Oisin Murphy heads for the Big T

Oisin Murphy is not just another talented Irish horse rider. Many smart racing people reckon he’s currently the best jockey in the world. And his favourite pastime is reading lines written by the complicated, suicidal, American poet Sylvia Plath.

If those things don’t set him apart from other denizens of the weighing room, there’s the fact that he is about to be crowned UK champion jockey for the fourth time – following a remarkable comeback from a 14-month riding ban for dissembling to dodge British Covid restrictions, not to mention some attendant booze and drug offences.

This past Sunday, 29-year-old Murphy reached a rare milestone when a horse called Qetiafan survived a stewards’ inquiry and was declared the winner of a juvenile race at Goodwood racecourse in southern England. It was Murphy’s 200th winner of the season, which will wrap up with his victory lap of honour on Saturday, Champions’ Day at Ascot.

Over the past 70-odd years only a handful of UK champion jockeys have hit a seasonal double century – one of them being our own Michael Roberts in 1992.

Flushed with triumph in an on-course interview on Sunday, Murphy forgot to mention another career highlight beckoning for him: riding in Joburg in the R6-million Betway Summer Cup at Turffontein on 30 November.

Heading to Turffontein

Among those rating Murphy highly is Barry Irwin, CEO of the American Team Valor ownership syndicate: “Oisin is my favorite British/European rider. He reminds me a lot of Bill Shoemaker, of whom it was often said that he bothered a horse less than any other jockey… [Oisin] rides with such confidence that he transmits this feature to his mounts. It is beautiful to watch.”

Irwin has booked Oisin to partner his co-owned Frances Ethel in the Summer Cup, the richest race in Africa and Joburg’s premier turf spectacle.

This filly, winner of the SA Oaks last season, was earmarked for export to the US as part of the historic shipment earlier this year. However, Team Valor opted to keep her racing in South Africa for a while.

Frances Ethel was a most creditable runner-up at Turffontein on Saturday in her first outing of the new campaign – over a trip well short of her best. This performance saw her shorten to 6-1 second favourite in ante-post betting.

Assistant trainer James Crawford, who heads up his father Brett’s Joburg satellite yard, commented: “We are very grateful to Team Valor for having the filly in South Africa and the ability to achieve some good success with her.”

Murphy, who has won elite races in eight countries, said in a promo video: “I am really looking forward to my trip to Johannesburg. It would be a feather in my cap to win a Grade 1 race in Africa. I can’t wait to meet all the racing fans.”

Disaster

The articulate Irishman grew up in a racing family, first getting aboard a pony at the age of four. He later rode work for his trainer uncle Jim Cullotty and then for Tommy Stack and Aiden O’Brien.

Moving to England to get more opportunities, he landed a job with leading conditioner Andrew Balding and burst into prominence with four wins on Ayr Gold Cup day.

After becoming champion apprentice in 2014, he was contracted to burgeoning owner Qatar Racing. The brilliant Roaring Lion was the horse that made him into a star.

Despite brushes with the authorities, winners kept flowing for the young man and he won three full championships – in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Then disaster struck. He was found guilty of violating Covid travel restrictions and of substance abuse and had his licence pulled for more than a year. He used that time to do showjumping, read serious literature and deal with the drink problem.

“I made many, many errors I wish I hadn’t done. I was given a period time to think about that and come back with a different mindset,” he reflected.

His first ride back in February 2023 was a winner. And they just kept flowing – like a Sylvia Plath poem.