'It's difficult to catch a moving target' - how Oisin Murphy’s relentless run turned the title race into a procession

Oisin Murphy's pursuit of a fifth jockeys' championship is nearing its triumphant conclusion, with the 30-year-old on the verge of back-to-back titles after building a comfortable gap to his nearest pursuers.

British Champions Day on October 18 brings the championship to an end, and Murphy is 36 winners clear of Billy Loughnane after a double at Epsom on Sunday, with Cieren Fallon and Rossa Ryan a further 14 adrift in third.

It looks an inevitability that the 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2024 winner will be crowned champion again at Ascot, but the journey here has not been smooth. A drink-driving conviction and disciplinary scrutiny put Murphy under pressure early in the year, but the 30-year-old responded in emphatic fashion on the track, quickly turning the title race into a procession.