McDonald Accepts World's Best Jockey Trophy
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Photo: Hong Kong Jockey Club
James McDonald holds his World’s Best Jockey Award trophy during a presentation in Hong Kong
James McDonald, named the 2022 Longines World's Best Jockey late last month, was honored Dec. 9 at the Longines Hong Kong International Races Gala.
He was presented with an elegant Longines timepiece as well as a crystal vase by Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, chair of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities, and Cecilia Kwok, vice president of Longines Hong Kong and Macau.
The New Zealand-born jockey became the second Australian-based rider to win the Longines World's Best Jockey Award, following Hugh Bowman's victory in 2017. With a total of 142 points, McDonald beat Ryan Moore (96 points) and William Buick (78 points) to win the 2022 title by a wide margin.
"It's been an amazing year," said McDonald. "Consistency all the way through has probably been the biggest thing, getting on really good horses and having a great association with them. It's a massive honor to be named Longines World's Best Jockey, and I am extremely proud of it."
The Longines World's Best Jockey Award was established nine years ago by Swiss watch brand Longines and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities as a way to quantitatively recognize a jockey as the best among his or her global peers.