Sometimes in the world of horse racing, someone is better known thanks to the people that they work with than their own name and success. There is an argument that that is the case with Hugo Palmer, who took over as the trainer at Manor House Stables in 2022.
Manor House Stables, of course, was originally a cattle barn before former footballer Michael Owen and his wife Louise converted it into a stable and operating it as a training establishment in the March of 2007. Not that Palmer isn’t worthy of his own position in the list of top-level trainers working in the industry, of course.
About
Hugo Palmer took out his licence as a horse racing trainer in 2011. He began his career with just 11 horses under his care, none of which were expensive and all of which he syndicated in order to help him pay for them. Making Eyes was the first horse to arrive in Palmer’s yard, also becoming the stables’ first win of note when she finished first in a Listed race in France. Having grown up in the Scottish Borders, Palmer’s first real memory of horse racing in any form was in watching point-to-point races as he was growing up, which gave him the bug for the sport.
It probably tells you something about his ability as a trainer that he considers the Rowley Mile at Newmarket to be his favourite track, not least of all because he has seen horses of his winning on it. It might also tell you at least something about his personality that the dinner party guests that he’d like to have dinner with include Donald Trump, Nigel Farage and Piers Morgan, doing his bit for the stereotyping in horse racing. He was based in Newmarket during the more formative parts of his career, moving up to Cheshire when Owen decided to part company with trainer Tom Dascombe.
Major Successes
In spite of his relative youth and inexperience as a trainer, Palmer has already won some of the biggest races in the world of flat racing. He picked up both Group and Listed wins early on, but it was Covert Love who handed him his first big win when he took home the Group 1 Irish Oaks just four years after Palmer had taken out his licence. That proved to be the start of something impressive, winning the 2,000 Guineas and the St James’ Palace Stakes with Galileo Gold. The fact that he managed to finish on the top ten in the Trainers’ Championship in 2016 tells you he’s enjoyed some big wins.
Here is a look at some of the events that Palmer has trained the winner for:
- 2,000 Guineas
- Prix de l’Opera
- St James’ Palace Stakes
- German 1,000 Guineas
- Diamond Stakes
Horses Trained
1⃣1⃣ runners today.
At @Ascot we have King Of Thunder (1:10), Fitzella (1:40), Cheshire Dancer (2:20), Hawksbill (3:35) & Roman Dragon (5:15), meanwhile at @WindsorRaces we have Soldiers Star (8:15).@Coral @HM3Legal @nafuk @ESurfaces @Grosvenorbroker @CharlesOwenHats #TeamMHS pic.twitter.com/11NycGKvOv
— Manor House Stables (@MHS_HorseRacing) July 26, 2025
Given the sheer number of top-class races that Palmer has to his name, it is fair to say that he’s worked with some decent horses over the years. His career might have started working with some inexpensive horses, but the success that he managed in the time that followed ensured that some much better fancied steeds soon arrived at his yard. That went up a level when he began working with Michael Owen, with Brad the Brief providing the pair with their first win together and Palmer with the 48th Stakes win of his burgeoning career. Here is a look at some other horses he’s worked with:
Galileo Gold
Foaled in the January of 2013, Galileo Gold won the Vintage Stakes in 2015 before going on to complete a double of the Classic 2,000 Guineas and the well-respected St James’s Palace Stakes a year later. After winning a good number of flat races, the horse was put to stud at County Westmeath in Ireland in 2018, with his initial fee being listed at €15,000. You don’t get to charge that unless you’re a horse of exceptional quality, with Galileo Gold being the sire for some excellent horses of his own. There are numerous races that he has performed well in, but the Classics will always stand out.
Ebro River
Speaking of the progeny of Galileo Gold, Ebro River is a horse deserving of his own place in the list thanks to the fact that he became one of the most successful juvenile runners in Europe in 2021. During that time, the horse won three major races, which included the National Stakes and the Phoenix Stakes. A year later and he picked up another victory, this time in the Queensferry Stakes, which is run at Chester and was created in 1998. He is proof of exactly why Galileo Gold was able to charge so much money for his stud when he first began offering it.
