Many of horse racing's finest jockeys have secured their legacies by winning big races at the Cheltenham Festival.
Below, we introduce the most successful jockeys in the Festival's history, including both past and present legends.

RUBY WALSH
The leading Festival rider of all time is Ruby Walsh who partnered with legendary trainers Paul Nicholls and Willie Mullins to dominate the Festival from the turn of the century.
Walsh actually rode the first of his 59 winners here in 1998 as an amateur, and he went on to be leading jockey at the meeting 11 times.
His victories include two Gold Cups on Kauto Star in 2007 and 2009, and four Champion Hurdles - all for Mullins.
By contrast, his three Champion Chase successes were all for Nicholls: Azertyuiop (2004) and Master Minded (2008 & 2009).
Incredibly, two horses contributed ten of his victories as he won the Stayers Hurdle four times on Big Buck’s and the Mares Hurdle six times on Quevega.
His last win came on the Mullins trained Klassical Dream in the 2019 Supreme.
Klassical Dream - Supreme Novices’ Hurdle 2019#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/p1YaEWJspD
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) September 28, 2024

BARRY GERAGHTY
Next on the all-time list is Barry Geraghty with 43 winners at the Festival.
Few jockeys relished the meeting more than Geraghty, who seemed to be able to up his game for the big occasion.
He was leading rider at the meeting twice (2003 & 2012), with his first winner having come abroad the legendary two mile chaser, Moscow Flyer, in the 2002 Arkle Chase.
Moscow Flyer - Arkle Chase 2002#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/8teMZElssP
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) February 1, 2023
He went on to win two of his five Champion Chases aboard Moscow Flyer.
Those five wins ties the all time record by a jockey and he also holds the record for most wins in the Arkle (4) and Triumph Hurdle (5).
His last Festival came in 2020, when he rode five winners for JP McManus, for whom he was the retained rider at the time.
Geraghty’s longevity and consistency really stand out and he rode at least one winner at every Festival between 2002 and 2016 - he missed the 2017 meeting through injury.

AP MCCOY
Arguably the greatest jump jockey of them all, Sir Anthony McCoy, is next on the list of most successful Festival jockeys with 31 winners.
Given his numerical supremacy when it comes to winners generally, it is perhaps surprising to see AP behind Messrs Walsh and Geraghty on the Festival roll of honour.
But he still had some magical days at the Festival and his 2009 win on Wichita Lineman was arguably the finest ride ever seen here.
Wichita Lineman - Festival Trophy Handicap Chase 2009
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) February 18, 2022
What a ride by @AP_McCoy
pic.twitter.com/2VYK6IfZAR
McCoy’s first winner came on Kibreet in the 1996 Grand Annual and he went on to land all of the big three, registering a final tally of three Champion Hurdles, one Champion Chase and two Gold Cups.

PAUL TOWNEND
Paul Townend is the leading active jockey with 27 winners, unsurprising given the unparalleled backing he has as stable jockey of the all-conquering Willie Mullins yard.
It was at the 2020 Festival where Townend really started to make his mark, riding five winners, following up with three in 2021, before another five in both 2022 and 2023.
Highlights include back to back victories in the Gold Cup with Al Boum Photo (2019 & 2020) and Galopin Des Champs (2023 & 2024).
Galopin Des Champs - Cheltenham Gold Cup 2024 🏆 #CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/wJbudLYMz4
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) September 22, 2024
He also rode Energumene to consecutive Champion Chase victories (2023 & 2023).

PAT TAAFFE
Pat Taaffe’s record of 25 winners is all the more remarkable for the fact that he rode in an era long before the four day Festival.
He won the Cheltenham Gold Cup four times, thanks mainly to his association with the great Arkle.
Arkle - Cheltenham Gold Cup 1964 🏆#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/3ojj5Itflu
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) March 7, 2024
Like Barry Geraghty, he rode five Champion Chase winners, including one on board another legend of the sport: Flyingbolt.

DAVY RUSSELL
Davy Russell also rode a total of 25 winners at the Festival, starting back in 2006 on board Native Jack in the Cross Country Chase.
That victory started a remarkable run that saw him ride a winner at every Cheltenham Festival until the sequence was finally broken in 2019.
He was another of the top jockeys who really came into his own on big race days and few riders have ever ridden this unique course as well as the Irishman.
He will probably be remembered most for his association with Tiger Roll, with whom he won the Triumph Hurdle in 2014 to kick off one of the sport’s greatest fairytales.
He also won the Gold Cup on Lord Windermere in 2014 and rode four winners for Gordon Elliott in 2018, his best return at the Festival.
Lord Windermere - Cheltenham Gold Cup 2014 🏆#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/bNvPmzC35B
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) February 29, 2024

NICO DE BOINVILLE
Most of Nico de Boinville’s 16 winners at the Festival have been for Nicky Henderson, including three on board Altior.
Other notable wins include an unforgettable comeback win for Sprinter Sacre in the Queen Mother, and a Gold Cup on the novice Coneygree in 2015.
De Boinville rode Constitution Hill to victory in the Supreme in 2022 and then in the Champion Hurdle in 2023.
Constitution Hill - Champion Hurdle 2023#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/OD28Quyafp
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) July 2, 2023

RACHAEL BLACKMORE
Rachael Blackmore has quickly established herself as the Queen of Cheltenham and already has a total of 14 winners at the Festival since her first in 2019.
In 2021 she rode six winners, including the Champion Hurdle with Honeysuckle, en route to becoming the first female to be crowned the leading rider at the Festival.
She was also second in the Gold Cup that year, as A Plus Tard was denied by Minella Indo, both trained by Henry de Bromhead, with the rider having had to make the tough choice between the pair.
However, it didn’t take her long to lay those demons to rest, with A Plus Tard winning the 2022 Gold Cup by a remarkable 15-lengths.
A Plus Tard - Cheltenham Gold Cup 2022 🏆#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/8yW9WZxvYD
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) February 2, 2023
Thus, she already has two Champion Hurdle's and a Cheltenham Gold Cup on her Festival CV.

JACK KENNEDY
Jack Kennedy’s was 17 when he rode the first of his 11 winners at the Festival on the Gordon Elliott trained Labaik in the Supreme Novices' Hurdle.
Indeed, he owes much of his Festival success to his association with Elliott and Gigginstown.
It was for that trainer/owner combination that he won the last two renewals of the Cross Country Chase, aboard Delta Work.
In 2018 he won four races at the Festival matching the tally of the week's leading rider, Davy Russell. However, Russell won the title as he had ridden more placed horses.
He also won the 2021 Cheltenham Gold Cup on Minella Indo.
But his best ride was arguably on Mount Ida in the 2021 Kim Muir Chase, who came from a detached last to first thanks to Kennedy’s cajoling, having touched 999/1 in running.
Mount Ida - Kim Muir Chase 2021#CheltenhamFestival pic.twitter.com/3VqYlZROtC
— Cheltenham Festival Fans (@cheltfestfans) February 15, 2025