Berry, Tommy
Age: 25. Tommy Berry grew up around horses at the Warwick Farm stable of his father Kevin Berry, a former jockey. He and his late twin brother, Nathan Berry, both followed their father into the saddle. Berry began his career in 2007 and was a champion apprentice in the 2009/10 season. He became stable jockey to Sydney trainer Gai Waterhouse in April 2011, alongside Nash Rawiller, and then turned freelance in early 2015. He took up his first short-term contract with the Hong Kong Jockey Club from 28 April, 2013 until that season's end and registered an impressive 22 wins. Berry became the first HKJC licensed rider to win a G1 on the first day of his contract when successful aboard Military Attack in the 2013 AP QEII Cup. In 2014 he became the third rider to notch back-to-back AP QEII Cup wins as he partnered Designs On Rome to victory. His first G1 win came on Epaulette in the 2012 Golden Rose Stakes. He has five G1 wins so far this term, including the Citi Hong Kong Gold Cup on Designs On Rome and the Manikato Stakes and T J Smith Stakes atop Chautauqua. Other notable wins include: Hong Kong Derby (2014 Designs On Rome), Hong Kong Classic Cup (2014 Designs On Rome), Golden Slipper (2013 Overreach, 2015 Vancouver) and Singapore Airlines International Cup (2014 & 2015 Dan Excel). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April, 2016): 51 (win strike rate: 11.86%)
Bowman, Hugh
Age: 35 Bowman boasts an outstanding career record with more than 1,700 wins since his debut ride on Naturalised in 1999, including many of the major races in the Australian racing calendar. He is the reigning champion jockey in Sydney, a title he has claimed three times in all (2008/09, 2011/12, 2014/15). He has won no less than 48 G1 races in his career, including the 2010, 2011 and 2013 renewals of the Victoria Derby on Lion Tamer, Sangster and Polanski respectively, and the 2014 Australian Derby on Criterion. This season he has already notched nine top-level wins, notably the Cox Plate, Epsom Handicap, Chipping Norton, George Ryder and Doncaster Mile on the brilliant filly Winx. Bowman is well-known to Hong Kong racing fans through his successful three-month riding contract at the end of the 2013/14 season when he notched a highly respectable 13 wins, and he added the 2016 HKG1 BMW Hong Kong Derby to his major triumphs, thanks to Werther.
Callan, Neil
Age: 37. Irishman Neil Callan was UK Champion Apprentice in 1999 and finished runner-up in the UK jockeys’ championship in 2005 (151 wins) and 2007 (170 wins). His first rode short contract in Hong Kong came in the 2010/11 season. His first full Hong Kong season, 2014/2015, yielded a very solid 47 wins and fifth place in the jockeys’ premiership. His notable race wins include: AP QEII Cup (2015 Blazing Speed), Champions & Chater Cup (2014 Blazing Speed), Hong Kong Classic Mile (2015 Beauty Only), Middle Park Stakes (2005 Amadeus Wolf, 2013 Astaire), Racing Post Trophy (2005 Palace Episode), Nunthorpe Stakes (2009 Borderlescott), Fillies' Mile (2009 Hibaayeb). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April): 133 (win strike rate: 7.51%)
Lane, Damian
Age: 22 Considered one of the emerging young talents in Australian racing, Damian Lane achieved his 500th career win on the eve of his 21st birthday in February , 2015. Apprenticed to his father Michael in 2009 he had his first race ride at age 16 and notched more than 100 wins in Western Australia before transferring his indentures to the Melbourne-based training partnership of Matthew Ellerton and Simon Zahra during the 2010/2011 racing season. He graduated to the senior riding ranks during the 2012/2013 racing season when he broke through the 100 wins in a season barrier for the first time (106 wins) at a strike rate of 16%. He repeated that achievement in the 2013/2014 racing season with 105 wins at a rate of 14% and in the process claimed 3rd position in the Victorian Jockeys’ Championship. His first Group win came at Flemington on Se Sauver in the 2013 G2 Edward Manifold Stakes. His maiden G1 victory came atop Trust In A Gust in the 2014 Sir Rupert Clarke. Lane undertook a short-term contract in Hong Kong at the end of the 2014/15 season for five wins.
