Tony McCoy is to retire from racing at the end of the season. Britain’s greatest jumps jockey revealed his decision after riding his 200th winner of the campaign aboard Mr Mole at Newbury.
McCoy, who shocked the racing world with his announcement, explained: “I have had a great way of life for the past 25 years. It was always in the back of my mind to retire as champion jockey. I thought 20 championships was a good number.”
The Northern Irish-born jockey broke virtually every National Hunt record and is on course to become champion jockey for a 20th straight season, beating the previous best of seven.
At the age of 40 he felt the time was right: “Time waits for no man in sport and it’s not going to wait for me,” he told Channel 4 Racing. “I told Dave [Roberts, his agent] on Monday of my decision and we felt the right thing to do was retire at the end of the season, but to announce it before then. We thought 200 winners was a good achievement it was a good idea to announce it now.”
He added: “I want to go out at the top, I want to go out as champion jockey and it will be my 20th year if I can win the jockeys’ championship. “I want to go out while I still enjoy riding and am still relatively at the top.”
The Ulsterman was honoured by the Queen with the MBE in 2003 in the birthday honours for his services to sport and seven years later that became an OBE. That same year he became the first jockey to win the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award. In 2013 he won the Irish equivalent, although based in England.
Richard Johnson, who has been McCoy’s closest rival throughout his career, felt it was no great shock. “We all get to that point one day,” he said. “A lot of jockeys will be very relieved, but there will be a great sadness to lose him from the weighing room. He has been amazing and his memories will live on for a long time.”
The man who would go on to become champion jockey 19 times [so far], rode his first winner on Legal Steps in a flat race at Thurles on 26 March 1992, for Jim Bolger who he was apprenticed to.
He began his riding career in England in 1994 and on 7 September he got off the mark with Chickabiddy at Exeter. He was snapped up by Toby Balding, who guided him to the Conditional Jump Jockeys’ title in 1995. Twelve months later he won the first of his jockeys’ crowns and he has held the title every season since.
During his time with Martin Pipe he became the fastest to ride one hundred winners and went on to set a best of 289.
In 2002 McCoy broke Richard Dunwoody’s record for the most winners ridden by a jump jockey and in 2006 he was the first to pass the 2,500-winner milestone. The one milestone he said he was most proud of was achieved at Towcester on 7 November 2013 when he won his 4,000th race when partnering Mountain Tunes for his retaining owner JP McManus.
McCoy, who is married to Chanelle and has two children, is a mad Arsenal fan and one of his good friends is former Gunner Ray Parlour. McCoy was involved in the naming of The Romford Pele, in reference to Parlour’s nickname. Chanelle, was at Newbury on Saturday to see her husband make his announcement and said she always knew this would be his last season. “He made the decision two weeks ago,” she said. “It is a very big decision and he has to live with the consequences. He had to make the decision himself. He knew my preference was for the end of this season, but he is his own man and made up his own mind.”
His agent, Dave Roberts, added: “It has been a privilege from day one. I don’t think anyone will do what he has ever again. They would have to ride for 20 years, winning 200 each season, which I don’t think will ever be done.”
Among the plethora of big-race successes he enjoyed were two Cheltenham Gold Cups, three Champion Hurdles and in 2010 he finally won the Grand National on the JP McManus-owned Don’t Push It. Among the many great horses he rode to victory were Best Mate, Big Buck’s, Brave Inca, Edredon Bleu, Jezki and Master Minded.
The champion was brought down to earth with a bump after his announcement, as his ride in the next race, Goodwood Mirage, fell at the first flight.
AP McCoy landmarks
Conditional Jockey of the year: 1995
Champion jockey 1995-96 continuously to 2013-14
Appointed MBE in 2003 and OBE in 2010
Sports Personality of the Year in 2010 and Irish Sports Personality of the Year 2013
Won English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh Nationals
1,000th winner: Majadou, Cheltenham, 11 December 1999
2,500th winner: Kanpai, Huntingdon, 3 October 2006
4,000th winner: Mountain Tunes, Towcester, 7 November
