Rossa Ryan rides his 200th winner of 2023 as he completes Lingfield double
Rossa Ryan partnered Ninth Life to victory at Lingfield before reaching the 200-winner milestone on Sunset In Paris; "It's a big weight off my shoulders really, because I haven't planned any of this. When I passed 150 I never thought about getting 200"
Wednesday 20 December 2023 16:56, UK
Rossa Ryan rode his 200th winner of the year at Lingfield on Wednesday where he partnered a double.
Ryan, who celebrated the first Group One success of his career in the July Cup on Shaquille, joined an elite list in doing so with Sir Gordon Richards, Pat Eddery, Frankie Dettori and Kieren Fallon among those to have previously achieved the feat.
The 23-year-old won the Find More Big Deals At BetUK Handicap on Ninth Life (11/4 favourite) for Dr Richard Newland and Jamie Insole and then quickly followed up on John Jenkins' Sunset In Paris (3/1) in the Always Gamble Responsibly With BetUK Handicap.
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"I put a lot of pressure on myself really, even though a couple of little things haven't worked. We've had plenty of winners the last couple of weeks but there were a couple I thought maybe if I'd done something different, it may have been a different result," Ryan told Sky Sports Racing.
"It's a big weight off my shoulders really, because I haven't planned any of this. It was only when we came back from the November break I was 16 away from it and while my agent didn't let on, he just hinted and some of the older jockeys told me to go for it and they've been a great help.
"Ed Dunlop said to me the other day to come back after Christmas and make sure I get it done and that I might not be in this position again. Luckily we got it done before Christmas, so I'm very pleased.
"It's been a season of dreams really. The season is very long, especially because I started in January, but when you are popping in winners it helps.
"I'm still pinching myself I've hit 200, finished third in the championship and rode a Group One winner. I don't know how to sum up in one word what to say, I can only thank all my trainers and owners and my agent - and my girlfriend who puts up with all my mess!
"When I passed 150 I never thought about getting 200, so I'm speechless really."
