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Trainer profile

Sean O O'Brien

349 runners in the lifetime window · 53 individual horses
As at 10 Nov 2026 · KTB archive: 2005–present, updated daily
Last runner yesterday 98% of runners over jumps
Last 5 seasons Lifetime (2008→)
from 1 Jan 2008 — the aggregate floor: every horse in the window has a complete captured career behind it
33–349
Wins / Runs
9.5%
Strike rate
n=349
93 (27%)
Placed
1.19
Fair A/E
n=349 · 0.95 incl. margin
−47.87
£1 level stake
n=349 at SP · −13.7%
£484k
Prize money (window)
Strike by season
5.6%
KTB Yard Profile

Sends out around 20 runners a season, almost all over hurdles and fences, winning with 10% of them — beating the margin-free market read across the lifetime window (Fair A/E 1.19). With a claiming rider up the record reads 13% (150 runs).

Deterministic profile computed from 349 archived runs (lifetime window) · updated 10 Nov 2026
KTB at a glance Fires Dec–Jan Mark McDonagh: 9.4% from 85 Claiming riders: 13.3%
The read

The record is strongest at Cork (15.2%, n=46), clear of the yard's 9.5% baseline. It is weakest at Thurles (0% over 31 runners) — the widest gap in the record. Runners with a claiming rider up have been a positive signal at 13.3% (n=150, Fair A/E 1.42), but debutants struggle at 4.4% (n=45, Fair A/E 0.73). Mark McDonagh rides 24% of the entries and matches the yard's average almost exactly (9.4%, A/E 1.15) — the partnership beats the margin-free market read. The yard also reads well off a 15-30-day break (14.6%, n=123). 3 Group and Graded wins sit in the archive record — the biggest prize the yard has landed: the Colm Quinn BMW Handicap Chase at Punchestown (May 2024, £29,500). The stable star of the record: R'evelyn Pleasure (IRE) — 7 wins from 55 runs for the yard. Seasonally, the yard fires Dec–Jan.

Written from the figures on this page — every claim carries its sample. Descriptive, not a tip.

Yard patterns

the angles behind the record · vs 9.5% baseline
Fresh · 61+ days off
6.6%−2.9
n=76 · A/E 1.49 · £1 −8.75
New recruits · first run for the yard
0%−9.5
n=2 · A/E 0.00 · £1 −2.00
Debutants · first career start
4.4%−5.1
n=45 · A/E 0.73 · £1 −40.00
First-time headgear · true-first definition
16.7%+7.2
n=18 · A/E 3.83 · £1 +44.00
Headgear returns · back on after a bare run
28.6%+19.1
n=7 · A/E 4.89 · £1 +13.00
When favourite
40%
n=25 · A/E 1.39 · £1 +0.38
Claiming riders · a claimer in the saddle
13.3%+3.8
n=150 · A/E 1.42 · £1 +11.25
Group / Graded races · pattern & listed
6.3%−3.2
n=32 · A/E 1.07 · £1 +0.00

Each tile is the record in that situation vs the 9.5% baseline — descriptive splits with the sample always shown, for you to weigh. Tiles under 30 runs render muted. Headgear figures use the true-first definition (first gear appearance in the captured career); returns are gear back on after a bare run. Claiming riders are runs where the booked rider carried a weight claim. Group / Graded covers pattern and listed races. The same beliefs, tested across every yard and every GB and Irish race since 2005: Racing myths.

Notable angles

vs their own baseline
At Thurles 0% vs 9.5% · n=31
With John Allen 2.6% vs 9.5% · n=76
Off a 15-30-day break 14.6% vs 9.5% · n=123
At Cork 15.2% vs 9.5% · n=46
On last-time-out winners 3.3% vs 9.5% · n=30
With debutants 4.4% vs 9.5% · n=45
Descriptive splits ranked by divergence × sample — insight, not instruction. Every angle carries its N; nothing under 30 runs qualifies. Rows within 2pts of the baseline appear only when the market-relative read (Fair A/E) diverges, and show it.

