BILLY LOUGHNANE SIGNS AS GODOLPHIN RETAINED JOCKEY

Champion jockey Billy Loughnane has been signed as a retained rider for Godolphin, the operation announced on Wednesday, 4 November. The 20-year-old will formally take up the role at the Dubai Carnival in December, and he joins rather than replaces William Buick, who stays on as the second of Godolphin's two retained jockeys.

It is a landmark move for a rider whose rise has been remarkable even by the standards of a sport that loves a prodigy. Loughnane was crowned Britain's champion Flat jockey at Ascot last month, the youngest to land the title in more than a hundred years, having been champion apprentice in 2023.

A SEASON TO REMEMBER

The appointment caps a breakthrough campaign. Loughnane claimed his first Classic aboard Bow Echo in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket, and he was on the scoresheet again at the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland last Friday, when Libertango landed the Juvenile Turf Sprint for trainer George Boughey.

He had already become a familiar sight in the royal blue silks before this announcement, picking up a steady flow of rides for Godolphin, including for Charlie Appleby, as the season progressed.

Announcing the signing, Hugh Anderson of Godolphin said:

"Godolphin is delighted to have signed the most exciting young jockey riding in Europe."

Loughnane, speaking in response to the announcement as reported by the Racing Post, said: "It is a huge honour to become a retained jockey."

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

Godolphin described Buick as having ridden for the team with distinction for more than ten years, and the arrangement means the two jockeys will now carry the operation's hopes together. The length of Loughnane's agreement, and how the big-race rides will be divided between the pair, have not been made public.

With the Dubai Carnival his official starting point, Loughnane's first assignments in his new colours look set to come over the winter in Dubai, before what promises to be a fascinating 2027 back on home soil.

For a young rider who grew up in his father's training yard, it is the latest and perhaps biggest step yet in a career that already looks destined for the very top.