John Tapp Racing

Early in life Lindsay Hatch was totally focused on becoming a jockey and was able to make that happen, albeit for a very short time. Apprenticed to his father Geoff, young Lindsay lasted only 3 years before his weight got out of control but it’s fair to say he left his mark with more than 80 wins, including 30 in Brisbane and a Gold Coast apprentices premiership. He later learned the training craf...

Racing Victoria has always placed enormous importance on the education and welfare of the state’s junior jockeys. No stone is left unturned in developing the talents of promising young riders, at the same time closely monitoring any potential mental health issues that may arise. The governing body chose carefully a few years ago in selecting Darren Gauci and Alf Matthews to head up their jockey co...

Many punters have noted the absence of Luke Currie from the Melbourne riding ranks in recent weeks. The popular jockey has simply taken advantage of the off-season period to attend to a nagging knee issue he’s been dealing with for quite some time.  He’s making great progress and hopes to return to the saddle in just a few weeks. Luke Currie has had a presence among Victoria’s top bracket of rider...

A remarkable riding career came to an end at Doomben in July 2019 when Jeff Lloyd donned the silks for the final time. Imagine how many sets of colours this man had worn in a career embracing 41 years, 5500 winners, 94 Gr 1’s and countless stakes races. He was 50 years old when he arrived in Brisbane in  2012 but soon demonstrated the skills that had built his image as a world class jockey. Not ev...

It’s doubtful that Queensland has ever produced a more versatile racing all rounder than Rockhampton based Tony McMahon who was forced to reduce his workload significantly following a freak stable accident in 2022. After 50 frantically busy years working in multiple roles within the racing industry, the 72 year old walked away from several commitments including his favourite pursuit of horse train...

Our regular podcast has catered principally for racing fans since its introduction seven years ago. This week we break the mould by presenting an interview with Royce Simmons OAM who reached dizzy heights in his footballing career as both player and coach. From the time of his Alzheimer’s diagnosis in 2022, Royce hasn’t left a stone unturned in keeping himself fit enough to pursue every avenue in...

Donna was at Albury airport waiting to board a Melbourne bound flight when we tracked her down last Friday. She found herself a quiet corner and was happy to join us on the podcast. The experienced horsewoman was literally thrust into the training business when her husband Brett died suddenly in 2008. Before commencing her solo career Donna opted for a year with the huge Darley operation, and has...

Anthony Cavallo’s year long absence from the western districts riding ranks continues to arouse the curiosity of his many friends and TAB followers. A veteran of almost forty years in the saddle, Cavallo sustained multiple injuries in what appeared to be a simple fall at Wellington. Two fractured vertebrae in the upper back required a spinal fusion and the insertion of a metal plate. That plate is...

The way James McDonald is reeling off Gr 1 wins it seems certain he’ll need only two more full seasons to seriously threaten Damien Oliver’s record of 129 Australian wins at the elite level. Until that happens we can continue to appreciate the distinguished record “Ollie” left behind when he retired from race riding seventeen months ago. Those 129 Gr 1’s were the highlights of a magnificent career...

Luke Marlow’s love affair with thoroughbreds can be traced to the days when he had photos of the champion mare Makybe Diva  prominently displayed on his bedroom walls. Around this time his parents were managing the Merlo Downs Stud at Minden about 63 kms west of Brisbane. Luke’s life changed forever a couple of years later when Jeff Marlow took out a trainer’s licence and quickly enlisted his son...

Golf has long been the most popular pastime of professional jockeys. Some have attained a very high level in the sport, others are happy to “puddle” around once or twice a week with a few mates. Highly respected southern districts jockey Richard Bensley has come up with a recreation far removed from conventional sports. Thanks to the influence of his late father Bryson, Richard is a master exponen...

Brilliant apprentice Mollie Fitzgerald was shattered recently when a sudden bout of appendicitis interrupted her march towards a possible NSW jockey’s premiership win in just her second season of race riding. The twenty two year old daughter of former successful jockey Malcolm Fitzgerald, had ridden 123 winners in just twenty one months leading up to her recent setback. Only a handful of wins sepa...

For many decades the NSW Riverina has produced an endless list of outstanding trainers and jockeys. One of the latest recruits to hit the headlines on the big stage is young jockey Tyler Schiller who reeled off a couple of Gr 1 wins during the recent Championships. One man to leave his mark as a jockey and trainer is Dave Heywood who retired in 2020 after six decades in the racing industry. As a j...

