Michael Walker (jockey)
Encyclopedia
Michael Walker is New Zealand
jockey of Māori ancestry. He was born in Rotorua, New Zealand in the central districts of the North Island
, although his family later moved to Waitara. At the age of 11 Walker approached noted thoroughbred trainer Allan Sharrock, asking for work with his horses. Sharrock gave him regular work after school, before eventually indenturing him as an apprentice. He arranged a special dispensation for Walker to start riding in races at 15 instead of the usual starting age of 16.
What Sharrock saw in Walker quickly became evident to racegoers as well, for in his first year as an apprentice (the 1999-2000 racing year), Walker had an astonishing 131 wins to not only win the apprentices’ championship but the jockeys’ premiership as well (his first of three). While apprenticed to Sharrock, Walker won 653 races, most in New Zealand (a record 631 wins), but also in Australia
, Hong Kong
, Malaysia, Japan
, Singapore
and Macau
.
Still only 20 when he became a fully fledged jockey in April 2004, Walker celebrated the next day by riding five winners at the Woodville-Pahiatua Racing Club's meeting in southern Hawke's Bay. Despite not riding in New Zealand for three quarters of the season, Walker finished with 107 wins, only seven behind Matamata
jockey Leith Innes who won the 2003-04 premiership. However, he was awarded the apprentice of the year title for the season.
Wanting to further his career, Walker announced in May 2004 he was moving to Australia to live in Melbourne
, following in the footsteps of other champion New Zealand jockeys such as Midge Didham, Greg Childs, Brent Thompson, Shane Dye
and the Cassidy brothers
who made their names overseas.
Walker left with the blessing of Sharrock and the New Zealand racing fraternity. He made an immediate impression a few days after moving to Victoria
when he rode 30 to 1 shot Monde Special to win the Warrnambool Cup, and he was suddenly the darling of the Australian media. A couple of weeks later he rode Chloe With Class to win at Moonee Valley
to record his first metropolitan win, and he was the talk of the town when he rode a treble at Bendigo
on 20 May 2004 Victoria. on Lord Orb, Swift Rule and Scopari
His canny ride on Danestorm to win the Brisbane Cup
in June 2004 was hailed by the media as one of the best seen for many seasons, and there was widespread speculation that he would become one of the greatest riders in Australian racing history.
But then he went through a period of poor form and wins were few and far between. In 2005 he returned to New Zealand and became stable rider for leading Matamata trainer Mark Walker. With that deal the winning feeling returned, and the two have had spectacular success. He showed in March 2006 that he has lost none of his talent, producing a perfectly-timed ride on Pentane to win New Zealand's richest handicap, the Auckland Cup.
On 20 May 2008 Walker was seriously injured while a pig hunting in Taranaki when he fell down a 10 metre high bank. He was taken to Taranaki Base Hospital and then transferred to Auckland City Hospital with serious head injuries. He scored a win in only his second ride after his accident, at Matamata
on 4 December 2008.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
jockey of Māori ancestry. He was born in Rotorua, New Zealand in the central districts of the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
, although his family later moved to Waitara. At the age of 11 Walker approached noted thoroughbred trainer Allan Sharrock, asking for work with his horses. Sharrock gave him regular work after school, before eventually indenturing him as an apprentice. He arranged a special dispensation for Walker to start riding in races at 15 instead of the usual starting age of 16.
What Sharrock saw in Walker quickly became evident to racegoers as well, for in his first year as an apprentice (the 1999-2000 racing year), Walker had an astonishing 131 wins to not only win the apprentices’ championship but the jockeys’ premiership as well (his first of three). While apprenticed to Sharrock, Walker won 653 races, most in New Zealand (a record 631 wins), but also in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Malaysia, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
.
Still only 20 when he became a fully fledged jockey in April 2004, Walker celebrated the next day by riding five winners at the Woodville-Pahiatua Racing Club's meeting in southern Hawke's Bay. Despite not riding in New Zealand for three quarters of the season, Walker finished with 107 wins, only seven behind Matamata
Matamata
Matamata is a rural Waikato town in New Zealand with a population of around 12,000 . It is located near the base of the Kaimai Ranges, and is a thriving farming area known for Thoroughbred horse breeding and training pursuits...
jockey Leith Innes who won the 2003-04 premiership. However, he was awarded the apprentice of the year title for the season.
Wanting to further his career, Walker announced in May 2004 he was moving to Australia to live in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, following in the footsteps of other champion New Zealand jockeys such as Midge Didham, Greg Childs, Brent Thompson, Shane Dye
Shane Dye
Raymond Shane Dye, born , in the township of Matamata New Zealand and established himself as a champion apprentice jockey in New Zealand, and, moving to Australia in the late-1980s, he quickly established himself as one of the country's best riders...
and the Cassidy brothers
Jim Cassidy (jockey)
Jim Cassidy is a New Zealand jockey who famously rode Kiwi from last into the straight to win the 1983 Melbourne Cup. He won his second Melbourne Cup in 1997 aboard Might and Power whom he also rode to victory in the following year's Cox Plate.Cassidy has won the Australian Derby three times; in...
who made their names overseas.
