Benoit de la Sayette

Unflustered by a series of delays before the start of Saturday's JenningsBet British EBF Novice S. at Newmarket, John and Thady Gosden trainee Eben Shaddad (Calyx {GB}--Galileo's Lady, by Galileo {Ire}) returned home with a 'TDN Rising Star' rosette after producing a scintillating display in the six-furlong contest. Let go at generous odds of 4-1, the eventual winner tracked the leaders in fourth after the initial exchanges of this unveiling. Making smooth headway into contention once past halfway, he quickened in style to seize control approaching the final furlong and...

We're starting to feel a little long in the tooth in this corner. The racing equivalent to the observation about policemen looking young these days now applies to the weighing-room, and on Saturday one young gun after another came out with a performance that would entitle them to be considered the next big thing.  Benoit de la Sayette has already achieved plenty in his nascent career. Now 20, he had his first ride in November 2020 and became the first apprentice attached to John Gosden's stable in almost 30 years. ...

Jockey William Buick, Godolphin and apprentice jockey Benoit de la Sayette were crowned Champion Jockey, Champion Owner and Champion Apprentice Jockey, respectively on QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot on Saturday. Former champion jockey Willie Carson, who along with the late Sir Henry Cecil was inducted into the QIPCO British Champions Series Hall Of Fame, presented both jockey trophies. Buick, a three-time runner-up (2015, '21 and '21), secured 157 winners, 67 clear of Hollie Doyle and Tom Marquand, his nearest pursuers for the title. A former champion apprentice, a title...

It may be a bit late in the day for a 3-year-old to earn TDN Rising Star status, but Juddmonte's Laurel (GB) (Kingman {GB}--Promising Lead {GB}, by Danehill) achieved the rare feat with a dazzling display at Kempton on Wednesday evening. Carrying a penalty for the fixture's mile novice for fillies and mares, having made a lasting impression when scoring on debut over this trip at Newmarket July 29, the John and Thady Gosden-trained daughter of the G1 Pretty Polly S. heroine was anchored in mid-pack early hemmed on the...

Jockey Benoit de la Sayette, who had been suspended after returning a positive test for cocaine in the spring, could return to the saddle in October after attending a British Horseracing Authority disciplinary panel on Thursday. De la Sayette was given a six-month ban backdated to April. A rising star for the John and Thady Gosden yard after riding Haqeeqy (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) to a win in the Lincoln at Doncaster, a video circulated on social media of De la Sayette allegedly at a party in the presence...

Jockey Rab Havlin has decided he will not appeal the decision by Lingfield stewards to suspend him 21 days for failing to take all reasonable and permissible measures to win a race on Apr. 21. Havlin was riding the John and Thady Gosden-trained Stowell (GB) (Zoffany {Ire}) when the 3-year-old made a late move on debut but just failed to catch his stablemate Polling Day (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), ridden by Frankie Dettori. Stowell was beaten a head under a hands and heels ride. Gosden spoke out in support...

Benoit de la Sayett has returned a positive test for cocaine, the Professional Jockeys Association announced on Tuesday morning. The British Horseracing Authority has subsequently suspended De La Sayette until the end of the disciplinary process. The 18-year-old apprentice jockey to John and Thady Gosden was shown in a video on social media in late March allegedly in the presence of the drug at a party after winning the Unibet Lincoln H. at Doncaster aboard Haqeeqy (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) on Mar. 27. At that time, the PJA defended...

The Professional Jockeys Association has claimed that star apprentice Benoit de la Sayette "did not and does not take cocaine" after a video surfaced on Twitter on Tuesday showing the 18-year-old in the presence of the drug. The eight-second video-posted from an account made to look as if it belonged to de la Sayette-showed the jockey's face before switching to two unidentified individuals in a toilet cubicle dividing up white powder with a bank card. A caption on the video made it appear as if it had been posted on...