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Jonjo and AJ O'Neill 2026-27 Jumps season stable tour
By Graham Clark
Last Updated: Thu 29 Oct 2026
Jonjo and AJ O’Neill (Pic: Focusonracing)
Last season really was one of two halves for the father and son team of Jonjo and AJ O’Neill.
It looked as though the campaign was going to be one of struggle after the pair were forced to close the doors to Jackdaws Castle Stables for much of November following a run of poor results.
However, those dark days were soon forgotten come the spring following the Cheltenham Festival victories secured by Johnnywho in the Trustmarque Ultima Handicap Chase and Wilful in the William Hill County Handicap Hurdle.
The following month, the pair tasted further big race glory as Wellington Arch made it back-to-back wins in the William Hill Handicap Hurdle to ensure what started as a season of frustration ended as one blessed with treasured memories.
Signs for another positive campaign look encouraging after Wilful started his path towards a tilt at the Unibet Champion Hurdle with a Listed success in the Panoramic Hurdle at Carlisle, while Pioneer Pete bagged the DragonBet 'Welsh Champion Hurdle’ at Chepstow.
And AJ is confident that with a clean bill of health, and a good mixture of both familiar names and new faces in the yard, those early foundations can be built on throughout the season.
AJ said: “We had a bad start last season as the horses were sick. There was no mystery behind it so we just pulled up stumps for about three or four weeks.
“When they were back they were healthy and that made a big difference. We had a good spring thereafter. The plan was to try and beat the winners and prize money from the season before, that didn’t happen, but we got very close.
“It was difficult at the time to shut up shop, but it was the right thing to do as it paid dividends in the end.
“It actually ended up being a great season, what with the two Cheltenham Festival winners as they were the first on the joint licence.
“Johnnywho came very close the previous year, but he managed to set the record straight, which was nice, and then Jonjo on Wilful in the County Hurdle was a great way to end the week.
“Aintree was great as Johnnywho was fourth in the Grand National, while Wellington Arch to win the same race off a significant rise in the weights and ratings was very impressive.
“As it was a slightly broken season last term there are a few that we hopefully haven’t got to the bottom of yet.
“We have got some lovely young horses to go with the older ones. Fingers crossed they can all progress nicely and that we can have a nice clear run with them this season.”
ALL THE GLORY
“She ran really well at Windsor at the Winter Millions meeting last season along with finishing fourth in a Listed race at Huntingdon.
“She might have just needed the run at Fontwell the other day. Hopefully we can look at some of those better mares’ chases as the season goes on again.”
BILL JOYCE
“The wheels completely fell off last season, but they have been going in the right direction at home. If we can get him back to his hurdles form he will be a fine chaser as he is a very good jumper of a fence.
“It was a bit of a shame last season with a horse that you are very excited about as a chaser for them not to have completed both times, but it was a much improved display from him on his comeback at Worcester.
“He was a very promising novice hurdler, and it looked like we had much of that same horse at Worcester.
“He outperformed anything he did last season, to finish third was a massive run, and he will come on from that.”
BORN FREE
“He was bought at the Derby Sale, and he was the most expensive store horse we bought. “If he does run this season it would be in a bumper later on. He is very athletic, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he came to hand quicker than we thought.”
BLUE SWEEPER
“He is a half-brother to Jacob’s Ladder, who won a Grade Three for Gordon Elliott. The theory at the moment is to start him over hurdles as opposed to a bumper. He just needs to figure it out, but he is a fine, strong horse that will act with cut in the ground.
“I’m looking forward to him, however he might not be seen at his best until going over fences.”
BUSINESS CLASS
“He is an exciting young horse. He is by Old Persian, who I think will be a good sire. He was second in his point-to-point behind a horse called Hurricane Mick, who is now with Dan Skelton. We like this lad, and he wasn’t beaten far by Hurricane Mick. He is only four so we won’t be in a mad rush, but he did jump well in his point-to-point. We could go down the bumper route or over hurdles with him this season.”
DEAFENING SILENCE
“He arrived at our yard from Dan Skelton’s about a month ago. He had a great season last term to be fair to the horse. He was second in the Rehearsal Chase at Newcastle and third in the Welsh Grand National.
“He has a big action to him so he does want plenty of cut in the ground. He has been very straightforward to deal with so far. He is a great horse to have for those staying handicap chases on Saturdays. Hopefully he can take us to a few good days.”
