James McDonald has some good news and bad news for Hong Kong racing fans, and the Jockey Club suitors courting him to come to the jurisdiction full time.
The good news? He says it is inevitable that he will be based full time in Hong Kong. The bad news? Just not yet.
In a revealing and wide-ranging interview on New Zealand’s Trackside racing channel’s news programme, The Guerin Report, hosted by racing journalist Michael Guerin, ‘J-Mac’ was asked point-blank whether he wanted to live and ride in Hong Kong full time.
“It’s definitely an option, it will happen one day,” McDonald said, before adding “… but at the moment, with realistic goals here and things I want to achieve, I want to get them done first if I can.”
One of those goals, in McDonald’s primary base of Australia, is chasing Damien Oliver’s record of 129 Group 1 wins.
McDonald has 98 top-level wins in Australia but has been heavily recruited by Jockey Club officials. The rider has earned a reputation as a big-race jockey in Hong Kong over many years; most recently aboard 2023-24 Horse of the year Romantic Warrior.
“There’s no doubt I will end up riding there eventually,” he said. “It’s a great jurisdiction, the racing is so competitive, the prize money is unbelievable. It’s a great atmosphere to compete in, whether you’re at Happy Valley or on a Sunday at Sha Tin—the atmosphere is phenomenal.”
In the second part of the two-part interview, McDonald heaps praise on fellow globetrotting jockey Ryan Moore, who he believes is the best jockey in the world.
“It’s amazing how he does it, from England to Ireland, to France and America, to Australia. He’s ridden there (Australia) probably twice a year, wins a Melbourne Cup and a Cox Plate, flies down for a Golden Slipper and wins that as well.”
