Richard Johnson runaway leader on way to record

Richard Johnson has become just the third jockey to notch a double century of winners during a National Hunt season.

Johnson, who is a runaway leader as he charges to his first British jumps title, completed the feat with victory at Warwick on Friday.

He joins the now-retired Tony McCoy and Peter Scudamore.

McCoy holds the record of 289 winners in his 2001-02 campaign while eight-time champion Peter Scudamore enjoyed 221 winners during 1988-89 and expects Johnson to beat his tally before the end of this term.

“Only three of us have done it and for two of us to to be from a small county like Herefordshire is amazing really,” Scudamore said.

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“With two months of the season to go, you’d imagine he might get to 240 or 250 winners.”

Johnson, 38, was runner-up to champion McCoy 16 times and, barring accident, will claim a richly deserved first title in April.

“The season has gone so well and to get to 200 has been amazing,” Johnson said.

“I’m lucky I ride fancied horses on a daily basis and so I was pretty sure I would get to 200 at some point, but you never quite know when.

“Being champion jockey has always been my goal since I was 19 and it’s taken me a long time to get there.

“The championship was always the number one ambition for the season.”

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