Conditional jockey

A conditional jockey is an apprentice National Hunt racing jockey in Great Britain or Ireland under the age of 26 who has not won more than seventy-five races under rules or had not won that many races within the last six months.^[1]

A conditional jockey is entitled to a reduction (an allowance) in the weight carried by his horse, dependent on the type of race, which varies according to the number of races the jockey has won. A jockey who has ridden fewer than twenty winners can claim an allowance of seven pounds, one who has ridden between twenty and forty winners can claim a five pound allowance and one who has ridden less than seventy-five winners can claim a three pound allowance. This allowance cannot be claimed when riding in races restricted to conditional jockeys and in some other instances, for example the Grand National.^[2]

The British conditional jockeys championship runs throughout the National Hunt season and the title is won by the conditional jockey riding the most winners. The 2015-16 competition runs from 26 April 2015 to 23 April. The 2014-15 championship was won by Sean Bowen, who rode 51 winners during the season, seven ahead of Nico de Boinville.^[3]

References

1. "Rider Manual". British Horseracing Authority.
2. "The Rules of Racing - 141. Weight allowances in steeple chases, hurdle races and national hunt flat races open to professional riders". British Horseracing Authority. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
3. Lysaght, Cornelius. "AP McCoy: Sean Bowen may have star quality to succeed legend". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 November 2015.