Richard Johnson: Champion jump jockey suffers broken arm

Richard Johnson rode Thomas Darby to victory at Ascot on Saturday

The chances of champion jump jockey Richard Johnson winning the title for a fifth straight season look to be over after he broke his right arm.

The 42-year-old trails main rival Brian Hughes by three wins in the campaign, which ends in late April.

He will be out of action for up to two months, a period that includes the showpiece Cheltenham Festival.

Johnson suffered the injury after being unseated from Westend Story at Exeter on Tuesday.

Betting on the jump jockeys' championship was suspended after Johnson's fall during the Dare To Dream Novices' Limited Handicap Chase.

However, Johnson later indicated he hopes to be back for the big Cheltenham meeting, which starts on 10 March.

Analysis

It's a great pity for Johnson as he looked to continue his dominance since the retirement of Sir AP McCoy, whom he'd previously chased for many years.

Johnson was facing his biggest ever challenge, and was very much up for the fight with Hughes. But it's also a great pity for the sport, which loves its jockey showdowns, and the extra coverage they bring - jumping-wise there hasn't been one since Richard Dunwoody and Adrian Maguire went head-to-head in 1994.

Hughes now looks assured of his first title, though in this most perilous of sports nothing is certain.