Not to be confused with the James Owen who is an historian and journalist, James Owen Racing is the organisation that was set up after its namesake. Having enjoyed life in the saddle as an amateur jockey, James Owen decided to get his training licence and was granted it by the British Horseracing Authority in the January of 2023.
A dual-purpose trainer, Owen is based in Newmarket and has risen through the ranks to become a prominent name in the sport. Although he obviously doesn’t have the experience of some of the better-known names, he still has plenty going on.
About
James Owen was raised in the country of Oxfordshire, born to parents who had established themselves as point-to-point trainers. With that in mind, it was unlikely that he was going to do anything other than enter the realm of horse racing himself. The result was that he became an amateur jockey, doing well in the role as he notched up 128 winners and was even named the East Anglian Champion Jockey nine times. Those successes were also added to thanks to over a dozen wins under rules, ensuring that he had plenty of experience in the saddle that he could take into his training career.
That began in 2014 when he established Green Ridge Stables, which is based on Hamilton Road in Newmarket. In the early part of his career, Owen decided to concentrate on point-to-point races as well as Arabian racing, being named the Arabian Racing Organisation’s top trainer six times. When the British Horseracing Authority changed their rules to allow trainers to house both Arabian horses and thoroughbreds, Owen was well placed to do just that and applied to get his BHA licence towards the end of 2022. At the start of 2024, he also began training horses on the flat.
Major Successes
It isn’t exactly outrageous to point out that Owen doesn’t have the same kind of success to his name as much more established trainers such as Willie Mullins or Nicky Henderson. Yet that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have anything to crow about, seeing countless top-rated horses make their way through his yard already. That has meant that he’s been able to pick up several wins, both in the world of Arabian racing and also in both National Hunt and flat events that come under the auspices of the BHA. Here is a look at just some of the races that he’s won during his career:
- Novice Hurdle
- Greatwood Handicap Hurdle
- Al Basti Equiworld, Dubai Godolphin Stakes
- The Prestbury Juvenile Hurdle
- BetRhino Juvenile Hurdle
- Chester Cup (Heritage Handicap)
- JCB Triumph Trial Juvenile Hurdle
- Royal Lodge Stakes
- Nottinghamshire Oaks
- Fillies’ Juvenile Hurdle
Horses Trained
BURDETT ROAD 🚧
Too big, too strong and too fast in the Golden Gate Stakes… 🫡#RoyalAscot
pic.twitter.com/S4nrKe5MxF— World Horse Racing (@WHR) June 24, 2023
In spite of his relative youth, Owen has already worked with some excellent horses, not least thanks to his association with the Gredley family. His first win with them came courtesy of Father of Jazz, who won a novice hurdle at Kempton Park in the May of 2023. More winners would follow, with Owen notching up a strike rate of 23% in the 2023-2024 season. There have been some standout performers that have worked with Owen during his career to date, thanks in no small part to the fact that he’s been able to train in the region of 100 or so horses at his yard.
Here is a look at some of the horses he’s worked with that are worthy of a mention:
Burdett Road
Owen’s 2023-2024 season was a good one, with one of the highlights being the success of Burdett Road. The horse won a Grade 2 juvenile hurdle race at the Cheltenham November Meeting, following that up with success in the Greatwood Handicap Hurdle before placing in the Group 1 race, the Champion Hurdle. Having finished seventh out of 13 horses in his debut in the British Stallion Studs EBF Novice Stakes, it was a decent improvement from the bay gelding. A talented jumper, he placed more often than he didn’t once he really began to hit his stride.
Wimbledon Hawkeye
Whilst tennis lovers might have something of a love-hate relationship with Hawk-Eye when it’s used during the Wimbledon Championship, horse racing fans have been pleased to see the horse competing so well on the flat. It is something that Owen will also have been pleased to see, with the horse’s victory in the Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes in 2024. That was a sign to many that James Owen is more than just a National Hunt trainer, being a genuine dual-purpose option when it comes to owners looking around to see who can take on the mantle of training their horses.
East India Dock
When you’re a relatively inexperienced trainer, one of the things that you want to see more than anything else is a horse bringing home the bacon. East India Dock is one that has managed to do just that for Owen, winning a Grade 2 race for juvenile hurdlers before then enjoying success in the lucrative Chester Cup at Chester Racecourse. He was considered the ‘one to beat’ in the JCB Triumph Hurdle, the Grade 1 race run during the Cheltenham Festival, ultimately coming in third, having won the trial race at the same course in the event held in the January of that year.
