New jumping star duo steal the show at Trentham
Dennis Ryan - Raceform • July 4th, 2025 2:00 PM • 5 min read
A moisture meter reading of 53.4 per cent ensured that Trentham lived up to its reputation as one of the toughest of winter tracks, but through the mud and the rain there was no denying the two new jumping stars who stole the show last Saturday.
Doubling down on their career-first feature wins in the Manawatu Steeplechase and Hurdle at the same venue three weeks beforehand, Jesko and Billy Boy performed right up to expectations with clear-cut wins in the Grant Plumbing Wellington Steeplechase and Aztech Engineering Wellington Hurdle.
Both horses have much in common. At seven years old and now the winner of each of their last three jumps starts, the careers of the two online Gavelhouse bargain buys are only just beginning. They’re both prepared by young trainers who could more than match it with the best jumps jockeys of their respective eras – Billy Boy by Jo Rathbone and Jesko by Shaun Fannin in partnership with his wife Hazel.
A decade has passed since Rathbone last donned silks, whereas fellow Kevin Myers school-of-learning graduate Fannin is these days a dual licence-holder who understandably selects his raceday mounts. Including the two spring months of this season, Fannin’s current jumps jockey statistics are nothing short of exceptional.
After Saturday’s win on Jesko, his 2024-25 tally stands at eight wins from 10 starts, placing him just one win behind Englishman Joshua Parker on the jumps jockey premiership. Parker, now in his second season in New Zealand, claimed his first Prestige Jumps Race win on Billy Boy, who made virtually all the running just as Jesko did two races later.
Billy Boy must rate as the country’s tallest active racehorse at a measured 18 hands high – with one hand being four inches, that comes out at 72 inches or exactly six feet (around 1.83m). The So You Think gelding looked all out with the long Trentham straight and three fences remaining in Saturday’s 3200m contest. But so too were his remaining rivals as he forged on bravely to take the honours by just over 10 lengths from Mont Ventoux and a half-length to last year’s winner Nedwin.
“I always get nervous watching these sorts of races and the uncertainty as to how he would handle such testing ground just added to it,” Rathbone said of the horse with the unsurprising stable name Monster. “It sure was a slog, but he was up for it.”
Rathbone, whose sole Wellington Hurdle win amongst her raft of majors came on the Myers-trained Honey in 2011, has put a line through the Grand National Hurdle, preferring to continue the patient approach with her new stable star.
“He’s having a break now and then we’ll look at the Great Northern (Hurdle). He went down to Riccarton last year but didn’t enjoy the experience, so we’ll give it a miss, this year at least anyway.”
Billy Boy races for the estate of former Ashhurst racing enthusiast Denis Leamy, who sadly passed away only days before the gelding’s Manawatu Hurdle win.
“It’s such a shame that Denis isn’t still with us to enjoy this horse, but it’s reassuring for me that his wife Carol and her son are keen to carry on with him.”
The Grand National carnival is definitely on the cards for Jesko, who strode to victory cheered on by a large group of owners that include Shaun Fannin’s mother Jill and added to recently by the FRAC Club’s involvement.
“It’s great to have so many people brought along for the ride,” says Fannin. “The FRAC group had a room upstairs and when I went up there later in the day it was so satisfying to see so many people enjoying themselves.
“It’s always one target at a time, but he’s come through Saturday in good nick, so the plan now is to have a week off then he’ll probably have a start on the flat at Waverley on the 25th (of July) before we head down to Christchurch.
“He’s a horse that always tests you with his behaviour, like on Saturday when he would pull quite hard if a horse got up alongside him. He jumped well all the way though, and when Call Me Jack challenged him a fair way out, he came off the bit but he kept giving – and that’s a good sign as the races get longer.”
With Fannin committed to Jesko, a new rider will be required for triple Grand National Steeplechase winner West Coast should he attempt to extend his record in the race.
“He never got into it in the amateur flat race on Saturday, but he’ll be back over fences in the Hawke’s Bay Steeples at Woodville on Sunday week,” trainer Mark Oulaghan said. “Provided he goes well there we’ll be heading to Riccarton.”
The Cossack, who along with West Coast has dominated feature jumps racing in recent years, is unlikely to be at Riccarton after weakening late in the Wellington Steeplechase and crossing the line fourth, more than 30 lengths behind Jesko.
“He’s pulled up well, so the plan at this stage is to tick him over for a while and then assess things,” co-trainer Paul Nelson told RaceForm.