Record by conditions

same window as header

Race type

TypeRWSR£1
Hurdle 189 16 8.5% −41.12
Chase 114 11 9.6% −8.50
NH Flat 40 5 12.5% −26.25
Flat 6 1 16.7% +28.00

Going

GoingRWSR£1
Soft 142 10 7% −31.87
Heavy 103 13 12.6% +17.00
Good 62 7 11.3% +1.00
Good to Soft 33 3 9.1% −25.00
Good to Firm 6 0 0% −6.00
Firm 2 0 0% −2.00
Standard (AW) 1 0 0% −1.00

Courses

CourseRWSR£1
Cork 46 7 15.2% +41.00
Punchestown 36 5 13.9% +51.50
Limerick 34 3 8.8% −23.75
Thurles 31 0 0% −31.00
Fairyhouse 23 3 13% +1.88
Leopardstown 19 0 0% −19.00
Naas 18 1 5.6% −14.00
Tipperary 18 0 0% −18.00
Clonmel 18 4 22.2% +13.75
Navan 13 0 0% −13.00
Gowran Park 12 0 0% −12.00
Killarney 10 1 10% −4.50
Tramore 10 3 30% +1.75
Wexford 9 1 11.1% −5.00
Ballinrobe 8 0 0% −8.00

Class

ClassRWSR£1
Class 1 29 2 6.9% +3.00

Market position

In the bettingRWSRA/E£1
Favourite 29 10 34.5% 1.27 −3.62
2nd–3rd fav 60 11 18.3% 1.21 −0.25
4th–6th fav 85 6 7.1% 1.00 −15.00
7th+ in betting 175 6 3.4% 1.28 −29.00
Fair A/E per band is the tell: near 1.00 the market had it priced right; well above, the wins came where the market didn't expect them.

Rows below n=30 are shown faded — a small sample is a fact, not a trend. Every figure carries its N.

Jumping record

completion over obstacles · same window as header
79.2% completed · 303 obstacle runners (chases & hurdles)
CodeRCompFURPUBDOth
Chase 114 75.4% 9 4 15 0 0
Hurdle 189 81.5% 4 3 26 0 2
Chases and hurdles only — bumpers have no obstacles, so completion is not a question there. F fell · UR unseated rider · PU pulled up · BD brought down · Oth covers refusals, slip-ups, run-outs and the rare disqualification. Non-runners are excluded throughout. Rows under n=30 are shown faded. A descriptive record, not a tip.

Horses trained

same window as header · most-raced first
HorseRWPlLast ran
R'evelyn Pleasure (IRE) 55 7 20 25 Apr 24
The Gradual Slope (IRE) 41 4 12 7 Jun 26
Wilde Wit Pleasure (IRE) 33 2 11 7 Jul 13
Caoimhe's Delight (IRE) 20 4 12 27 May 14
Nell's Well (IRE) 16 3 8 20 Nov 22
Strong Project (IRE)from C F Swan 15 1 2 14 Oct 09
Skeheenarinky (IRE) 11 1 4 26 Jan 11
Big Allice (IRE) 10 0 0 8 Jun 11
Mister Persistence (IRE)from E J O'Grady 9 0 0 29 Mar 26
Kingston Retreat (GB)from James M Barcoe 9 1 1 20 May 23
Johnny Little Legs (IRE) 9 0 1 11 Dec 20
Dylan Rock (IRE) 9 0 2 16 Dec 19
All 53 horses sent out in this window. Runs, wins and places only: a strike rate or a return on a handful of runs is noise, so none is quoted per horse — each horse's full record is on its own page.
Where they came from · where they went next

Of the 53 horses listed, 3 arrived from another yard in our archive; 50 had their first archived run for this yard.

2 have since run for another yard; 51 have no later run for another yard in our archive.

Read from each listed horse's whole archived career (2005 onwards), not only this window, and counted over the horses listed above, not the whole string. “First archived run” means our archive holds nothing earlier, not that the horse was unraced. A horse with no later run elsewhere may still be here, be off the track, or have run somewhere our archive does not cover — none of that is asserted.

Current form

significance-gated

Last 14 days

Small sample
0 from 1
Only 1 runners in the last 14 days — too few to read against the baseline (gate: n≥15). The card states the sample and stays neutral.

When the yard fires

strike by month, lifetime
JFMAMJJASOND
164109101100017612
A jumps yard: the season runs Oct–Apr. Muted months are small samples (under 30 runs) — read them with the caution they deserve.

Jockey bookings

same window · biggest samples first
Go-to riderMark McDonagh
24% of all rides
9.4% SR · A/E 1.15
RiderRWSR£1
Mark McDonagh 85 8 9.4% −8.00
John Allen 76 2 2.6% −21.00
Muted rows are under 30 rides and sit behind "Show all".

