The final of the Royal Kennel Club Junior Warrant Winner of the Year competition will return to Crufts on Thursday 5 March and will be judged by Rony Doedijns (Netherlands). Rony has been involved in the dog world for 40 years and is passed to award Challenge Certificates in more than 40 breeds across six groups.
The Junior Warrant is an award for pedigree dogs from the ages of six to 18 months which have won a series of first prizes at both open and championship shows. Achieving a Junior Warrant is one of the highest levels of success for young pedigree dogs, and the Royal Kennel Club issues around 600 such awards each year.
At Crufts 2025, Tim Ball judged the final and awarded the top spot to the Australian Shepherd, Ch Norcis Slippery Jack JW (Brodie), owned and bred by Sarah Bothwell, from Ayrshire.
The final will take place at Crufts 2026, at 5.40pm in the BP Pulse LIVE arena, NEC Birmingham, on Thursday 5 March, and the 12 finalists who won through from the October 2025 semi-finals are:
- Briard, Ch Honey I’m Home Moravia Campanella at Starwell (Imp Cze) JW, owned by Mrs A M & Mr T Fieldsend, bred by Mrs A M Fieldsend.
- Chinese Crested, Bryelis Boys Are Back In Town JW, owned by Mrs E Moyes, Miss J Shaw & Mrs G Hunter-Ryan, bred by Mrs E & Mr B Moyes.
- Dachshund (Wirehaired), Ch Boloria Goodnight Mr Tom JW, owned by Miss R Rowe, owned and bred by Mrs J & Miss R Rowe.
- English Toy Terrier (Black & Tan), Ch Lasagesse Kasmir JW, owned and bred by Mrs L & Mr G Dixon.
- Giant Schnauzer, Ch Philoma Wicked JW, owned by Misses O & J Ellis, bred by Mrs S & Mr K Cullen.
- Gordon Setter, Flaxheath Cover Girl at Glenmaurangi JW, owned by Mrs A Phillips & Ms T Watkins, bred by Mrs V L Lines.
- Greyhound, Ch Broughton Back To The Future JW, owned by Mrs M A Holder & Miss C Boggia, bred by Miss C L Boggia.
- Norfolk Terrier, Ch Watercroft Easy Tiger JW, owned and bred by Mrs R Gee.
- Portuguese Water Dog, Ch Rarjo Macduff Making Waves with Megulcie JW, owned by Miss M Slack, Mr B C Williams & Ms L G Newton, bred by Mr B C Williams & Mrs R V Reddin.
- Samoyed, Ch Nikara It’s Keats by Taronakits JW, owned and bred by Mrs S Brandenberg & Miss S Smith.
- Tibetan Terrier, Araki Colour My World for Tetsikarma JW, owned by Mrs K & Mr G V R Plummer, Mrs L Knight & Mrs K Bingham, bred by Mr K D Sinclair.
- Tibetan Terrier, Jalren Midnight Runner JW, owned and bred by Mrs R Thurston.
Tom Mather, Crufts Chairman, said: “These dogs have already achieved considerable success gaining the Junior Warrant title and it’ll be thrilling to see how they perform in the main arena at Crufts. Some of the young dogs competing have already won champion titles and other top awards, so this promises to be a very exciting final indeed.”