twiston-Davies - 137