Walker left with the blessing of Sharrock and the New Zealand racing fraternity. He made an immediate impression a few days after moving to Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
when he rode 30 to 1 shot Monde Special to win the Warrnambool Cup, and he was suddenly the darling of the Australian media. A couple of weeks later he rode Chloe With Class to win at Moonee Valley
Moonee Valley Racecourse
Moonee Valley Racecourse is a horse-racing track in Melbourne, Australia which hosts races for Thoroughbreds. Located six kilometers from the Melbourne CBD, it is the home of the Moonee Valley Racing Club...
to record his first metropolitan win, and he was the talk of the town when he rode a treble at Bendigo
Bendigo, Victoria
Bendigo is a major regional city in the state of Victoria, Australia, located very close to the geographical centre of the state and approximately north west of the state capital Melbourne. It is the second largest inland city and fourth most populous city in the state. The estimated urban...
on 20 May 2004 Victoria. on Lord Orb, Swift Rule and Scopari
His canny ride on Danestorm to win the Brisbane Cup
Brisbane Cup
The Brisbane Cup is a Group 2 Australian Thoroughbred horse race for three year olds and upwards, run under handicap conditions over a distance of 2400 metres at Eagle Farm Racecourse, Brisbane in June...
in June 2004 was hailed by the media as one of the best seen for many seasons, and there was widespread speculation that he would become one of the greatest riders in Australian racing history.
But then he went through a period of poor form and wins were few and far between. In 2005 he returned to New Zealand and became stable rider for leading Matamata trainer Mark Walker. With that deal the winning feeling returned, and the two have had spectacular success. He showed in March 2006 that he has lost none of his talent, producing a perfectly-timed ride on Pentane to win New Zealand's richest handicap, the Auckland Cup.
On 20 May 2008 Walker was seriously injured while a pig hunting in Taranaki when he fell down a 10 metre high bank. He was taken to Taranaki Base Hospital and then transferred to Auckland City Hospital with serious head injuries. He scored a win in only his second ride after his accident, at Matamata
Matamata
Matamata is a rural Waikato town in New Zealand with a population of around 12,000 . It is located near the base of the Kaimai Ranges, and is a thriving farming area known for Thoroughbred horse breeding and training pursuits...
on 4 December 2008.
Group 1 victories
- New Zealand DerbyNew Zealand DerbyThe New Zealand Derby is a set-weights Thoroughbred horserace for three-year-old, run over a distance of 2,400 metres at Ellerslie Racecourse in Auckland, New Zealand. It is held on the first Saturday in March, as the opening day of Auckland Cup Week. From 2009, it was run for a purse of $2.2...
, Military MoveMilitary MoveMilitary Move is a New Zealand thoroughbred racehorse. On March 6, 2010, he won the 134th running of the New Zealand Derby.The gelding is trained by Shaune Ritchie, who was the strapper for the hugely successful and popular 1985 Derby winner Bonecrusher. Bonecrusher was trained by Ritchie's...
, Ellerslie, 6 March 2010 - 1000 Guineas, Insouciant, Riccarton Park, 10 November 2007
- Auckland Cup, Pentane, EllerslieEllerslie, New ZealandEllerslie is a suburb of the city of Auckland, New Zealand. It is seven kilometres to the southeast of the city centre, close to State Highway 1...
, 8 March 2006 - Family Hotel WFA, Darci BrahmaDarci BrahmaDarci Brahma is a New Zealand thoroughbred colt foaled in 2002 at Pencarrow Stud near Cambridge in New Zealand. He was auctioned at the New Zealand Bloodstock Ltd Yearling Sales in January 2004 and acquired by a syndicate of ten investors for the sum of NZ$1.1 million.-2004–2005 season:Sent...
, Otaki, 25 February 2006 - 2000 Guineas, Darci Brahma, Riccarton Park, 12 November 2005
- Brisbane Cup, Danestorm, Eagle Farm, 14 June 2004.
- New Zealand Bloodstock 1000 Guineas, Taatletail, Riccarton Park, 8 November 2003.
- Waikato Draught Sprint, Tit For Taat, Te RapaTe RapaTe Rapa is a mixed light industrial, large scale retail and semi-rural suburb to the northwest of central Hamilton, New Zealand.Stretching in a long, thin north-south axis, Te Rapa is home to a large number of factories including Te Rapa Dairy Factory, one of the largest of its kind in the world...
, 8 February 2003 - Telegraph Handicap, Tit For Taat, Trentham, 25 January 2003.
- Sires’ Produce Stakes, Grout, EllerslieEllerslie, New ZealandEllerslie is a suburb of the city of Auckland, New Zealand. It is seven kilometres to the southeast of the city centre, close to State Highway 1...
, 6 April 2002. - Sires’ Produce Stakes, Grout, Awapuni, 23 March 2002
- Wellington Cup, Smiling Like, Trentham, 27 January 2001.