Moore, Ryan
Age: 32. Combative, driven, tactically astute and naturally gifted, three-time UK champion jockey Ryan Moore is one of the finest riders in the world and was the winner of the inaugural World’s Best Jockey Award in 2014. His 66 career G1 wins include the 2009 AP QEII Cup on Presvis and the 2010 Hong Kong Cup atop Snow Fairy - a filly he partnered to five G1 wins in four countries, including two classics and back-to-back wins in Japan’s QEII Commemorative Cup. Other highlights include Workforce’s wins in the 2010 Derby and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Breeders’ Cup Turf victories on Conduit and Magician, the 2013 Derby success of Ruler Of The World, Gentildonna’s Japan Cup win and the 2014 Melbourne Cup victory on Protectionist. Since 2015 he has ridden as principal jockey to the Coolmore operation and during that year he notched 15 G1s in seven countries/jurisdictions, despite missing the best part of three months mid-season due to injury. Those wins included a brace at the HKIR atop Highland Reel (HK Vase) and Maurice (HK Mile). This year he has already notched the G1 Dubai Turf (Real Steel), and during a successful short term contract in Hong Kong he landed the HK Classic Mile and HK Classic Cup (Sun Jewellery). Hong Kong career wins (as of 21 April): 25 (Win strike rate: 13.37%).
Moreira, Joao
Age: 32. Brazilian sensation Joao Moreira, known as “Magic Man”, notched more than 1000 wins in South America and received the Brazilian Eclipse Award in 2007 and 2008. He relocated to Singapore in 2009 and dominated the Singapore circuit, winning the Premiership in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. He moved to Hong Kong in October 2013 and finished runner-up in the title race that term with 97 wins before clinching the championship in a record smashing 2014/15 campaign with 145 wins. He has also ridden in Australia, Britain, France, USA, Germany, Japan, Macau, Sweden and the UAE. He won the IJC in 2012, twice recorded the fastest 100 in a Hong Kong season, jointly holds the record for the most wins in a Hong Kong race day (six: 1 March, 2015) and has twice ridden eight wins in a day (Kranji, 6 September, 2013 and Cidade Jardim, March, 2006). His major wins include: Hong Kong Mile (2015 Able Friend), Hong Kong Cup (2015 Designs On Rome), Champions Mile (2015 Able Friend), Hong Kong Gold Cup (2014 Military Attack, 2015 Designs On Rome), Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup (2015 Able Friend), Stewards’ Cup (2015 Able Friend), Newmarket Handicap (2015 Brazen Beau), Al Quoz Sprint (2014 Amber Sky), Coolmore Stud Stakes (2014 Brazen Beau), Dubai Golden Shaheen (2014 Sterling City), Gran Premio Nacional (2006 Eu Tambem), Grande Premio Diana (2008 Bubbly Jane). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April): 370 (win strike rate: 23.31%).
Prebble, Brett
Age: 38. Brett Prebble left Australia for Hong Kong in 2002 with two Melbourne Premierships (1999/00 & 2000/01) already to his name. He quickly made his mark and collected a first major win at Sha Tin aboard Precision in the 2003 Champions & Chater Cup. He has since partnered to victory Hong Kong stars such as Bullish Luck, Sacred Kingdom, Cape Of Good Hope and Lucky Nine. His tussles with Douglas Whyte for the Jockeys' Premiership are legendary, although he has not yet lifted the crown. He has been runner-up six times to his rival, his 2009/10 battle with Whyte was epic as he lost out by one with the final score being 100-99. He set the Hong Kong record of most wins in a day with his six-timer at Happy Valley on 20 June, 2010, a feat since matched by Whyte (April, 2013) and Joao Moreira (March, 2015). His career highlight is Green Moon's win in the 2012 Melbourne Cup. Other notable wins include: Hong Kong Sprint (2006 Absolute Champion, 2009 Sacred Kingdom, 2011 Lucky Nine), Champions Mile (2006 Bullish Luck, 2009 Sight Winner), Hong Kong Derby (2007 Vital King), Chairman's Sprint Prize (2007 Absolute Champion, 2010 Sacred Kingdom, 2013 & 2014 Lucky Nine), Centenary Sprint Cup (2008 Absolute Champion, 2010 & 2011 Sacred Kingdom), Golden Slipper (2010 Crystal Lily), Australian Guineas (2015 Wandjina), Yasuda Kinen (2006 Bullish Luck), KrisFlyer International Sprint (2009 Sacred Kingdom, 2013 & 2014 Lucky Nine), Australia Stakes (2005 Cape Of Good Hope). Hong Kong career wins (as of 21 April): 751 (win strike rate: 12.72%)
