Richard Phillips

With clear intentions to be a professional horse trainer from the age of five, Richard Phillips always built his career on fulfilling his goal. He was born close to Epsom Racecourse, where he was able to take inspiration from the highly-rated runs that take place at the historic flat racing track.

Although he expressed his passion for horse racing through riding showjumpers and ponies in his teenage years, he skipped the chance to become a jockey in order to move straight into training, where he even studied a course in Stud and Stable Management at college. His determination was enough to catch the attention of Epsom Oaks winner Henry Candy, who allowed Richard Phillips to work as his assistant for an eight-year period before he stepped up to the plate in opening his own stables in 1993.

After seven years working as a professional horse trainer, Richard Phillips was given the chance by David Nicholson to move into the famous Jackdaws Castle Stables. He only spent a year working at Jackdaws Castle before moving to Adlestrop in Gloucestershire, where he wanted to set his own stamp on the world of horse racing.

The first year at Adlestrop Stables saw the first Festival win for the Richard Phillips Racing Team when La Landiere won the Cathcart Chase, showing continued form after finishing first in the Racing Post Chase one month prior. Assistant Michael Phillips is joined by a further twelve members of staff in what is regarded as being one of the most innovative horse training facilities in the UK.

Early wins for Gnome’s Tycoon, Noble Lord and Time Won’t Wait proved Phillips’ worth as a trainer, before he was able to find further success with Eastwell Smiles, Another General, Willie Makeit, Averted View, General Duroc, Go Ballistic, Central Committee, Anzum, Chop Neyev, Supreme Toss, Seaviper and Dark ‘n’ Sharp. Unlike most other stables, there are only around twenty-five Richard Phillips horses in training, with his team usually focusing on a handful of horses rather than training hundreds at a time.

He’s admittedly picked up some criticism for not possessing a record as strong as other famous horse trainers in the UK and Ireland, but wins in jump races for Frogmarch, Beautiful People, Terek, Newsplayer, Bertie Barnes, Celestial Magic, Muthabir, Flemensbay, Cash For Steel, Saticon, Rich Buddy, Mr Tingle, Giovanna, Phardessa, Roaringwater, Glad Big, Stop The Show, Bauhaus, King Jack, On Y Va, Caesarean Hunter, What A Vintage, General Gossip, The Mick Weston, Thrilling Prospect, Gee Aker Malayo and Jesper under his guidance has presented his talent among the horse racing community, as well as flat racing wins for Gentle Guru, Whenever, Yervan, Mr Aitch, Danegold and Mr Frankie.