Brilliant Barry ends glorious riding career

NICKY HENDERSON and Tony Mccoy led the tributes to Barry Geraghty following his retirement from the saddle.

The 40-year-old has brought the curtain down on a glittering riding career that spanned more than two decades and included 43 winners at the Cheltenham Festival and a Grand National victory aboard Monty’s Pass in 2003. Following the enforced retirement of Mick Fitzgerald in 2008, Geraghty was appointed stable jockey to Henderson, and the pair formed a formidable partnership winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup with Bobs Worth and the Queen Mother Champion Chase with Sprinter Sacre in 2013.

Five years ago, he took over from Mccoy as retained rider to leading owner JP Mcmanus - and together with Henderson, the trio landed a whole host of major prizes, including two of the last three Champion Hurdles with Buveur D’air and Epatante.

Henderson, top inset, said: “It’s a sad day, but at the same time I’m sure Barry knew in his own mind that the time had come.

“It’s a pity we didn’t get to finish the season. But having said that, to ride five winners at Cheltenham in March means he’s really gone out in a blaze of glory, which is great.

“He’s been a great friend, and we’ve had some wonderful times together. Even before Mick had to retire, he rode plenty of winners for us, and when Mick did have to call it a day, Barry was the obvious man to go to.

“I had good young lads like Nico (de Boinville) and Jerry Mcgrath, but they probably weren’t quite ready to take over the whole thing, and I felt I needed to add some experience to the squad.

“Barry was great every day, but there’s no doubt he was particularly good on the big days.

He obviously rode a lot of JP’S horses for us in recent years, and you throw in Sprinter Sacre and Bobs Worth - it’s been amazing.

“Bobs Worth was particularly special, because I actually bought him from

Barry and he ended up winning at three consecutive Cheltenham

Festivals. He was a proper legend of a horse

- rather like Barry, who has been a legend of a jockey.”

Mccoy had plenty of battles with Geraghty in the saddle before his retirement in

2015 - and has nothing but praise for his former weighing-room colleague and friend.

Mccoy, centre, said: “We can all have opinions on jockeys, but you only need to take a look at his CV to see his class as a rider.

“I’d imagine he might have liked to go out at Fairyhouse, his local track, or Punchestown, but Cheltenham was where he showed his true class - and for him to go out there is the perfect ending really.

“He was a brilliant jockey and a really good lad. The racing public has been very lucky to watch him for the last 20-odd years - jockeys like Barry don’t come around too often.”

Along with Sprinter Sacre, perhaps the best horse Geraghty rode was the remarkable Moscow Flyer, who he guided to win the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham on two occasions.

Moscow Flyer’s trainer Jessica Harrington, bottom inset, said: “I spoke to Barry this morning, and we reminisced about all the things we did and didn’t do. He thanked me for everything I did for him - but as I said to him, he did a lot for me as well.

“He’s been a great jockey and he’s a great person. I was lucky I came across him at the same time Moscow Flyer was around, and they formed a great partnership.

“He was always a man for the big occasion, but at the same time he’d give it everything for a small winner somewhere too. “Moscow Flyer winning his second Champion Chase obviously sticks out, as well as his win in the Tingle Creek - that was an incredible day.”