I sat down to catch up with William at Catterick races. It was Ladies’ Day so a decent sized crowd were in attendance, enjoying the newly renovated facilities. We picked a table just outside the Horseshoe Café Bar, not far from the Weighing Room to have a chat, although I did feel slightly guilty as it was near the burger van and the smell of sautéed onions was appetising to anyone!
I thought it would be a suitable location as we were handy for his ‘work-room’ and we were slightly tucked away for a bit of privacy. No such luck! William is clearly well known and well liked amongst racegoers. Early into our chat, one gentleman approached William and declared he was his biggest fan – even though he did have to ask him his name. Like a true professional, William smiled, humbly responded to this revelation and engaged in polite conversation.
Back to our chat and five minutes later another gentleman, who I later learned was an owner William has ridden for several times, pulled up a chair and the musings covered more subjects than I had intended but it was all great content!
Off he went and aware of the time, I quickly finished up my questions, but another man, accompanied by a couple of younger racegoers came to congratulate William on a recent victory.
Conversation flowed easily from William, who clearly has a wise head on young shoulders, is very aware of the ups and downs of the racing game, has time for everyone and is keen to work hard and ride winners.
Maintaining the strike rate of 11%, things are still going well. Since the start of this year, Go Racing In Yorkshire’s 3lb claiming, sponsored apprentice has had 21 winners from 196 rides.
“I’m happy with how things are going,” said William.
“You do tend to keep an eye on the stats but concentrate on them more when they start slip.”
William had a red-letter day this month, when landing the William Hill/MND Association Great St Wilfrid Handicap at Ripon on Intervention.
“In my early days as a 7lb claiming apprentice, I was third in the race, which was my best finishing position at the time, but I’ve not had a ride in it since.
“Winning it this year was very special, my dad was there and he got quite emotional as he has taken a notion to the race, since my third placing.”
Having not ridden for the Michael Appleby yard before, I asked William how he had got the ride.
“I’ve got no connection to Mick Appleby, but the Dixon brothers, who run the Horsewatchers Syndicate, that own Intervention, thought I would suit the horse and the race.
“I like to be positive and fire them out from the front, especially in sprints and it certainly worked on the day.”
It was only the horses second win on turf, as he seems to save his best for the all-weather, his other turf win coming at Yarmouth back in 2022. However, it’s built up another contact – William rode the horse again on his next run at Goodwood and it has since opened the door for him to travel to the Appleby yard to ride out.
“The Dixon’s were confident that he would run well,” said William.
“Does that add pressure?” I asked.
“No,” replied William.
“I’m there to do my job. He’s a good horse in a good race and I just had to follow my instructions.”
On the pressure front, he continued,
“Better horses can get you out of trouble. You can just as easily lose your job by giving a horse a bad ride in a low-profile race, so you just have to deal with the situation on the day and do your job as best you can.
“I felt I’d gone full circle, by winning the Great St Wilfrid, but it quickly circled back, when the horse I was third on, Mark’s Choice, won at Ripon on Tuesday, beating me into third on Kat’s Bob. I really thought he [Kat’s Bob] would win, but things didn’t quite work out for us.”
There’s still plenty of racing to come, even though we are approaching the tail end of the flat season, but not one to stand still, William is already looking ahead.
“I’m hoping to go back to Santa Anita again for Winter. I’ll be teaming up with Dan Blacker again, who is keen to get me a few more rides.”
Still in the planning process, I asked William what, besides racing was keeping him busy at home.
“Just cycling and the gym. Like most other jockeys it’s a case of keeping the weight in check. I don’t run as much as I used to, but I do like cycling. It helps with weight, fitness and it manages the head. If I’m out of breathe, I can’t think about anything else, you’re focused on pedalling and direction and I really enjoy it.”
William is still doing a lot of driving and the yards he rides out for, like most trainers, are desperate for some rain so they can run their horses. While the stats are looking good, hopefully the rides and wins tally can increase in the weeks to come.