Makin Retires from Riding, Will Train

Phillip Makin | Racing Post

Jockey Phillip Makin has announced his retirement from the saddle through injury and is going straight into the training ranks. Makin broke a bone in his neck and hurt his back in a nasty fall from Eyecatcher (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) at Redcar in August, and has decided this was the right time to hang up his saddle and concentrate on his next career as a trainer at his North Yorkshire base.

“I had it at the back of my mind a little bit and it just accelerated with that fall,” Makin told Sky Sports Racing. “The recovery was slow. It was on the back-burner a little bit before I got that fall. It was just a natural follow on that we got cracking really.”

The former jockey could be represented by his first runner as early as next week. He added, “I got my licence 10 days ago. I didn't have anything immediately to run, but hopefully by the end of the month we'll have something. I made my first entry for Wednesday next week. There's a horse at Southwell that might go there and there might be a horse at Doncaster for their first meeting. There's about 23 [horses] at the minute. We've got space for quite a few more. It will keep us busy enough.”

Makin rode the first of more than 900 winners in 2002 and his best every tally in a year was 111 in 2009. His big-race successes included the G2 Gimcrack S. on Blaine (GB) (Avonbridge {GB}) in 2012 and the G2 Sky Bet York S. on Tullius (Ire) (Le Vie Dei Colori {GB}) in 2015.

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