Former Under-21 champion Brian Lawless saddles first runner

Image © Healy Racing

Brian Lawless saddled his first runner as a handler at Loughanmore when Lolda De Magny contested the four-year-old mares' miaden at the Antrim venue.

The 26-year-old, who plans to continue combining training duties with race-riding, took the mount himself aboard the daughter of Jeu St Eloi, who ran in the silks of his girlfriend Abbie O’Connor.

Their race ended four fences from home when the pair came to grief, but despite the mishap, it was a significant moment for the Delgany-born rider-turned-handler, marking the start of a new chapter in an already accomplished career.

A familiar figure on the point-to-point circuit, Lawless’s first appearance came aboard Delgany Star at Borris House in 2016, while his initial success followed just three months later when Delgany Lass, trained by his father Ger, and owned with his brother Seán, won at Moira.

Lawless' rise through the amateur ranks was swift. He shared the Under-21 riders’ title with Ben Harvey in the shortened 2019/20 season, and since then, he has formed a strong association with Matty Flynn O'Connor, for whom he partnered the subsequent the Grade 1 Albert Bartlett Novices' Hurdle victor Stay Away Fay to win a Lingstown maiden as a four-year-old.

Speaking after saddling his first runner, Lawless reflected modestly on the new direction his career is taking.

“I was delighted with Lola De Magry’s run, she was travelling well enough throughout for me, but sure we tipped up at four-out so it was hard to tell," he explained.

“I’ve been kind of training a few and pre-training the last couple of years, so this year I decided to get the handler’s license out.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve been lucky to learn from some of the best people in the game.”

Based in Ballycrystal, Co. Wexford, Lawless trains in the afternoons after riding out for both Matty Flynn O’Connor and Donnchadh Doyle, making use of the top-class facilities there.

“I share the yard with Matty and I’ve around 15 or 20 horses in at the moment - all for point-to-pointing hopefully. Mostly my own, but I have a few in for others, and there’s always room for more.”
 
While the handler’s licence is a natural step forward, riding remains a key focus.“It’ll be business as usual really," he said. "I still plan to concentrate as much on riding while keeping my own few going at home.”

In what was only the third weekend of the 2025/26 points campaign, Lawless also partnered his first winner of the new campaign at Umma House on Sunday, aboard the Robert Tector-trained Dutton Law in the four-year-old mares’ maiden.

“She jumped super. She’s a real tough mare,” Lawless said. “It was great to get the first winner of the season on the board.”

So far Lawless has ridden 91 winners between the flags, as well as three on the track., the Wicklow man admits there’s one obvious goal left to chase:

“I suppose it’d be nice to get to the hundred-winner mark. If I can stay in one piece!”

Lawless continues to blend experience gained from some of the sport’s top names with his own methods.

“I’ve worked for great people and taken a bit from each of them, and then done my own thing with the horses,” he said.

 “Abbie’s father, Ger O’Connor, has been a fantastic supporter too. He’s involved in a lot of the horses I’m working with.”

Asked about the difference between riding and training, Lawless replied:

“There’s plenty of pressure in both. When you’re training your own horses, there’s always the pressure of trying to get paid back. There’s definately more responsibility in training.

Lawless is looking forward to the new challenges, and with his first point-to-point runner now behind him, and a winner in the saddle already on the board for the new season, the next chapter looks to be well underway for the talented Wicklow man.