But the truth is even more astounding. The youngest jockey to win the Melbourne Cup was Peter St Albans on Briseis in 1876 – and he was only 11 years old. Peter St Albans is the subject of the latest episode of the free In Black and White podcast on Australia's forgotten characters, available now.
Albans. Peter St Albans (1864-1898) is the youngest jockey ever to win the Melbourne Cup. He won in 1876 riding Briseis at the recorded age of thirteen (he was actually eleven, eight days short of his twelfth birthday).
15 year-old Ray Neville broke the track record with a race time of 3.21 minutes. The youngest jockey to ever win the Melbourne Cup was just 15 years-old. It was 1948 and it was the first time a photo finish was used in the race. Rimfire, an 80-1 outsider, beat Dark Marne, just.
Jockeys are entitled to 5% of the prize money earned and will usually also receive a small amount for booking the ride. While the race horse owners are entitled to keep the Melbourne Cup trophy, jockeys are presented with a miniature cup which is worth $10,000.
Clayton rode Azra to the winners circle at the Kentucky Derby in 1892, making him, at age fifteen, the youngest jockey to ever win the noted race. Clayton and Azra continued their winning ways, capturing the purse at the Clark Handicap and the Travers Stakes. Clayton went on to win many races through the 1890s.
Alonzo Clayton won the Kentucky Derby in 1892, and at the age of 15, he became the youngest jockey ever to win the race.
Other Requirements. Jockeys must be at least 16 years old. There is no set height or weight requirement, but the majority of jockeys do not weigh more than 125 pounds, many even less, with height (usually around 5 feet tall) or proportionate to their weight.
After the weights have been allocated, each horse owner must pay a series of entry and acceptance fees, including a $600 initial entry fee, $960 first acceptance, $1,450 second acceptance, $2,450 third acceptance, and $45,375 final acceptance on the Saturday prior to the big race.
Unsurprisingly, Hall Of Fame trainer Chris Waller, 49, and Melbourne Cup-winning jockey James McDonald are the dominant top earners in their field. Waller's horses have already earnt more than $41m prizemoney this season — meaning his 10 per cent cut is worth more than $4.1m.
MELBOURNE Cup-winning jockey Chris Munce has been sentenced to 30 months' jail in Hong Kong for taking bribes in exchange for racing tips. Munce, who won the 1998 Melbourne Cup on Jezabeel and twice won the Golden Slipper, was convicted of conspiring for an agent to accept advantages.
Which jockey has the most Melbourne Cup wins? Bobby Lewis (1902, 1915, 1919, 1927) and Harry White (1974, 1975, 1978, 1979) are tied for the most Melbourne Cup wins as a jockey with four wins apiece.
A Melbourne Cup has never been abandoned. In 1976 a storm swept through Flemington yet the race was still run with jockeys caked in mud.
Phar Lap, the most famous horse in the world of his day, won the 1930 Melbourne Cup at 11/8 odds on, the shortest-priced favourite in the history of the race.
Only three eight-year-olds have ever won the Melbourne Cup, with the most recent being Twilight Payment in 2020. But it had been a lean run for 82 years before that. Toryboy pulled it off in 1865, and Catalogue in 1938, but since then the old-timers have struggled to make an impact until 2020.
Jockey salaries typically range between $35,000 and $77,000 a year. The average hourly rate for jockeys is $25.31 per hour. Location, education, and experience impacts how much a jockey can expect to make. Jockeys make the most in Alaska, Utah, North Dakota, California, and Nevada.
Riders also get performance-related pay in the shape of a percentage of any prize-money their mounts earn. This ranges from 8.5 to nine per cent of winning prize-money over jumps, depending on the race. It is 6.9 per cent on the Flat. Under both codes they take home 3.5 per cent of placed prize-money.
How much money does the Kentucky Derby winner take home? The first-place winner will get $1.86 million, while the jockey will take home $186,000. The second-place finisher will take home $600,000, with the jockey taking home $30,000.
Horses are whipped to the finish line.
“All horses have returned safely post Melbourne Cup, and will undergo customary vet inspections,” he said. “Despite previous reporting, only Interpretation did not finish the race but stable reports to be ok.
3. Winning age. Four and five-year-old horses have won the Cup 90 times.
Most jockeys begin their training between the ages of 16 and 22. There's no maximum age limit, but the average retirement age is between 40 and 50 years old, which is when many jockeys move on to becoming trainers or agents.
They must be light, typically around a weight of 100-120 lb., and physically fit. They are typically self-employed and are paid a small fee from the horse trainer and a percentage of the horse's winnings.
Most jockeys weigh between 100 and 118 pounds and have rigorous diet and exercise regimens to achieve a desired weight. There are no height requirements to become a jockey, but on average, they measure between 4-foot-10 and 5-foot-6 to help them achieve the desired weight goals.