The likes of John & Thady Gosden, Richard Hannon, and Sir Michael Stoute represent the established order of the British training game, but in such a competitive industry, new trainers are always emerging to shake up the system.
Roger Varian is among those to move into the upper echelons of the sport in recent seasons – hitting 100+ winners in each of the past seven campaigns, but don’t be surprised to see fellow Newmarket handler George Boughey make a similar impact sooner rather than later. Since setting out on his own in 2019, Boughey already boasts a Classic win to his name and, in June 2024, recorded his most successful month as a trainer yet. Here, we look at the career path of one of the emerging stars of the British training game.
From Britain to Australia and Back Again
Having initially worked in the bloodstock area, George took his first steps towards a training career when spending time at the yards of leading Australian trainers Gai Waterhouse and Lloyd Williams. Later returning home to Newmarket, Boughey bolstered his CV further by spending six years as assistant at the Classic winning yard of Hugo Palmer.
Rapid Rise
With so much experience under his belt, George took out a training licence at just 27 – beginning with only four horses under his care when setting up his own yard in 2019. Picking up just two wins during that debut campaign, subsequent seasons saw his Saffron House Stables operation taste success with far greater regularity.
- 2019 – 2 British Wins
- 2020 – 26 British Wins
- 2021 – 85 British wins
- 2022 – 136 British Wins
- 2023 – 103 British Wins
Any suggestion that the slight drop in 2023 signalled a downturn in Boughey’s fortunes was swiftly dispelled in 2024. Already sitting on 55 winners for the season, the trainer recently enjoyed his most productive month to date.
Golden Month of June
George Boughey’s excellent tally of 24 wins in June was the same number as the yard recorded in February, March, April, and May combined, and surpassed his previous best tally of 23 from October 2022. A total of £450,413 in prize money for June also set a new benchmark – bettering the £427,863 from May 2022.
In October 2022 we trained 23 winners in a month and I didn’t think we’d manage to get close to that again.
Well done to all my team on a fantastic June with 24 winners! We go again pic.twitter.com/gJMlYwnFXC
— George Boughey Racing (@gbougheyracing) July 1, 2024
George Boughey Landmark Wins
Boughey is clearly heading in the right direction, having recorded 11 wins at Listed level, nine Group 3s, one Group 2, and two Group 1s since starting out just over five years ago. Hitting the Royal Ascot headlines courtesy of Soprano’s success in the Sandringham Stakes in 2024, that victory marked just the latest triumph for the talented trainer. We suspect there will be many more to come.
- May 2021: First Listed Win – Mystery Angel in the Pretty Polly Stakes at Newmarket
- August 2021: First Group Win – Oscula in the Prix Six Perfections at Deauville
- May 2022: First Classic Win – Cachet in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket