POINT TO POINT

Will rode in his first point-to-point aged 16. After a successful couple of seasons, he joined leading trainer Venetia Williams’ National Hunt yard, and it was in his five-year stint there that he really learnt the art of race-riding. With Venetia’s guidance he rode many winners as an amateur under National Hunt Rules, including against the professionals in The Festival Plate at the 2009 Cheltenham Festival aboard Something Wells.

Since returning to his first love, the point-to-pointing world, Will has won seven National championship titles. He holds the record for the most winners in one season – 68 from 143 rides – in 2015. In April 2019 he surpassed Richard Burton’s record of 414 career wins, making Will the rider to win most point-to-point races to date.

Will has also started to create a nice string of point to pointers that he trains, with horses range from 4-year-olds all the way through to schoolmasters who know the job well allowing novice riders in the yard a chance to have a go themselves. Will has been very lucky as a trainer already, saddling the 2021 Cheltenham Foxhunters winner Porlock Bay, which was a dream come true for owner Mr John Studd and the whole team. Mr Studd also owns Macklin who has been a great flag bearer for the yard since arriving in 2021. Another horse to note is Regatta Be Blanc for owners Rupert and Dee Swallow, she arrived from the sales in 2021 as an unbroken filly and has progressed well through the point-to-point rankings. Her best win to date is in the 2024 Mares’ Open Hunter Chase at the Cheltenham Hunter Chase evening.