DEARKEITHANDKATY
“He was very good at Carlisle on his return. Jonjo always felt that he was going to go well as he travelled well through the race. He was maybe cautious at one or two, but he soon got into a nice rhythm. Hopefully he can progress now over fences as he tries hard.
“You could go back up in trip with him to three miles on the right track.”
FAZARD ROCKET
“He is a tall, athletic horse that is a fantastic mover. He will probably look better next season once he has had time to strengthen up.
“He should make into a lovely chaser, but I think he can do exciting things before then.”
FORTUNATE MAN
“He was a good fourth at Punchestown in the spring. He is a good strong staying chaser. “Now the Eider Chase has been reduced in distance, that race might suit him better this season. All he does is jump and stay.
“He would need to go up a little bit to get into races like the Welsh Grand National, but that is not to say it won’t happen.
“I think we will look at taking him to Carlisle on Sunday for the Cumberland Handicap Chase as he is in good form.”
FOXY IN THE PARK
“She was a very enthusiastic jumper of a fence in her point-to-point which makes me think that a novice hurdle might not be the worst idea in the world, but she could easily start in a bumper.
“She is quite highly strung, and is not the easiest in the world, but she took a lot of pulling up after she won, which is always good to see. She was winging fences for fun and taking a couple of lengths out of them all the time. She is a smart filly.”
GARRINCHA
“He is a lovely horse that is very honest and very game. He lacked experience when he went to Cheltenham. We had planned to run him at Aintree before that, but we didn’t run him as the horses weren’t right at the time.
“He went to Cheltenham and put up a fantastic run. Robbie (Dunne) gave him a fantastic ride. I think what was nice about it was that Robbie rode him to educate him, but he still ran very well, which I hope is indicative of his talent.
“He is a full-brother to Madara, and we are looking forward to getting the ball rolling with him. “He was a little bit sore and stiff after his race at Cheltenham, it was nothing problematic, but it took time to come right. Hopefully we can get a clear run with him as he has plenty going for him. Hopefully he can operate quite smartly in novice hurdles this season.”
GENOIS
“He was second in the Middle Distance Veterans’ Handicap Chase Final at Haydock Park back in the spring. He was very slow to warm up that day before staying on strongly.
“He goes to Wetherby on Friday for the race he won a couple of years ago. I wouldn’t be surprised if we look at the Haydock Park race with him back in the spring.”
HAWTHORN STREET
“It didn’t go right for him at Ayr on his last start, I thought it would go significantly better. I think over fences there will be improvement from his mark.
“He had a bit of an interrupted first season with us as he was just big and weak, but last season was better. I think over fences he will progress quite nicely.”
HERCULES HONOUR
“He was running a mighty race at Hereford only to be hampered on the final bend. Had it not been for that he would have finished much closer.
“We have tinkered with his wind and I’m looking forward to seeing what he does over hurdles this season as he is a gorgeous looking horse.”
HIGHLANDS LEGACY
“He ran an absolute cracker in the Red Rum. He got the last all wrong, and Jonjo worked absolute wonders to stay aboard. It was a very strong performance.
“He had a very good season last season. Everything just seems to have fallen right for him going over fences as it seems to suit him a lot better.
“We couldn’t quite get it right with him over hurdles. We always knew he was better than what we were getting out of him.
“We will start him off over two miles I imagine and then build him up from there. We were quite keen on running him in the Grand Annual last season, but he didn’t get in. He has run over further over hurdles so there are options with him.
“He is a very powerful and imposing horse. He seems to like a good strong gallop. I think the further the season progresses, if we decide to go up in trip over fences, and it suits him well, then that will change the plans for him. He is another we can have a prosperous spring with.
“He is a horse that is hard to know where his ceiling is because his time over hurdles doesn’t match up to that over fences.”
HONKY TONK BANDIT
“He has a French pedigree, is very light on his feet, and Jonjo is very sweet on him.
“We will take him for a racecourse gallop at some stage, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he shows up in a bumper later in the season.”
IRON BRIDGE
“He pulled up on his last start, but he had a bit of a sore foot. It is nothing too concerning, but he is all okay now. I would say that those veterans’ races would be sensible for him. It would be great to see the colours of the late Mr Hemmings back in the winner’s enclosure.
“It was great when he won back at Haydock Park in April. He used to need very soft ground, but I would say he has grown out of that now.
