Can Dylan Browne McMonagle Secure the Irish Flat Racing Jockey Championship? Dylan Browne McMonagle has been backed to be crowned this year’s Irish Champion Flat Jockey. The 22-year-old moved back to the top of the table following a remarkable five wins on Saturday. Colin Keane is now one winner behind but will struggle to overtake McMonagle with his duties as Juddmonte’s retained rider taking him overseas. ‘Riding Out Of His Skin’ “I suppose Dylan's being backed by the second biggest powerhouse in Irish racing,” explained Emma Nagle on irishracing.com’s Irish Angle show this week, referring to Joseph O’Brien. “When Colin took the job with Juddmonte, a few Irish jockeys' eyes probably lit up a bit, saying the jockey's title is more open than ever now. “Dylan Browne McMonagle is young, hungry, ambitious, and he's got to be favourite now for it. He's riding out of his skin. That four-timer took him ahead of Colin. “I saw betting for the start of the year, and Colin was odds-on, but I'd say the betting could be massively reversed now. “Even we saw on Saturday, Colin had to go to the UK to ride for his retainer where there were two Irish flat meetings on. “You'd imagine the power behind Joseph O'Brien's stable and any high-profile spare rides that Dylan Browne McMonagle tends to get as well. “If I was betting now, I'd probably bet on Dylan Browne because the momentum is kind of behind him, and just the fact that Colin isn't always available to ride in Ireland as well would probably mean it could be fairly hard to peg back at this stage. Billy Lee’s Injury Paves The Way irishracing.com editor Vincent Finegan also pointed to Billy Lee’s injury as helping McMonagle. Emma Nagle, who works at Paddy Twomey’s yard, revealed that Lee is recovering quicker than expected from a broken collarbone he suffered last month. However, he is now 23 winners behind McMonagle, making it hard for him to catch up. “He came back riding out a day or two there last week. “I'd say he's hopeful to get back in the next couple of weeks, pending his medical reviews and stuff as well. “It was a pity for Billy because he's been the one chasing down Colin's tail for the last few seasons, and it would have been wide-open. “I'm not sure what the difference was when Billy got his injury that day, but it was relatively close enough that Billy thought he might have had a chance at doing it. “He's obviously missed a few weeks now, falling miles behind. So, it's not going to happen for him this year, but you'd like to see him getting back as soon as possible because he's a brilliant jockey, and he seems very determined to get back. “I know he's been keeping very fit and I think he recovered a lot faster than most people thought he would at this stage even. “So, hopefully he'll pass his medical when he goes there shortly and be back on Irish racecourses soon because you'd miss him. “I know Paddy definitely misses him riding the horses because it's that bit of reliability.” “Obviously, you have very good jockeys falling in behind—the likes of Colin Keane and Chris Hayes and things have been riding winners for Paddy—but Billy's brilliant, and yeah, looking forward to getting him back.” Watch The Irish Angle:
