At the end of the 2025 French National Hunt season, Mickael Seror achieved the unthinkable. After 16 consecutive years in which the trainers’ championship had been dominated by Royan-based Guillaume Macaire or Francois Nicolle, the title finally went elsewhere, to Lamorlaye-based trainer Mickael Seror.
A rookie champion at 39, he is only the second youngest trainer since Francois-Marie Cottin, who was 36 when he lifted the title in 2008, to be crowned champion trainer. And he did so without winning any of the big prizes, like the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris, but with a relentless flow of winners.
“If the horse lends itself to running often, I don’t see why I shouldn’t run him,” he says confidently from his yard in Coye la Foret, close to Lamorlaye, where he trains about 120 horses, including a handful of Flat horses. “I don’t think there are any rules in training, you just have to follow your instincts and listen to your horses.”
A former jump jockey, whose career was cut short due to weight issues, he has been training since 2010. “I started out with a few horses that my father put in training with me,” he says. “I thought like every youngster that things would take off immediately but obviously they didn’t. I’m not someone who actively tries to find new owners, but they came to me as I had more results.
”However, my success is due to the support of my family, my wife and my team. There are lots of people who helped me along the way, but I must admit, I didn’t think I would find myself with the trainers' title. But I think if you believe in yourself and are not afraid to take risks, anything is possible.”
He is certainly not averse to trying new things and has entered two horses on Trials Day at Cheltenham on January 24 and is hoping to add a few more winners at Pau in the next few weeks.
Here, Seror kindly talks to Liz Price of attheraces.com about some of his chances at the winter meeting held at the foot of the Pyrenees.