Purton, Zac
Age: 33. Zac Purton ended Douglas Whyte's 13-season dominance with his first Hong Kong jockeys' championship in 2013/14 (112 wins). He raced to the then-fastest 50 in Hong Kong history that season and became the second rider, after Whyte, to notch 100 wins in a season. He finished runner-up in 2011/12 and 2012/13, fading late on when troubled with ill health after leading for much of the latter campaign. Purton lost his title when second to Joao Moreira in 2014/15 with 95 wins. He started his career in Brisbane and was an apprentice sensation, winning the premiership there in 2003, and then moved on to Sydney where he was twice second in the premiership behind perennial champion Darren Beadman. His first G1 win came on Excites in the 2006 Sires Produce Stakes. Purton moved to Hong Kong in September, 2007. His notable wins include: Hong Kong Mile (2012 Ambitious Dragon), Hong Kong Sprint (2014 Aerovelocity), Hong Kong Vase (2013 Dominant), Hong Kong Derby (2015 Luger), King's Stand Stakes (2012 Little Bridge), Singapore Airlines International Cup (2013 Military Attack), Caulfield Cup (2014 Admire Rakti), Doncaster Mile (2014 Sacred Falls), Takamatsunomiya Kinen (2015 Aerovelocity), KrisFlyer International Sprint (2015 Aerovelocity). Hong Kong Career Wins: (as of 21 April): 587 (win strike rate: 13.08%).
Rawiller, Nash
Age: 41. Rawiller is a three-time champion in Sydney (2009/10, 2010/11, 2012/13) and well-established in the top echelon of Australian jockeys with more than 2100 wins to his credit, including more than 50 G1 victories. Rawiller’s brother, Brad, and sister, Stacey, are jockeys, while another brother, Tom, is a trainer - their father, Keith, was a jump jockey. Rawiller started his career in Victoria and early success at the elite level came on Elvstroem. He moved to Sydney in 2007 to team up with trainer Gai Waterhouse and has since been associated with the champion race mare More Joyous and outstanding colt Pierro. Rawiller moved to Hong Kong in September 2014. Notable wins include: Caulfield Cup (2004 Elvstroem), Dubai Duty Free (2005 Elvstroem), Golden Slipper (2012 Pierro), Doncaster Mile (2010 Rangirangdoo, 2012 More Joyous), Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2011 My Kingdom Of Fife, 2012 More Joyous). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April): 47 (win strike rate: 6.84%).
Shinn, Blake
Age: 28. Raised in Kilmore, Victoria, Shinn rode in gymkhanas from the age of five. Apprenticed to his stepfather, Lee Hope, he began race riding in 2003. A precocious talent, Shinn earned plaudits as a teenager, winning Racing Victoria's annual Scobie Breasley Medal in 2005, an accolade given for excellence on Melbourne racetracks. He left Victoria at age 19 to ride for Sydney-based Gai Waterhouse. His precocity took him to a Sydney Premiership win in 2007/08 and a Melbourne Cup victory at age 21 in 2008, atop the Bart Cummings-trained Viewed. His career has navigated ups and downs but the rider has re-established his position as one of Australia's elite riders in recent seasons. He won more races than any other jockey in Australia during the 2014/15 season and registered five G1 wins that term. He won the G1 Golden Slipper in March on Capitalist. Other notable wins include: BTC Cup (2015 Hot Snitzel), Doomben Cup (2015 Pornichet, 2014 Streama), Vinery Stud Stakes (2015 Fenway), Galaxy (2015 Sweet Idea), Flight Stakes (2014 First Seal), George Main Stakes (2013 Streama), Coolmore Classic (2013 Appearance), T J Smith Stakes (2010 Melito), Epsom Handicap (2009 Rock Kingdom), Sires Produce Stakes (2008 Sebring), Adelaide Cup (2008 Demerger).
