Owner Johnny de la Hey withdraws 11 horses from Paul Nicholls yard

Johnny de la Hey has stripped all 11 of his horses from Paul Nicholls immediately, a sharp loss for a yard that has spent the better part of 15 years as one of jumps racing’s central power bases. Seven of the horses are heading to newly crowned champion trainer Dan Skelton, while the remaining four are split between Jamie Snowden and Chris Gordon, leaving Ditcheat without one of its most established owner alliances.

The headline name in the group is Pic D'Orhy, the multiple Grade 1 winner who has been one of the most reliable staying chasers in training. De la Hey’s horses had mostly been with Nicholls since the 2009-10 season, and the partnership delivered major prizes with horses such as Cyrname and Diego Du Charmil. For Nicholls, losing that kind of depth is more than a single-owner setback; it removes a proven route to the top table at a time when the title race and the bigger spring targets still matter.

Nicholls said the move was disappointing, but added that owners are entitled to send their horses wherever they want and wished De la Hey well. The tone mattered. This was not presented as a public feud, but it still landed as another high-profile shift away from Ditcheat, where confidence is often built on the continuity of owners, trainers and horses staying aligned through multiple seasons.

The departure adds to a pattern that has been building around the yard. Kabral Du Mathan moved to Dan Skelton, while Ginny’s Destiny and Don’t Tell Su went to Nicky Henderson, and other recent exits included Farland, Act Of Innocence and Sinnatra. Last summer, Nicholls also lost horses owned by Gordon Hall and Su Hall, Neil Smith and Alfie Smith, and Chris Giles, whose dispersal included Grade 1 winner Stay Away Fay and was due to go through the Goffs UK Summer Sale on July 22-23 alongside Regent’s Stroll and Rubaud.

Nicholls, a 14-time champion trainer, is chasing a 15th championship and still carries the weight of a record that includes 50 Cheltenham Festival winners, reached with Caldwell Potter on March 13, 2025. But the latest owner switch, coming against the backdrop of the death of long-time mentor Paul Barber in June 2023, reinforces how much the balance of power in jumps racing can shift through one decisive phone call.