Dan Skelton

Daniel Skelton is a leading National Hunt Trainer, who has saddled over 465 winners in his career.

With four seasons under his belt, Skelton has had 28 graded/listed winners and scored big wins on the track. This includes his first victory at Cheltenham in 2016 when Superb Story won the Vincent O’Brien County Hurdle, ridden by his brother, jockey Harry Skelton. 

 

By his third season he crossed the 100 winners barrier for the first time and earned over £1 million in prize money. He has continued to build on earlier achievements, with some of his most notable performances coming from Three Musketeers, Blue Heron, Al Ferof, Its’afreebee and Ch’tibello.

Since becoming a trainer, Dan and Harry have struck up a close working partnership. Harry was in the saddle when Willow’s Saviour stormed to victory in the 2013 Ladbroke Hurdle at Ascot during Dan’s first season as a trainer.

Dan set up his own training stable at the family farm, Lodge Hill in Warwickshire in 2013 with 12 horses. That number rapidly expanded and he ended the 2013/14 season with 27 wins. 

 

He began his career with a few amateur races, before landing work at Champion trainer Paul Nicholls’ yard, Manor Farm Stables. After initially starting as a pupil assistant, he was quickly made assistant trainer a role he stayed in for nine years. Dan credits his early success to Nicholls’ tutelage at the world-renowned racing stable as well as the unique experience of growing up around one of the world’s best show-jumpers.