“At Ffos Las it was nearly on the soft side for him. His recent form suggests he wants nicer ground, but he was second in a Welsh Grand National when he was younger on very soft ground.”
JIPCOT
“You would think he should be able to win a nice pot over fences. He was very pleasing the season before last at Newbury where he put up a strong performance.
“He has definitely got improvement in him for sure. The Sir Peter O’Sullevan Handicap Chase could be suitable for him after this. He ran well over three miles at Ascot, but he probably just got a bit tired late on. We would definitely consider going three miles again with him as when you run him over two and a half miles it looks like he would get three miles.
“He always improves for a run.”
JOHNNYWHO
Relive Johnnywho's victory in the Ultima last season
“He was unlucky the season before at the Cheltenham Festival, which was frustrating, but he managed to set the record straight last season in the Ultima.
“He has summered really well back at Martinstown and hopefully he has got more big ones in him. We intend to start off in the Paddy Power Gold Cup.
“Last season he started off over the Grand Sefton, which was over a similar sort of trip. I think a return to the Grand National will be on the agenda as he ran a cracker in the race.
“He seemed to enjoy the fences and the tempo of the race. Everything suited him well that day so hopefully we will see him back at Aintree in the spring.”
KAKA’S COUSIN
“He is going novice chasing this season. He is quite purposeful with his jumping. He would probably have a bit more respect for a fence which is good. He ran well at Sandown Park in the EBF Final, and he would be up there with our better novice chasers.
“He was just at the end of a long season when he finished down the field over an extended three miles at Aintree at the end of the season. I actually three miles might suit him, although his raw form might not suggest that.
“With his mark of one hundred and twenty-eight novice handicap chases will be the sensible place to start. He can find his own way up the ranks as opposed to over facing him.”
KOUKEO
“He ran at Fontwell recently, but he probably needed the run. He won at Windsor on New Year’s Day and at Haydock Park after that. Although he failed to add to those wins, I wouldn’t be surprised if there are a few more good days in him over fences.”
LARGY GO
“He will be going over fences this season. I would say he is a good strong stayer as he just keeps galloping. He has been fairly consistent, but he got a fair hike for winning on his last start at Haydock Park.
“He was quite light-framed last season, but he has filled out well for a summer at Martinstown. Hopefully that will help him progress this season.”
L’HORIZON
“We got this lad in May at the Goffs Spring Sale where we had to fend off several other bidders to get him. He is by Capri, who is the same sire as Seaniecon. He finished second in his point-to-point behind Star Affinity.
“He will be one to be kept for bumpers as we are unlikely to see him until the turn of the new year. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was a smart stayer in time.”
LION ROSE SIVOLA
“I’m surprised he hasn’t got his nose in front just yet as I think he is a lovely horse. He made a mistake at two out and I think that cost him more than the mistake at the last.
“He was travelling into the race very nicely, and Jonjo was just beginning to wind him up when he made that mistake, and landed flat footed.
“The winner got away from him nicely at Chepstow, but I think he is a nice horse. He would probably get further, but we will keep him at two miles for the moment just to educate him as he is a big, tall horse that is possibly bit on the gangly side the way he carries himself.
“He could be one to try and get qualified for the EBF Final as he won his point-to-point over two and a half miles. I do have a bit of a soft spot for him.”
MAGICAL MERLOT
“He is a juvenile that we have bought out of the yard of Ed Dunlop. He is owned by Jimmy Fyffe, who is new to having a horse at the yard.
“He has some useful form on the Flat. Hopefully he could make into a nice juvenile hurdler.
“It would be nice to try and get to the Fred Winter at the Cheltenham Festival with him as we bought him to be at that sort of level.”
MIDNIGHT JURY
“He is a full-brother to Bambino Fever. He had a few racecourse gallops last season, and he went very nicely in them. He was very green on his debut at Carlisle.
“We will stick to normal bumpers in this first part of the season to get some experience into him.
“Nothing wanted to go on, we ended up in front, which was the right thing to do as we would have walked for the first couple of furlongs otherwise.
“When Jonjo let him down he was a little bit clueless. He will be a lovely horse in time.”
MINELLA PREMIER
“We got him at Goffs UK Spring Sale. He whizzed up in his point-to-point. We tried to buy him then as we were the underbidders. He has won two bumpers since then, winning at Fontwell, then under a penalty at Wetherby.