Career highlights

lifetime archive, 2005→
39
Archived wins
3
Pattern / graded wins
£611k
Prize money
2013
Best season · 6 wins
In our archive from its very first year (2005), so this career almost certainly began earlier than our record does. The figures above count 2005 onwards only — what the archive holds, not a full-career total. This card is the full archive census (2005→); the statistics in the header aggregate from 2008 — the floor that guarantees every horse a complete captured career — so this card can legitimately show more wins than the header.
The Gradual Slope (IRE) — Colm Quinn BMW Handicap Chase (0-145) Punchestown · May 2024
£29,500
Caoimhe's Delight (IRE) — I.n.h. Stallion Owners E.B.F. Dawn Run Mares Novice Chase (grade 2) Limerick · Mar 2014 · Grade 2
£29,250
Strong Project (IRE) — Phil Sweeney Memorial Chase (Listed) Thurles · Jan 2006 · Listed
£19,530
Notable horses
R'evelyn Pleasure (IRE) The Gradual Slope (IRE) Strong Project (IRE) Caoimhe's Delight (IRE) Nell's Well (IRE) Wilde Wit Pleasure (IRE)

Sires in the string

progeny record · win % by ground and trip
Getaway (GER) 9.5% · 7–74
Progeny have won 11.3% of 11,017 runs since 2016 (1,033 horses). Strongest on Good to Firm going: 23.1% from 134.
Oscar (IRE) 6.1% · 3–49
Progeny have won 10.9% of 16,543 runs since 2008 (1,456 horses). Strongest on Standard (AW) going: 18.1% from 105.
Shantou (USA) 9.8% · 4–41
Progeny have won 13.6% of 7,843 runs since 2008 (539 horses). Strongest on Good to Firm going: 20.3% from 158.
Blueprint (IRE) 20% · 4–20
Progeny have won 9.9% of 1,670 runs since 2008 (137 horses).
Gold Well (GB) 18.8% · 3–16
Progeny have won 12.2% of 5,648 runs since 2011 (363 horses).
Project Manager (GB) 6.7% · 1–15
Progeny have won 6.7% of 15 runs since 2008 (1 horse). A small sample.
Top line: the yard's own record with each sire's runners (win %, wins–runs), same window as the header; faded under 30 runs. Beneath it: every run by that sire's progeny in our archive since 2008, as at 10 Nov 2026 — what they have done, not a forecast. A going or a distance is named only where at least 100 progeny runs sit 3 or more points from the sire's own win rate. Distance bands cover Flat and jumps together.

The record

latest 50 of 477 · newest first

The latest 50 of 477 archived runners, newest first. The full record runs from 6 January 2005 to 9 November 2026.

