Name:   Mark Johnston

Training Location: Kingsley Park, Middleham

 Single/dual license? Dual

How long have you held a license? Since 1987

Training Facilities, including how many in the team:

125 – 145 staff.

Train on private facilities at Kingsley Park. 10f Tapeta all-weather, further 4f wide (stalls) all-weather. 10 furlongs of grass gallops. 2 Swimming pools. Water walker. Six conventional walkers. Treadmill. On-site vet.

Number of horses in training/capacity: 280

What is your background/introduction to racing?

I was a vet in practice for three and a half years and started training from scratch having never worked in the racing industry.

Favourite horses either currently in training, you’ve previously trained or seen in your lifetime:

Attraction, who was the first filly to complete the English and Irish 1000 Guineas double in 2004; Double Trigger, who was a great servant. He won the Ascot Gold Cup and was second in the race twice as well as winning the Doncaster Cup and the Goodwood Cup three times each. He did so well as a stayer people forget he was also third in the St Leger in 1994.; Mister Baileys was another great servant and Shamardal was a brilliant horse who won all three races for us as a two-year-old before moving on to Saeed bin Suroor. The best horse I have see that I didn’t train has to be Frankel.

Which jockeys do you regularly use? Joe Fanning and Franny Norton. Also Silvestre De Sousa, William Buick, Frankie Dettori, James Doyle, Jason Hart.

Three horses to follow this season and why?

Sorry but I hate giving horses to ‘follow’ as it is effectively tipping and I am not a tipster. Elarqam, Raffle Prize, Rose of Kildare.

Favourite Yorkshire course and why:

York is now, almost certainly the best track in Britain, if not Europe. I love and do particularly well at Beverley.

 Anything else of note e.g records held, funny stories, memorable racedays, first winner etc.

Trained more winners than any other trainer in the history of British racing.

Most memorable racedays: There have been many, but Mister Baileys winning the 2000 Guineas in 1994 and Attraction’s 1000 Guineas double are right up there as was Double Trigger’s third and last Goodwood Cup win in 1998. I also have fond memories of Fruits of Love’s win in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot when he beat my other runner Yavana’s Pace into second place. Fruits of Love gave us another memorable day when he won the Sheema Classic in Dubai in 1999.

My first winner was Hinari Video at Carlisle on 1^st July 1987.