RIYADH: Northern Irish jockey Pat Cosgrave, who has been based in England since 2004, has moved from the UK to continue his horse racing career in Saudi Arabia.
He was aboard Gifts of Gold when the pair landed the $2.5m Red Sea Turf Handicap at the Saudi Cup meeting in 2021, and has won several Group 1 races in the UK, Germany and Australia.
The 41-year-old jockey, who was crowned Irish champion apprentice in 2003, has been retained by 2022 Saudi Cup-winning owner Prince Saud bin Salman, and his first ride of the Taif Season is due on Thursday aboard Mutantather. “I’d only been back from Dubai for a couple of weeks and was approached (in March) by (Prince Saud’s) team about the opportunity,” said Cosgrave, who has ridden 16 winners in the UK this year. “I knew how successful their operation was over there, particularly given they won the Saudi Cup back in 2022 with Emblem Road, but it was a tricky time to make a decision as racing was just getting going again in the UK.” After mulling over the offer for a while he decided it was a good move, according to a media statement released on Wednesday. “The racing, as well as other sports in Saudi, seem to be getting bigger and better every year and it’s an exciting time to be getting involved,” said Cosgrave. “I have been going along OK in the UK.
There were a couple of silly incidents that put me on the sidelines for a bit but, overall, I was doing well, winning some decent handicaps and operating at a good strike rate.