Leading flat jockey James Doyle is set to become the first retained rider for Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani's Wathnan Racing beginning in January, the organisation announced on Monday. The 35-year-old had been riding as second jockey for Godolphin since January 2015 and will join Wathnan when his contract expires at the end of this year.
“It is a tremendous honour for me to sign for Wathnan,” Doyle said. “It's an amazing opportunity for me going forward with His Highness Sheikh Tamim's Wathnan Racing and I'm greatly looking forward to working with Olly Tait, Richard Brown and the rest of the team.
“I want to thank His Highness Sheikh Mohammed, Charlie Appleby and everyone at Godolphin for the unstinting support they've given me over the last nine years. It's been a wonderful time and I have enjoyed literally every moment. But this is an incredible new venture and I can't wait to get started in January.”
Doyle is a multiple Group 1-winning jockey having partnered with notable runners Kingman (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), Noble Mission (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), Sea Of Class (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) over his career so far.
“James has been a key member of our team for his whole time with us and, whilst we will miss him greatly, he is leaving very much with our blessing and we wish him all the very best with this exciting new chapter in his riding career,” Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby said.
Wathnan Racing's Adviser Olly Tait added: “Wathnan is delighted to have retained the services of James Doyle. He is a fantastic rider and an incredible addition to the team. We are all looking forward to working closely with James in the coming years.”
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