There is often a debate in horse racing about who is the greatest jockey of all time. Although it is hard to pinpoint that to one individual, the below names are certainly in contention for being one of the best jockeys of all time.
Here is a look at some of their achievements and why they deserve their place in the best jockeys of all time list.
Ruby Walsh
Jumps jockey Ruby Walsh was a 12-time Irish National Hunt Champion Jockey. When he retired in 2019, he did so as the third most prolific winning jockey in British and Irish history. A lot of his success came at the Cheltenham Festival, the biggest meeting of the season in Jumps racing.
Walsh rode 59 winners at the Cheltenham Festival, including the Cheltenham Gold Cup twice on board Kauto Star. He was successful in the Grand National in 2000 with Papillion, while he also won the world’s most famous steeplechase with Hedgehunter in 2005.
Russell Baze
Retired Canadian jockey Russell Baze holds the record for the most wins as a rider in North American history. The United States Hall of Fame member had over 12,000 winners in his career, with his most notable success coming in the 2010 San Francisco Breeders’ Cup Mile.
Tony McCoy
Known simply as AP, Tony McCoy is widely considered to be one of the best jockeys of all time in Jumps racing. He was Champion Jockey in 20 consecutive seasons in Britain. When he retired in 2015, he had ridden 4,358 winners in the UK and Ireland.
The 2010 BBC Sports Personality of the Year won the Grand National in 2010 with Don’t Push It, his greatest single triumph. He also had major success in the Cheltenham Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase and King George VI Chase.
McCoy now represents owner JP McManus at the racecourse. He will be hoping the green and gold silks can be carried to victory at the 2024 Cheltenham Festival. Many of McManus’ horses are prominent in the Cheltenham Festival odds for the meeting.
Laffit Pincay Jr
Born in Panama, Laffit Pincay Jr had a brilliant career in North America. He was once the winning-most Flat jockey in history but is now third on that list. The National Museum Hall of Fame jockey rode 9,530 winners, including four US Triple Crown victories and six Breeders’ Cup triumphs.
Frankie Dettori
In a career that stretches across four decades, Frankie Dettori has ridden 287 Group One winners and 23 British Classics. His most notable day in the saddle came in 1996 when he rode all seven winners on a card at Ascot.
The three-time British Champion Jockey announced his retirement in 2023 but he made a U-turn to continue riding in the USA in 2024. You can keep an eye on his latest bookings in the horse racing odds for Santa Anita.
Mike E Smith
American rider Mike E Smith has won more Breeders’ Cup races than any other jockey in history. The National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame jockey has ridden 27 winners at the world championship meeting.
In 2018, Smith won the US Triple Crown on board Justify. At the age of 52, he was the oldest rider to win all three races in the same year.
John R Velazquez
Born in Puerto Rico, John R Velazquez moved to the United States in 1990 to pursue a career as a jockey. In 2014, he became the leading money-earning jockey in the history of the sport.
Velazquez, who remains at the top of his game, has ridden six US Triple Crown winners and he has 15 Breeders’ Cup wins to his name. The two-time United States Champion Jockey entered the Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2012.
Bill Shoemaker
For 29 years, Bill Shoemaker held the record for the most wins as a jockey in horse racing. The Texan-born rider won 11 US Triple Crown races. He was also victorious in the Breeders’ Cup Classic when Ferdinand prevailed in the feature race at the Breeders’ Cup meeting at Hollywood Park.
Shoemaker partnered champion horse Spectacular Bid for the majority of his career. The pair went unbeaten in 1980, winning all nine of their assignments.
After retiring in 1990, Shoemaker became a trainer. He won 90 races and earned just over $3.7 million in prize money.
Jerry D Bailey
American Hall of Fame jockey Jerry D Bailey finished his career with an impressive tally of 5,893 winners. That included six US Triple Crown successes and 15 Breeders’ Cup triumphs. With five wins in the race, he shares the record for the most victories in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Bailey’s career spanned 31 years and throughout that period, he had success around the world, including at the Dubai World Cup, a race he won four times. He landed the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey seven times, the most anyone has lifted that trophy.
Lester Piggott
British jockey Lester Piggott, who was nicknamed “The Long Fellow” due to his height, is widely considered to be one of the best jockeys of all time in Flat racing. He holds the record for the most Derby victories, as he was successful nine times in the Epsom feature.
Piggott was British Flat Racing Champion Jockey 11 times. He rode 30 British Classic winners, with victories coming in all five British Classic races. In total, he had 5,300 winners across the world in a career that stretched across an incredible six decades.
After making a U-turn on his retirement, Piggott rode the winner of the Breeders’ Cup Mile in 1990 at the age of 55. His last winner in the UK came in 1994.
Pat Eddery
Only Pat Richards has ridden more Flat winners in the UK than Pat Eddery. When he retired in 2003, he did so with 4,632 winners, including three triumphs in the Derby and a total of 14 British Classic successes.
Eddery was the British Flat Racing Champion Jockey 11 times. He entered the British Champions Series Hall of Fame in 2021.
