In 2023, Rossa Ryan enjoyed far and away his most successful season so far, numerically and fiscally, finishing the year with 202 winners from 1,090 rides at a strike rate of 19% and amassing over £3.6 million in total prize money. He was also a ‘punters’ pal’, accruing a healthy level stakes profit of £109.24. The vagaries of the Flat Jockeys’ Championship meant that, despite being the most prolific jockey in the country for the calendar year, he did not become Champion Jockey. Nevertheless, Ryan, who turned 24 on July 3, 2024, has continued the good work in the new season. At the time of writing, since the start of the Flat Jockeys’ Championship, on May 4, 2024, he has ridden 52 winners from 293 rides, at a strike rate of 18%, and currently lies third on the table.

Aside from passing the significant milestone of over 200 winners, 2023 was also a red-letter year for Ryan insofar that, on July 15, he rode his first Group 1 winner, Shaquille, trained by Julie Camacho, in the July Cup at Newmarket. Sadly, his first ride in the Derby proved less fruitful, with his mount, Macduff, trained by Ralph Beckett, only able to finish a distant thirteenth of 15 finishers, 29½ lengths behind the winner, City Of Troy.

Born and raised in Ballinderry, near Tuam, Co. Galway, Rossa Ryan is, of course, the son of trainer David Ryan. A graduate from pony racing, in which he was hugely successful, Ryan Jnr. Rode his first winner under Rules, Solar Heat, trained by Dot Love, in an apprentices’ handicap at Dundalk on December 9, 2016. The following January he became apprenticed to Wiltshire trainer Richard Hannon and, in 2019, finished runner-up in the apprentices’ title race. In 2020, Ryan accepted a retainer from Amo Racing, under the auspices of football agent Kia Joorabchian, and although that association came to an end in 2022 his career has continued to flourish.

Born and raised in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, Richard Kingscote spent much of his spare time in his early teenage years riding ponies on Brean Beach, a seven-mile stretch of sand just a mile or two down the coast from his hometown. He subsequently attended the British Racing School, on the Snailwell Road in Newmarket, and on completion of a mandatory jockeys’ licence course became apprenticed to Roger Charlton at Beckhampton Stables, near Marlborough,Wiltshire.

By his own admission, Kingscote was anything but an instant success, but nonetheless rode his first winner, Maystock, trained by Gerard Butler, in an apprentices’ handicap at Lingfield on November 10, 2004. The Magic Ring mare proved to be just one of two winners in his inaugural campaign, but he improved his tally to 31, 33 and 44 winners in subsequent seasons.

In August 2007, Kingscote was offered the job as stable jockey to Tom Dascombe at Manor House Stables in Malpas, Cheshire. He had to wait a few years for his first Group 1 winner, Brown Panther, trained by Dascombe, in the Irish St. Leger at the Curragh on September 14, 2014, but has since added three more to his career tally. He won the Flying Five Stakes, back at the Curragh, on Havana Grey, trained by Karl Burke, on September 16, 2018 and, having headed south in search of richer pickings with ten-time champion Sir Michael Stoute, won the Derby on Desert Crown on June 4, 2022 and the Champion Stakes on Bay Bridge on October 15, 2022.

Kingscote rode over a hundred winners for the first time in 2016 and did so again in four of the next five seasons. Following his move to Freemason Lodge in Newmarket, he fell just two short of another century in 2022, but his two Group 1 victories – Desert Crown was, in fact, just his second ride in the Derby – boosted his total prize money to over £3.2 million, making it far and away his most successful season, financially, so far.

Sir Gordon Richards was conferred a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II in the Coronation Honours List in 1953 in recognition of his services to horse racing. A few days later, he won the so-called ‘Coronation Derby’ on Pinza, trained by Norman Bertie and, in so doing, beat Aureole, owned by Her Majesty, four lengths into second place. That victory was Richards’ first in the Epsom Classic, after 27 previous defeats and, at the time of his retirement in 1954, he told Pathé News that it was the greatest moment of his career.

Of course, Richards was no stranger to Classic success. In his illustrious, 34-year riding career he also won the St. Leger five times, on Singapore (1930), Chulmleigh (1937), Turkhan (1940), Sun Chariot (1942) and Tehran (1944), the 1,000 Guineas and 2,000 Guineas three times apiece, on Sun Chariot (1942), Queenpot (1948) and Belle of All (1951) and Pasch (1938), Big Game (1942) and Tudor Minstrel (1947), respectively, and the Oaks twice, on Rose of England (1930) and Sun Chariot(1942).

Richards was forced into retirement, after breaking his pelvis in a paddock accident at Sandown Park, but rode 4,870 winners during his career and was Champion Jockey 26 times, making him arguably the most successful jockey in racing history. Born in Donnington Wood, Telford, Shropshire on May 5, 1904, Richards rode his first winner, Gay Lord, at Leicester on March 31, 1921. After completing his apprenticeship with Martin Hartigan, he subsequently enjoyed hugely successful spells as stable jockey to Captain Thomas Hogg, Fred Darling and Noel Murless.

In 1947, Richards rode Tudor Minstrel – who, decades later, remains the joint-third highest-rated Flat horse in the history of Timeform – to an eight-length victory in the 2,000 Guineas and eventually became Champion Jockey for the twentieth time, with 269 winners. In so doing, he set a record for the number of winners in a season that would stand until fellow knight of the realm, Sir Anthony McCoy, edged past his total on Valfonic in a handicap hurdle at Worcester on May 22, 2002.

Born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire on March 30, 1998, Tom Marquand is a graduate from pony racing, a sphere in which he competed for three seasons and met his future wife, and fellow Flat Jockeys’ Championship contender, Hollie Doyle. After leaving school, aged 16, he became apprenticed to Richard Hannon at Herridge Racing Stables, near Marlborough,Wiltshire and rode his first winner, Mecano, in a four-runner selling stakes race at Kempton on December 17, 2014.

On October 17, 2015 – which was, in fact, British Champions Day at Ascot – Marquand rode Sellingallthetime, trained by Michael Appleby, to a short-head victory in a mile-and-a-half handicap at Catterick to win the apprentices’ title, by a margin of two, from his nearest rival. Reflecting on his rapid progress, he said, ‘It’s unbelievable to be in this position. Twelve months ago I hadn’t even ridden in a race.’

After riding 67 winners in 2015, Marquand rode a further 63 winners in 2016, thereby riding out his claim and, as a fully-fledged professional jockey, enjoyed his most successful season, numerically, in 2021, when he rode 176 winners from 1,068 rides, at a strike rate of 16%. That year, he again finished third in the Flat Jockeys’ Championship, having finished fourth in 2019 and third in 2020. In 2022, Marquand shared second place with his by then-wife Hollie Doyle, whom he had married the previous March, and finished fourth again in 2023.

In terms of high-profile victories, 2020 proved an annus mirabilis for Marquand. In March and April, while wintering in Australia, he won both the Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick on Addeybb, trained by William Haggas, thereby recording his first Group 1 successes. On June 5, Marquand won the Lingfield Derby Trial on English King, trained by Ed Walker, and although subsequently ‘jocked off’ by Frankie Dettori in the Derby itself, did eventually finish second on 50/1 outsider Khalifa Sat, trained by Andrew Balding, on his first ride in the Epsom Classic. Later in the year, further Group 1 successes followed, courtesy of Galileo Chrome in the St. Leger at Doncaster and Addeybb in the Champion Stakes at Ascot.