Ricky Doyle is becoming the go-to jockey for the big National races. Best known for his remarkable 150/1 triumph on Freewheelin Dylan in the Irish Grand National 2021, this season he added the Kerry National to his CV and on Sunday ticked off the Munster National at Limerick, riding Gordon Elliott’s Gevrey to a near three-length success.There was an interesting sub plot to the success with regards to the Kerry National. On the morning of that race, Elliott withdrew one of his runners and so afforded Doyle’s mount Desertmore House to get into the race from his reserve position.
Ricky Doyle is becoming the go-to jockey for the big National races. Best known for his remarkable 150/1 triumph on Freewheelin Dylan in the Irish Grand National 2021, this season he added the Kerry National to his CV and on Sunday ticked off the Munster National at Limerick, riding Gordon Elliott’s Gevrey to a near three-length success.
There was an interesting sub plot to the success with regards to the Kerry National. On the morning of that race, Elliott withdrew one of his runners and so afforded Doyle’s mount Desertmore House to get into the race from his reserve position.
Listowel
Gevrey was one of Elliott’s horses in the Listowel feature and later that day the Meath trainer expressed his discontent with rider Brian Hayes, who had seemingly refused to get off the horse and by rights was allowed to keep the ride. Elliott wanted his rider Danny Gilligan, whose mount had been withdrawn, on the horse.
It didn’t happen for Gevrey in Kerry, a bad mistake late on ending his chances, with Desertmore House going on to win comfortably. It did happen for Gevrey in Limerick, with a smooth travelling and jumping performance enough to seal the day. A penny for the thoughts of Brian Hayes after the 10-year-old passed the line in the €100,000 chase.
“Big thanks to Gordon for putting me up on him,” said Doyle. “It’s because of him that I ended up getting into the Kerry National and winning it, so to pay him back with a National is great.
“It was fairly simple for me the whole way around – he jumped from fence to fence and travelled. A lot of the horses were having their first run back, so I had fitness on my side and I was aware of that, so I wanted to use it.”
Ascot
Elsewhere, Aidan O’Brien was out of luck with his big runners on British Champions Day at Ascot, where Frankie Dettori once again stole all the headlines. The Italian rider had been criticised earlier in the week for performing a U-turn on his retirement – he will ride in America through next year – and on his supposed final day on a British racecourse, he secured a big-race double, highlighted by a British Champion Stakes win on King Of Steel.
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