Michael Lee, 20/12/2021
What was meant to be a desert holiday has turned into a dream working holiday for jockey Benny Woodworth.
After riding for one season in Mauritius, the Malaysian hoop had just secured a new licence at Kranji for 2022, but a chance meeting in Dubai meant his fans will now have to wait until April to see him back in action at Kranji.
Woodworth was vacationing with his Mauritian wife and two sons in the Middle-East hub en route to Singapore, but it wasn’t just a tan and a few camel rides that he picked up, but also the plum job with world-renowned South African trainer Mike de Kock.
The 48-year-old globetrotting jockey could be forgiven for thinking it was a mirage, not that it was something he had planned.
Luck had not quite been in the equation at an ordinary Mauritius stint where things just didn’t pan out the way he would have liked. He hurt his elbow at the first race meeting in the horror race fall that cost the life of former Kranji jockey Nooresh Juglall, and was on the sidelines until September before going on to ride six winners in 11 meetings.
But for a change, luck certainly didn’t desert him at his first couple of days in the sheikhdom of skyscrapers in the United Arab Emirates.
“I was on a tour of Meydan at my second day in Dubai, and met Mike de Kock’s assistant-trainer Declan Cronin there,” said Woodworth.
“He asked me if I’d be interested to ride for Mike until the Dubai World Cup meeting at the end of March. I was like ‘that is the dream job of any jockey, how can I turn this down?’
“I informed the Singapore Turf Club first, of course, and I have to thank them for giving me a three-month leave.
“I applied for a licence and a work permit and was lucky to get both.
“I’ve already started riding trackwork for Mike. I’ve never ridden in Dubai before and Meydan is a great track, I can’t wait for my first day at the races there.”
Already a multiple Group 1-winning trainer back home, and from his worldwide tally of around 3,500 winners, the South African champion trainer was one of the first to pioneer the setting up of a satellite operation in the oil-rich country.
Supported by the likes of Team Valor or Bernard Kantor (owner of the likes of Palace Line, and recently, Pennywise in Singapore) and nowadays, mainly Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum, he has hit the target four times in the rich Dubai World Cup races – Ipi Tombe (2003) and Right Approach (2004) in the Dubai Duty Free (now known as Dubai Turf), Sun Classique in the Dubai Sheema Classic (2008) and Shea Shea in the Al Quoz Sprint (2013).
As would be expected of his high standards, de Kock has always teamed up with top jockeys like Kevin Shea, Weichong Marwing or Christophe Soumillon at his desert raids, but Woodworth doesn’t seem fazed by the high expectations resting on his shoulders, especially at the upcoming US$30.5 million Dubai World Cup night on March 26.
“Mike has 12 horses in work, and they all feel fit and nice. It’s a great honour to be riding for the great Mike de Kock on one of the biggest racing stages in the world,” said Woodworth who can add Dubai as the 12th country he will ride in, on top of Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, England, Australia, Macau, South Korea, Japan, Cyprus, China and Qatar.
“I’ll try my best and hopefully, we enjoy some success together.”
