Fyffe secures services of Hughes and reveals ambitions

Brian Hughes will ride the majority of Jimmy Fyffe’s jumps string this winter as his new No1 jockey.

The three-time former champion has shaken hands on an agreement that signals the Scottish owner’s intent to compete at the top table more regularly.

Fyffe, who runs a drinks business on Tayside and is also a director of Dundee United, has invested heavily in fresh talent in an attempt to up the quality of his jumpers.

He now has horses with 11 different trainers, including four in Ireland with Gavin Cromwell and two with Dan Skelton, who’s joined his roster for the first time.  

Fyffe previously employed Callum Bewley as retained jockey before switching to a policy of using the best available.

But he revealed the chance to secure the services of Hughes, who has ridden many of Fyffe's winners for Donald McCain, was too good to turn down. 

Fyffe said: “Brian will be my retained jockey this season. It was actually Brian who approached me about it.

“He’s a three-time champion jockey who’s won plenty of races for me before, so I know how good he is to work with. It was a no-brainer really.

“One thing Brian is exceptional at is giving a really clear explanation about what happened in a race.

“He’s always got an eye on the future and will often get off a horse and recommend a certain race, at a certain track, to aim for next.

“He’s very switched on like that. As an owner, that’s the kind of feedback you need.”

Fyffe has enjoyed notable successes with Cooper’s Cross in Doncaster’s Great Yorkshire Chase, Kelso Grade Two winner Jet To Vegas and also Florida Dreams, who landed a Grade Two bumper at Aintree's Grand National festival in 2023.

But he has yet to make the impact he craves on the biggest stages - including at Cheltenham, where a first winner of any kind continues to elude him.

Haddex Des Obeaux, who hasn’t been seen since finishing third to Jonbon in the 2023 Tingle Creek Chase for Gary Moore, has been purchased for 105,000gns and sent to McCain.

Jet To Vegas will make his chase debut later this month, while he has been joined at Lucinda Russell and Michael Scudamore’s Perthshire powerhouse by unbeaten Irish pointer Jet Of Stars, who was secured for £230,000 in the spring.

Nicky Richards, Adrian Keatley, Patrick Neville, Sandy Thomson, Iain Jardine, Stuart Coltherd and Jennie Candlish are the other trainers Fyffe has horses with.

He added: “I love to go to the big meetings, but as an owner you want to be going there with horses running in your own colours. 

“I’ve not had the horses for that - and I’m sick of it. So I’ve gone out and tried to buy better quality horses for this season. How much have I spent? Too much!

“When I first got into racing, it was a hobby. But given how prize money has gone at the lower levels, you have to run it more like a business now.

“All my trainers have been told to target the good prize-money races.”