Paul Hanagan draws five clear of Richard Hughes in jockeys’ title
For a prize that carries no intrinsic value, Richard Hughes appears ready to put a very high price on this season's Flat jockeys' championship.
Paul Hanagan finished the day with a lead of five winners over Hughes, after riding a double at Wolverhampton. That would have appeared to clinch the deal for Hanagan, with Hughes due to fly out to Kentucky on Thursday for the Breeders’ Cup meeting at Churchill Downs this weekend.
There he is due to ride for his father-in-law Richard Hannon, with Tale of Untold running in the $1million Juvenile Fillies’ Turf on Friday and stable favourite Paco Boy looking to go out in a blaze of glory when he runs in the $2million Mile. And yet Hughes is seriously considering giving up his rides in one of the world’s most prestigious – and valuable – fixtures to chase after winners of minor races in Britain.
If only it were that easy.
The day began with Richard Hannon Jnr, assistant trainer to his father, suggesting in a radio interview that Hughes may indeed forego his rides at Churchill in pursuit of the jockeys’ championship in the belief that this may be his best – and only – chances of claiming the title.
Then Hughes' agent, Tony Hind, explained the Irishman would not be allowed to ride on Friday anyway because of the British Horseracing Authority rulings. In an effort to prevent riders from pushing themselves too hard through the season, the BHA will only allow a jockey to ride at nine meetings within any week and Hughes will have already reached that threshold by the double header at Lingfield and Kempton the previous day.
"Even if he was here he wouldn't be able to ride on Friday anyway because our nine meetings finish up on Thursday at Kempton,” Hind explained. "With the ruling, Richard is unable to ride on Friday. We're in a bit of a cul-de-sac because with the 48-hour declaration system you have to do Saturday's rides by Thursday and Sunday's by Friday, but you don't see Friday's entries come out until Saturday afternoon.
"If you think you have relatively good rides on the Saturday and the Sunday you have to take the chance to ride there as you won't know what chances you've got on the following Friday until Saturday afternoon."
On the track Hanagan did his bit to make his rivals mind up with two more winners as he took his total to 186 the second of which – on Blue Moon for Kevin Ryan – in the sixth race was another of the head-to-head duels with Hughes that has become the almost daily theme of late.
Approaching the three-furlong pole Hanagan was already beginning to nudge away at his filly while Hughes seemed at ease on Inpursuitoffreedom. When Hughes went in pursuit of the leaders off the home turn he quickly got to the front but Hanagan, who had come wide of the field, was there to battle him all the way to the line and win by a short-head.
“It was pretty tough. I was never really travelling but they went quick. I rode her last time and she just went down a nose so she’s very game and genuine. She’s only got one eye and I really didn’t want to come in between them so I was quite happy just to go around them,” Hanagan said adding of beating Hughes “He’s done me about three times by a short-head this week so I owed him one.”
Hannon, who is about to win the trainers’ title for a second time in his career, is not putting his stable under any pressure to make a decision and has the option of booking Ryan Moore, who will be at Churchill primarily to ride Workforce – the Derby and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner – in the Turf.
Paco Boy has already arrived in Kentucky and Hannon Jnr, speaking on the yard’s website, said: “Everything went fine, and Paco Boy took the journey well. He'll have a quiet day or two while in quarantine, and we'll get him out for a stretch once I get out there, though we won't need to do anything too strenuous. He completed his preparation before he left, and we were very happy with his final gallop.”
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