Racing Figures Hail Mighty Quinn

John Dunlop and Paul Cole were just two of the trainers to pay tribute to Richard Quinn yesterday after the rider's shock decision to retire from the saddle.

One of the best Flat jockeys never to be champion, the 44-year-old called time on a career which yielded more than 2,100 wins and British Classic success aboard Love Divine in the Vodafone Oaks as well as Snurge and Millenary in the St Leger.

Quinn, who had partnered 27 winners this year, signed off on the best possible note when winning the Duke of Edinburgh Stakes aboard Young Mick at Royal Ascot on what proved to be his last ride.

Millenary's trainer John Dunlop said: 'It was a total surprise to me. I'd had no intimation he was retiring at all. I thought he was riding as well as ever.

'He rode a winner for me last month and his first winner for me was 22 years ago.

'During that time he rode Millenary to win the Leger in 2000 for us, three or four Royal Ascot handicap winners, a Lincoln on Right Wing and so on.

'He's been a great help to us over many years. He's ridden a lot of winners and always been cheerful and very professional.

'We shall miss him. I'm very sorry he's retiring and I wish him well.'

Quinn's first winner (Bolivar Baby in 1981) was for Cole, with whom he went on to forge a lucrative and enduring partnership, highlighted by the top-class performer Snurge in the 1990 St Leger.

The Stirling-born jockey also rode the likes of French 1000 Guineas winner Culture Vulture and Irish St Leger victors Strategic Choice and Ibn Bey for Cole.

Cole remembered: 'He was a good horseman besides a good jockey and the two don't always go together.

'You only become champion on the right horses. He was certainly capable of being champion jockey but it didn't work for him, though he nearly got there.

'We had some wonderful times with Prince Fahd. All the big races ? Ibn Bey, who he got on particularly well with, Knights Baroness and Snurge. There were countless days.

'He was a very good jockey but he had to fend off criticism from various owners. He battled through it, he came through it and became one of our top jockeys.'

Quinn revealed he had considered quitting for some time.

'I've been thinking about it for some time now and when you start thinking that way it's time to get out,' he told At The Races.

'I thought about it last year and then when Ascot and Kempton were being newly developed I thought that would be a new challenge.

'You've got to have a challenge and I seem to have exhausted my opportunities.

'You get to a time in life where you want to move on. It's a natural progression and it's time for me to move on to pastures new.'

Although champion apprentice in 1984, he could never take the senior title despite being runner-up three times ? in 1996, 1999 and 2000.

'It was a great honour to be in a position to challenge for it. I was lucky enough to be runner-up three times to three different jockeys,' he said.

'You've got to have a lot of support to be champion jockey and I was lucky enough to get that support, but it just didn't happen.'

Quinn later moved to join the Henry Cecil yard and he partnered Love Divine to win the 2000 Oaks at Epsom for the Warren Place handler as well as Beat Hollow in the Grand Prix de Paris later that year.

Quinn rode some of the most popular horses in training, including Persian Punch, whose trainer David Elsworth said: 'Richard will be sadly missed. He has ridden plenty of winners for me over the years and he was always a wonderful jockey.

'He always got the best out of them without resorting to the whip and horses benefited from being ridden by him.

'He was also a great help with Persian Punch in his formative years.

'I feel very privileged to have had him ride for me all those years and he was a great diplomat and his integrity was unquestioned.'

As for the future, Quinn said: 'I'm going to take the next month or two off just to take stock of things and see where we are going.

'I've recently got involved in learning to show jump which is quite good and if I can get the same level of success from show jumping as I did from racing that would be a great buzz.

'I hadn't jumped a pole since last December.

'It's a new challenge and something you've got to take on board and master.'

(C) PA Sport