DateCourseHorseRaceFinishSP
09 Nov 26 Punchestown (IRE) Did Tell (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Matchbook 50/50 Series 3-Y-O Maiden Hurdle16f · Good To Yielding · 10 ran 10th 300/1
14 Oct 26 Punchestown (IRE) Way Horn (GB)J: Mark McDonagh Irish Stallion Farms EBF Academy Hurdle19f · Good · 6 ran 6th 12/1
11 Oct 26 Cork (IRE) Did Tell (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Co-Op Superstores 3-Y-O Maiden Hurdle15.5f · Good · 10 ran 10th 400/1
20 Sep 26 Listowel (IRE) Did Tell (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Kinisla Charleville Cheese 3-Y-O Hurdle16f · Good · 11 ran 11th 150/1
10 Aug 26 Ballinrobe (IRE) Likeyouhaveplenty (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Bay Leaf Maiden Hurdle22.5f · Good · 14 ran 14th 300/1
06 Jul 26 Roscommon Likeyouhaveplenty (IRE)J: Miss N Lockhead Anderson Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares (Ladies Pro/Am) Flat Race16f · Good · 16 ran 13th 80/1
07 Jun 26 Punchestown Likeyouhaveplenty (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Lily & Wild Mares Maiden Hurdle21.5f · Good To Yielding · 18 ran 17th 250/1
07 Jun 26 Punchestown The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh K-Mech Mechanical Handicap Chase20f · Good To Yielding · 12 ran PU 16/1
10 May 26 Cork Seek A Richer Life (IRE)J: Alan O'Sullivan Springfort Hall Country House Hotel Maiden Hurdle24.5f · Good · 8 ran PU 80/1
19 Apr 26 Tramore Likeyouhaveplenty (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Irish Stallion Farms EBF Mares Maiden Hurdle16f · Soft · 12 ran PU 66/1
04 Apr 26 Fairyhouse Seek A Richer Life (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Tom Quinlan Electrical Maiden Hurdle20f · Yielding To Soft · 25 ran RO 150/1
04 Apr 26 Fairyhouse The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Miss N Lockhead Anderson Blackrock College AFC Ladies National Handicap Chase21f · Yielding To Soft · 17 ran 1st 16/1
29 Mar 26 Downpatrick Mister Persistence (IRE)J: Cian Quirke Hood McGowan Kirk Handicap Hurdle (0-100)22f · Yielding To Soft · 14 ran PU 50/1
17 Mar 26 Down Royal The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Bluegrass Racehorse Cube Chase26f · Good To Yielding · 4 ran 4th 66/1
17 Mar 26 Down Royal Mister Persistence (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Bluegrass Respire Handicap Hurdle (0-100) (Div 1)20.5f · Yielding · 14 ran PU 50/1
02 Mar 26 Leopardstown The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Dublin National Handicap Chase28.5f · Yielding To Soft · 13 ran 10th 20/1
02 Mar 26 Leopardstown Mister Persistence (IRE)J: Mark McDonagh Connolly's RED MILLS Irish EBF Auction Novice Hurdle16f · Soft To Heavy · 6 ran 5th 300/1
08 Feb 26 Navan The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Danny Mullins William Hill Each Way Extra Handicap Chase24f · Heavy · 17 ran PU 18/1
28 Dec 25 Limerick The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Danny Mullins Infinity Lifts Handicap Hurdle24f · Soft To Heavy · 16 ran PU 20/1
20 Dec 25 Thurles The Gradual Slope (IRE)J: Sean O'Keeffe Molony Cup Handicap Chase25.5f · Yielding · 16 ran 3rd 40/1

Drawn from the whole archive (2005 onwards), so it can include runs outside the window the header statistics cover. Non-runners are not listed. A finish shown in letters is a non-completion (F fell · UR unseated · PU pulled up · BD brought down).

KTB’s figures

the forward record · since 5 Oct 2026

KTB’s figures on this yard’s runners since 14 Oct 2026: the KTB Selection in 1 run (won 0) · to 14 Oct 2026.

Each pick was a KTB figure’s choice before the off — the published KTB Selection, the top-rated horse on KTB Rating, the fastest on KTB Speed — settled against the result the next morning and never worked out again; “did not run” is counted apart. GB and Irish races only. A record of weeks so far: read it as a count, not a verdict.

Quick answers

What is Sean O O'Brien's strike rate?
Sean O O'Brien has won 33 of 349 runners since 2008, a strike rate of 9.5% (as at 10 November 2026). Figures are computed from our own results archive.
Which course does Sean O O'Brien do best at?
Cork by strike rate: 7 wins from 46 runners (15.2%) since 2008. Read from the 15 courses with the most runners on the same basis, and only those with at least 30 — a small sample cannot top the list, and a rarely-visited course is not in the comparison.
Who rides most for Sean O O'Brien?
Mark McDonagh, with 85 runners since 2008 — 24% of the total. That pairing has won 8 (9.4%).
Is Sean O O'Brien in form?
Too few runners in the last 14 days to read — 1 runner, which is not a sample we will draw a conclusion from.
What is Sean O O'Brien's Fair A/E?
1.19, from 349 runners with a computed fair probability since 2008. Fair A/E compares actual wins with a margin-stripped market expectation, so 1.00 is par: above it the wins came at bigger prices than the margin-free market implied, below it they did not.
Fair A/E compares wins with a margin-stripped market expectation. Favourite-heavy samples — top yards, leading riders — naturally read a few points warm, so 1.05 means "beat the margin-free market read", not "the market underrates this by 5%". Three sample sizes are reported and never blended: runs (n), the ROI basis (n at SP), and the fair-A/E basis (n with a computed fair probability).

Strike rate is wins over all runs (n). ROI is £1 level stakes at SP over runs with a parseable price (n at SP). Fair A/E is wins over margin-stripped market expectation, over runs with a computed fair probability (n fair). The three Ns can legitimately differ and are always shown. Figures as at 10 November 2026, computed from our own results archive (2005 onwards; aggregates from 2008).