Veteran jockey Jimmy Cassidy will return to Australian racing at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday after spending a two weeks stint riding in Mauritius.
Jimmy Cassidy has four rides at Rosehill Gardens after returning from a working holiday in Mauritius. Photo by: Sarah Ebbett
Cassidy has not ridden in Australia since he partnered Paris Match and Amovatio to victory at Royal Randwick on November 11 and he maintained that success in Mauritius; riding three winners during what he described as a working holiday.
The popular hoop was having his second stint in Mauritius after first spending time in the island nation a decade ago and he said that he thoroughly enjoyed his time riding on the unique track in front of a keen racing audience.
“It was great,” Cassidy told Sky Racing HQ.
“I went up there and rode two weekends and I had two winners the first week and one the second week.
“It is a tight little surface.
“The 1300 race starts at the winning post and you have about a 1200 metre circumference.
“You run uphill the last 100 metres up the straight and you run uphill from the winning post for the first 300 metres.
“It is a tricky little circuit and you need to know it.
“It is very competitive and it was thoroughly enjoyable to go up there.”
Cassidy has ridden six winners in Sydney this season with an impressive strike rate of 15.80 percent and he will have the opportunity to improve those figures in his four rides at Rosehill Gardens this weekend.
Leading Sydney trainer Chris Waller has booked Cassidy to partner debutant Framcais in the Sir Custodians Plate (1100m), Amovatio in The HQ Of Insurance Handicap (1400m) and Murder Of Crows in the Phillip Hughes Tribute (1150m), while he will ride Dowdstown Charlie for David Payne in the Horsepower Feeds And Supplements Handicap (1800m).
“I am looking forward to it and it is always nice to come home,” Cassidy said.
“Hopefully I can get back into the swing of things with Chris (Waller) and Singo and the horses that he has got.
“I talked to Singo yesterday and he is looking forward to having all his babies come in and getting them going and see if we can find a nice one.”
Fellow Australian jockeys Ryan Wiggins and Luke Currie have also been enjoying a stint in Mauritius, but Wiggins is back in Australia to ride at Doomben on Saturday and Currie will ride Hero Master in the Robhar Breeding And Racing Plate (1300m) at Sandown.
