Man of the Moment Daniel King: 'I love being busy. I love riding work. I love riding horses'

Daniel King, a name on the mind of anyone involved with racing since the Galway Races, has been on everyone's lips after he bridged a gap of 42 years by completing the Galway Hurdle and Plate double.

The major achievement was completed aboard 20/1 King Alexander, trained by Willie Mullins, and Putapoundinthejar, trained by Tony Martin, giving the young Cork jockey a week to remember.

Speaking to Niall Tierney of irishracing.com, Daniel King spoke about the two races, the journey he has been on, and his future aspirations.

Going out on King Alexander, were you always planning to hold that early position?

He had good form, but it's a big handicap, so it's important to get a good start. To be fair to the horse, he's a very good jumper, and he did most of the work. He travelled everywhere. I had a slight worry when Senecia came across and jumped in front of me, and it bumped him.

I think that was his only mistake, and I was slightly cursing him, but I was able to get my horse back into a nice rhythm.

The two last fences in Galway can be tricky, but he had jumped so well coming down before them.

I thought I had a winning chance from a long way out, and I've been watching the race for some time, so to get two good jumps at that final couple of fences is very important. And I knew I had plenty of horse under me, and in all fairness, he picked up.

For as long as I was racing all my life, I've watched the Galway Plate, so I kind of knew. But when he went to the front, he had taken a good look at it, the crowd, and he idled slightly.

And in the corner of my eye for the last 150 yards, I could see that Conyers Hill was starting to come, and I was just praying that he wouldn't come, and the line would come to me.

When I crossed the line, I actually wasn't too sure. I wasn't too sure, but then they called out my number cloth, and yeah, it was just a surreal feeling, really.

You speak about watching racing all your life, did a 13-year-old Daniel King ever dream about being in the perfect position in a Galway Plate two fences out?

I suppose that's exactly it. You want to be riding in those type of races. But look, I suppose it's been a great time for me.

Ever since I began riding, I've got so many nice opportunities, and I've been involved with lovely yards and great people who only want to help me.

They're the people that I need because they make riding very easy for me, and they give me confidence.

I suppose last year with Oscars Brother, I'd have ridden him plenty of times, and I watch races.

I like to watch races of horses that I'm going to ride to try and find out the way they like to be ridden. I like to keep things simple. I don't want to change stuff.

It's great to get plenty of experience so far, but at the end of the day, I just love horses. I love riding horses. I love racing. I love working. It's brilliant.

Going out in the Galway hurdle, did Putapoundinthejar feel like a different horse to the one you rode in Bellewstown?

The Galway Hurdle was just brilliant. Look, he's still immature. He's a buzzy type of horse, and the more racing he gets, the better he will be.

I had ridden out in Tony's the week before, and the horse was very well. The lads were happy. Tony was very happy. But in a race like that, you're riding for luck. You can kind of have a plan before going out, but everything changes. It's split-second stuff.

He's a horse that can be quite keen, so I was delighted to get cover. And to be honest, it was the best he's ever jumped. But you can only get so far. You need the horse to take gaps, and you need the horse to bring you there. And to be honest, he did bring me there.

It's a very hard feeling to describe. I wouldn't really ever be one to salute a crowd, but I just thought to myself, I might never do this again. And I didn't realise at any point, or I didn't pay any attention to the fact that the double hadn't been done in 42 years.

But I suppose they're the two biggest races of the summer, and to win them both was magic. This is exactly what we do it for.

I'm riding in some great places, and I ride for great people. My brother Connor, Tony Martin, John Nallen, Denis Hogan, John Ryan, Willie Mullins - it's just fantastic.

I love horses. I love my job. And I want to get my name out there. It's obviously great when you hear the comparisons, and that's a big confidence boost.

But I also want to make my own name, and I want to be remembered as Daniel King as well. So I'm just taking every day as it comes. That's all you can do in this game.

Racing is a great leveller

I had three winners in Galway, and I haven't ridden a winner since. I've had nice rides in Sligo and Roscommon and the likes, and I haven't won on them.

So, look, racing is a great leveller. It's a great game, but it's what we do it for. I'm just so thankful for everyone around me. I've got some huge opportunities, for which I'm entirely grateful.

It was just great to have a week like Galway go so well because it can be tough down there when you're not riding winners. It's just fantastic, and I'm looking forward to the future.

In my off time, I used to play a lot of GAA and hurling, but I obviously can't anymore.

My two brothers still play Gaelic football and hurling, so I like to go down and watch their games, and I just like to relax as well.

But the job that I do is very much time-consuming, and I love it. I love being busy. I love riding work. I love riding horses. It's all I've ever really wanted to do. And when you're doing the job you love, it's brilliant.