“We are looking forward to getting him going over hurdles. You would like to think he would be competing in those better novice hurdlers at some point this season.”
MONBEG GENIUS
“He ran a blinder to finish third in the Kim Muir at the Cheltenham Festival, and he also did well in the Irish Grand National as well. He is just a great horse that tries and stays.
“The veterans’ races will be a nice programme for him. He loves soft ground, so if the ground came up like that at Sandown Park it would be a nice aim for him.
“In those open handicaps he is always going to be vulnerable to the younger horses as he doesn’t have the speed in his legs he previously did. He could go to Cheltenham next month for the extended three-mile-three-furlong handicap chase at Cheltenham if we don’t go for a veterans’ chase.”
MOSSY FEN COOLIO
“I hope he has a lot more to offer as I think he is a nice horse. He might turn out to be a bit like Highland’s Legacy in that improves now going over fences.
“I think he is better than his rating of one hundred and ten, and I would be disappointed if he wasn’t.
“We think there is a lot of horse there, hopefully we can be proven to be right and things go right for him over fences.”
NELOUBA
“She won her bumper at Le Lion D’Angers in France. She extended well up the home straight to run out an impressive winner.
“The first major plan for her is the Listed bumper at Cheltenham on New Year’s Day, however we will run her before that.”
NIGHT FLYER
“He is not the easiest ride for Jonjo, but he has been consistent to be fair. He seems to be progressing well.
“He ran at Fontwell the other day, and he ran very well, but there was one that was head and shoulders above the rest.
“He will be one for handicaps now I would imagine given he has that bit of experience behind him over hurdles.”
OH CLARE
“She will go novice chasing this season. She is a big girl so I do think she will be better over fences. She has settled an awful lot now, which certainly helps, as she used to be fairly opinionated about things. I think fences will suit her nicely.”
ONEFOURNINE
“I think we will go over fences with her now. It was the plan before Chepstow to be honest, but they then cancelled the chase races there. She is a nice filly that I think will jump a fence quite nicely. She has some really good form to her name. She was narrowly beaten at Fontwell by Park Princess, who went on to win a Listed race at Doncaster.
“She is a light framed sort of filly, but she seems to have done well over the summer as she has a lot more condition on her which I think will help as we have a bit more to work with.”
PETIT TONNERRE
“After he won at Punchestown he was given a fair hike. He probably was in the grip of the handicapper last season, but he does need to find his form a bit.
“When he does find a breath of good form he does continue along that way. He is only eight so I hope he can find some form again.
“He has already run thirty times in his career, which is quite a lot, but hopefully he still has a bit more to offer.”
PIONEER PETE
“He is a very progressive horse that tries his little heart out so it was great to see him win the Welsh Champion Hurdle at Chepstow. There is a nice series of two mile handicaps to go at through the season with him. If he keeps progressing he will be campaigned a bit like Wilful.
“He is not a big, strong, robust horse so we don’t want to over race him.
“He has an entry in the Greatwood Hurdle, but there is also the valuable handicap at Ascot near Christmas which Wilful won last season that we could also look at.
“There are a few options for him, of which the Greatwood is the first of them that will be under consideration. He could be a horse that we could aim at the County Hurdle later in the season.”
RED DIRT ROAD
“He will go novice chasing this season. The season before last we said we would run him over hurdles at Aintree on Boxing Day, and he emerged from the fog that day and won, so we kept him over hurdles.
“We didn’t have an amazingly clear run with him last season as he was quite late coming in, which I think wasn’t to his benefit.
“Hopefully he has another nice one in him over fences. He is very much a stayer. If it was soft enough at the Cheltenham Festival he could be one for the National Hunt Chase.
ROADLESSTRAVELLED
“He has had the one run over fences so far at Bangor. He likes good ground, so I wouldn’t be surprised in the depths of the winter if we went back on the all-weather. Anything soft for him doesn’t work for him, which is surprising as he is a big fine horse.
“We will look at another novice handicap for him along with keeping an eye on the chasing excellence races. He does jump his fences well, and I wouldn’t be surprised if things really click for him in the spring.”
RULA BULA
“She is twice Listed placed in fairness to high. She ran very well at Uttoxeter, but she showed her inexperience over fences over the first mile and Jonjo just wanted to build her confidence up.