Take, Yutaka
Age: 47. Take is the son of famed jockey Kunihito Take and is a living legend in Japan, with over 4000 wins in his homeland and overseas. He has been champion jockey in his Japan 16 times and was the first jockey to ride eight winners in a day in Japan, a feat achieved in December 2002. He became the first Japanese jockey to win a G1 race in Europe when Ski Paradise captured the 1994 Prix du Moulin. In 2000 he spent time riding in the US and in 2001 he was based with trainer John Hammond in France. His list of big race wins in Japan is extensive and includes three G1 Japan Cups with Special Week (1999), Deep Impact (2006) and Rose Kingdom (2010). His overseas achievements include the Prix Maurice de Gheest on Seeking The Pearl (1998), the July Cup on Agnes World (2000), the Hong Kong Vase and the Dubai Sheema Classic on Stay Gold (2001), the Prix de l’Abbaye on Imperial Beauty (2001) and the Dubai Duty Free on Admire Moon (2007). He has 103 career G1 wins and in winning the G3 Sirius Stakes in October, 2015 he became the first rider to win 300 JRA Graded races in Japan. In 2015 his G1 wins comprised Copano Rickey in the February Stakes and a brilliant all-the-way win on A Shin Hikari in the G1 Hong Kong Cup. So far in 2016 he has won the G2 UAE Derby on Lani. Hong Kong career wins (as of 21 April): 4 (win strike rate: 10.26%).
Teetan, Karis
Age: 25. Mauritian rider Karis Teetan was well ensconced in the top 10 of the South African Jockeys' Championship when he left for Hong Kong in August, 2013. After entering the South African National Jockey Academy at the age of 14 Teetan went on to be crowned Champion South African Apprentice in 2008. He graduated in 2009 with 147 wins to his credit. Teetan passed the 100 wins mark in every season as a senior jockey in South Africa. He has recorded five G1 wins with his inaugural success at the top level being in his native Mauritius on 24 November, 2008, aboard Halo Hunter. Teetan represented South Africa in the 2012 International Jockeys' Invitational in Seoul, Korea and in the 2008 Macau Apprentice Jockeys Invitation Races. He notched an impressive 50 wins in his first Hong Kong season. Notable wins include: Hong Kong Classic Cup (2015 Thunder Fantasy), HKG2 Chairman’s Trophy (2014 Able Friend), Cape Derby (2012 Jackson), Daily News 2000 (2012 Jackson), Paddock Stakes (2012 Thunder Dance), Castle Tankard (2011 Grisham). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April): 120 (win strike rate: 7.89%).
Whyte, Douglas
Age: 44. Douglas Whyte was born in Durban, South Africa, hence his nickname “The Durban Demon”. He was champion jockey in Hong Kong for 13 consecutive seasons, losing his title to Zac Purton in 2013/14. Whyte first sat on a horse at age two and developed his skills riding in the countryside with his late father, himself a former jockey. A South African jockey academy graduate, in 1996 he rode weekends in Singapore and Malaysia and undertook a short contract in Hong Kong at the start of the 1996/97 season. He returned for the 1997/98 season and made Hong Kong his home. He is the only jockey ever to reach 1,000 wins in Hong Kong, and his tally of 114 wins in 2005/06 stood as a record until Joao Moreria surpassed it in 2014/15. He is the joint record-holder (with Brett Prebble and Joao Moreira) for most wins in a day in Hong Kong (six: 7 April, 2013) and holds the records for overall career wins in Hong Kong and most career prize money won (over HK$1.45 billion). Notable wins include: Hong Kong Cup (2013 Akeed Mofeed), Hong Kong Mile (2013 Glorious Days), Hong Kong Vase (1998 Indigenous), AP QEII Cup (1997 London News, 1998 Oriental Express, 2011 Ambitious Dragon), Hong Kong Derby (2010 Super Satin, 2012 Fay Fay, 2013 Akeed Mofeed), Queen’s Plate (1997 London News), J & B Met (1997 London News). Hong Kong Career Wins (as of 21 April): 1,713 (win strike rate: 15.56%).