When Michael Beattie became Deputy Chairman of Stewards for the Hunter And North Western Racing Association in 1985 he wasn’t made welcome by all of his new colleagues. In fact one senior member of staff was clearly unhappy about the appointment of the bloke he called  “the brash young steward from Grafton”. Beattie’s lifelong tendency to call a spade a spade has earned him a reputation as a tough...

Racing has seen few more distinguished careers than the one enjoyed by Ron Quinton over six rewarding decades. His stellar riding career spanned almost thirty years. His successful training career is now in its thirty second year and counting. Ron’s an inductee of the Australian Racing Hall Of Fame and the recipient of a Medal Of The Order Of Australia, fitting acknowledgements of his contribution...

There’s no busier jockey in northern NSW than Wauchope based Luke Rolls. The expat Kiwi drives huge mileage to honour commitments at northern rivers and tablelands tracks. Born and reared in Fielding on New Zealand’s North Island, Luke was initially apprenticed to Bruce Marsh at Foxton. He transferred to a Victorian stable in the early 2000’s and his subsequent journey has produced an impressive t...

We’re approaching the fifth anniversary of one of the most unique race days ever seen in Sydney. Drastic covid protocols saw only jockeys, trainers and a handful of stable staff in attendance to watch the running of the Derby, Doncaster, T.J Smith and Sires Produce Stakes on day 1 of The Championships.. The day belonged to that pizza eating, beer swilling, arrogant mare Nettoyer who came from near...

The famous Hoysted racing dynasty had its origins in Victoria early in the twentieth century and has produced generations of successful horse trainers. The most celebrated was Fred Hoysted who won 17 Melbourne premierships from his Mentone base. Like most of his predecessors 33 year old Matthew Hoysted began his journey in Wangaratta, before working under the wing of some top Melbourne horsemen. I...

When Rod Quinn won on Merlin Mustang at Rosehill in 2013 he had no idea it was fated to be his last ride in a race. When he and wife Alannah departed on a European holiday, Rod fully intended to resume riding on returning to Australia. Why that didn’t happen is a story in itself. Rod takes us through a stellar career that began at Nyngan in the far west of NSW destined to take him to the top of hi...

We’ve had a number of syndication company founders on the podcast over recent years, all sharing stories about their childhood passion for racing. James Moss is no different. His interest in the sport was  ignited by trips to the track with his father and grandfather. Further motivated by the deeds of champion mare Sunline, James was completely “hooked” by the time he reached early twenties. Famil...

Zac Lloyd’s day of days at Rosehill on February 22nd was soured by a five meeting suspension incurred on the third of his five winners on the programme. This remarkable quintet came just nine months after his previous best, a four win haul at Randwick. The Zac Lloyd story is well documented. He’s the son of former champion jockey Jeff Lloyd who today acts as his son’s manager and adviser. Zac’s ca...

Allan Kehoe has had some handy horses through his hands in twelve years as a professional trainer, but until recently a horse with that elusive X factor had never walked into his Wyong stables. Fate played a hand just over a year ago when a colt he was chasing at the Inglis Classic Sale was suddenly withdrawn by the vendor. That vendor knew of Allan’s interest and called him unexpectedly a few day...

We’ve had several emails lately enquiring about Jim Byrne’s future plans. He was missing in action for the latter half of 2024 and has been relatively quiet since returning to the saddle. We haven’t had Jim on the podcast for close to five years. The time is right to catch up with one of Queensland’s best ever jockeys. Jim begins by talking about Michael Cahill’s recent farewell meeting on the Gol...

Angela Jones has ridden another two winners since our podcast was recorded on Friday Feb 7th. She won the last at Doomben on Master Showman for Stuart Kendrick and scored on Wanganeen for Tony Gollan at Caloundra on Sunday. That makes it 65 in the state and 38 in town for the current season. Angela’s backstory makes for an interesting podcast. She grew up on a sprawling cattle farm 300 kms south w...

At the time this podcast was recorded on Thursday January 30th, Jamie Mott had ridden 71 Victorian winners for the current season, with only Blake Shinn ahead of him on the premiership ladder. A few hours later he booted home two winners at the Pakenham twilight meeting taking him to 73. On Friday evening he was at the Moonee Valley night meeting where after three early placings he won the final r...