“She needed to wing the last, but she got in tighter than we would have liked. It was a very good preparatory run for her next day out where she should go close to winning.”
SEANIECON
“He finished fifth in the Sefton at Aintree, and he didn’t disgrace himself, before finishing in the same position in a Listed race at Punchestown. He is a very game and enthusiastic horse. At Aintree he wasn’t travelling well early, and he was giving Jonjo a hard time, but he stayed on well, however that is what his forte is. He went to Punchestown, hit a bit of a flat spot when they were coming to the top of the hill turning into the home straight. As he hit his flat spot Jonjo couldn’t hold his position as he didn’t have enough horse under him. He got a bit of a squeeze and had to check and come out, but he ran on very well to finish fifth.
“It was great to see him hit the line strong in the Pertemps qualifier on his return to action at Cheltenham. He will probably go to Haydock Park now for the Betfair Stayers’ Red Rose Handicap Hurdle. That is Plan A at the moment for him.
“We will probably give him a quieter time during the depths of the winter as he is one that would prefer slightly better ground.”
WELLINGTON ARCH
“It was the same route he took the previous year on route to Aintree, in that he ran at Uttoxeter in March the day after the Cheltenham Festival. He did well to improve as he won that same race at Aintree last season off a 14lb higher mark than the one before.
“He was going well in the Silver Trophy at Chepstow, and we thought he had a chance, but he got quite badly hampered at the second last, so that put paid to that, however he might have needed the run slightly.
“When a horse needs a run and gets the wind knocked out of them it is hard to regain momentum, unlike when they have had a race or two as they can battle on. Jonjo did a good job keeping him on his feet as it all got a bit hairy.
“He will now go for the Grade Two Molyneux Hurdle at Aintree. He loves Aintree so that seems like the suitable next option for him. It will be a strong race, but the horse goes well at Aintree, and with the run under his belt that will have blown away the cobwebs.
WE’RE RED AND BLUE
“He actually handled the soft ground in the Imperial Cup at Sandown Park better than I thought he would, which was good as it gives us options.
“He is a very impressive horse to watch schooling at home. He is like a tiger when he schools as he just attacks obstacles, but in a good way.
“He is a big imposing sort of horse so we thought chasing would always suit him quite well.
“He is a horse that has done well off light weights in nice races. Although he handled the soft in the Imperial Cup I think a better ground one would have suited him better.
“Hopefully he is the sort of horse that you wouldn’t be surprised if he had a nice Saturday race in his arsenal at some stage over fences. He was good over hurdles, but he was always big and purposeful with his jumping.
WILFUL
“He spent a fair amount of time at the top end of weights last season, but he was a very progressive horse. He did just improve off the back of every run last season.
“He has earned his position to be in these better races. He did well all last season, to be fair he was one of the first of the winter horses out in the Welsh Champion Hurdle, and he was one of the last home as well having run at Punchestown.
“That was a different style of racing for him as it was his first time at that level, but he adapted to it very well. That has given us a lot of confidence to continue down that graded route this season.
“He was fantastic on his comeback in the Listed race at Carlisle, and he is entitled to come on for that again.
“It was hard to know quite what to expect at Carlisle as there were some fantastic horses in there, but it was great to see him battle in the way that he did. We will now aim towards the Fighting Fifth
“He does have to go up a reasonable amount to win a Champion Hurdle as Lossiemouth is the one to beat in the division at the moment. If he improves as much as he did last season then he would turn into a very exciting horse for those good races.
“As we want him to have a successful spring we won’t over cook him too early.”
WITHOUT BURLINGTON
“He won his last two on the Flat for Kevin Philippart De Foy before winning on his debut for us at Worcester. He picked up a slight leg injury, hence why he hasn’t been out since, but I think he will be back at some point, I’m just not quite sure when.
“He has got quite nice dual-purpose prospects as he is only four. I would say there is an awful lot of improvement to come from his run at Worcester.
“It took him a good while to get the hang of it as he didn’t look like winning a couple from home, but then he stayed on really strongly.
“He might actually stay further than two miles in time.”
WRECKLESS ERIC
“He will start off chasing at Ffos Las on Thursday. With his very good, but slightly unlucky record in the Imperial Cup, we will keep that in mind as an option for him later in the season.
“He has been good over fences at home. He is not an over-big horse, and he is a different size to a lot of our novice chasers this season, but when he puts his mind to it he really tries.”
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