Richard Hughes (photo: hamishNIVENPhotography)
On the evening of Wednesday, 4 March 2015, Richard Hughes, Flat racing’s champion jockey for the past three seasons, announced that he will retire from race-riding at the end of this year to start a new career as a trainer in 2016.
Hughes, 42, began his riding career in Ireland in 1988 and has ridden at least 100 winners in Britain in 13 of the past 15 seasons. He has also ridden winners over hurdles in Britain and Ireland, and is the son of the late Dessie Hughes, who was both a successful jockey and then a leading jumps trainer until his death in November 2014.
Hughes succeeded Pat Eddery as first jockey to the leading owner Prince Khalid Abdullah in 2004, a contract which ended in the autumn of 2007. He has secured the Flat jockeys’ championship over the last three seasons with 161, 203 and 172 winners, the bulk of which were saddled first by Richard Hannon Sr, his father-in-law, and then by Richard Hannon Jr after he took over the licence at the family’s stable in Wiltshire at the start of last season.
Hughes will hope to emulate Tony McCoy, who announced his retirement from jumps racing last month, by ending his career as a champion, before he begins his training career from a yard in Hampshire.
“I feel physically like I could ride for another five year,” Hughes told the Racing Post on Wednesday evening. “My weight is fine and my hunger is as strong as ever. I still have a huge desire to ride as many winners as I can but I know I can’t ride for ever. However, I know I can train nearly for ever and I want my children to grow up in a training yard in the same way I did.”
Richard Hannon Jr said on his website on Wednesday that it was “the right time” for his stable jockey to move on to a new challenge: “Hughesie will be going all out to ride as many winners for us this season but he is very excited about his new venture and we wish him all the best. Training is something that Hughesie has always wanted to do, and he has been in Newmarket this week doing his modules. He feels that this is the right time for him to switch, and we look forward to being rivals on the track next year and also at the bloodstock sales in the autumn.”
Hughes has partnered many outstanding horses to Group One victories, including the Hannon-trained Canford Cliffs, Olympic Glory and Toronado in recent seasons, but he had to wait until the spring of 2013 to record his first success in a British Classic, when Sky Lantern took the 1,000 Guineas. He then doubled his total barely a month later when Talent landed the Oaks at Epsom.
The jockey’s first major targets in his final season will be the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket in May, when he is due to partner Tiggy Wiggy and Ivawood respectively, two of last season’s leading juveniles.
Hidden Cyclone, who was available at 16-1 on Tuesday evening for the Ryanair Chase at next week’s Cheltenham Festival, was cut to as short as 7-1 for the Grade One contest on Wednesday after Shark Hanlon, the 10-year-old’s trainer, confirmed that he will run in the race in preference to the two-mile Queen Mother Champion Chase the previous afternoon. Hidden Cyclone has finished second in four Grade One events during his career, including last season’s Ryanair Chase, when he was two-and-a-quarter lengths behind the winner, Dynaste.
Both Dynaste and Cue Card, the Ryanair winner two seasons ago, have been ruled out of this year’s renewal, prompting Hanlon to opt for the intermediate distance of two miles and five furlongs Hidden Cyclone, whose last two starts have been at a shorter trip.
“We’ve made a decision that we’ll go for the Ryanair,” Hanlon said on Wednesday. “There’s no Dynaste there this year and with Cue Card pulling out this week, we are heading that way. Up to now, we were heading towards the Champion Chase but with no Cue Card and the ground drying out it’s likely to be good by Thursday, so we’re turning that way.”
The going at Cheltenham on Wednesday was still described as good-to-soft, soft in places on all courses, but Simon Claisse, the track’s clerk of the course, said that the ground was drying appreciably and that he would “expect to see good in the description by Friday, if not tomorrow [Thursday].” He added that there is now a “small patch of ground on the New course”, which stages the final two days of the Festival meeting on Thursday and Friday next week, which is “nearly good” going.
(source: The Guardian)
