Joe Mercer (jockey)

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Joseph Mercer, (born 25 October 1934) is a retired English thoroughbred race horse jockey . He was active as a jockey from 1947 to 1985 and rode a total of 2,810 winners, a figure exceeded only by Sir Gordon Richards, Lester Piggott and Doug Smith at the time of Mercer’s retirement, and subsequently only bettered by Pat Eddery and Willie Carson[1].

He was apprenticed to trainer Frederick Sneyd and won his first British Classic race while still an apprentice on Ambiguity in the 1953 Epsom Oaks. He was British flat racing Champion Apprentice twice, in 1952 and 1953.

He subsequently worked as stable jockey for Jack Colling, Dick Hern, Henry Cecil and Peter Walwyn. During his spell at Cecil's yard he won his only British flat racing Champion Jockey's title in 1979. The most successful horse Mercer rode during his career was Brigadier Gerard, winner of 17 of his 18 races between 1970 and 1972. He retired in November 1985 and was successful in his final ride as a jockey, winning the 1985 November Handicap on Bold Rex.

Despite winning his jockey championship with Henry Cecil, it was his relationship with the West Ilsley stable of Dick Hern for which he is most famous. Hern took over the reins at West Ilsley at the end of 1962 on the retirement of Jack Colling. Mercer had been stable jockey to Colling from the early-fifties and there was no question he would remain in place on Hern's takeover. The stable was endowed with several top owner breeders and was owned by John Jacob Astor (then known as Jakie), who with his brother Lord Astor provided most of the horse firepower.

During the early years of the Hern/Mercer partnership they had most success with a series of stayers, the best of which was probably Grey of Falloden who won several stakes races but also won the 1964 Cesarewitch Handicap with a then record weight of 9stone 6pounds. The following year the stable hit top form and won both the English and Irish St. Legers with Provoke (owned by Jakie) and Craighouse (owned by Lord Astor). Everything looked set for a wonderful 1966 when an equine virus hit the stable and the horses were just not well enough to be competitive. In 1967 there appeared to be some remission and the stable won 60 races. Mercer with this support from his own yard looked about to gain his first Jockey Championship. However having a comfortable lead mid-August he broke several vertebrae in a fall on a spare ride at Folkestone. He was sidelined for the last two and a half months of the season. 1967 did see two classic possibles for 1968 emerge in Remand and La Mome, but more important the Queen first sent horses to be trained by Dick Hern, so initiating Mercer's tenure as Royal Jockey (although for a few years Ian Balding continued to use Geoff Lewis and Lester Pigott). In addition at the end of the 1967 season the important owner-breeder Brook Holliday sent his horses to Hern ( Hern had previously been Brook's late father's (Major Lionel B Holliday) private trainer in Newmarket).

1968 promised much and Mercer scored two early victories in Classic Trials when Heathen (Holliday owned) won the Greenham Stakes and La Mome (J J Astor) won the Princess Elizabeth Stakes. Early in May Remand (J J Astor) beat Connaught in his Derby Trial, the Chester Vase, giving the Noel Murless trained colt weight, and everything seemed to be going to plan. However soon afterwards the horses appeared to lose form and Dick Hern described Remand's appearance in the paddock at Epsom as being horrible, 'his coat was standing up like a hedgehog'. Remand finished 4th in the Derby being beaten by both Sir Ivor and the Chester second, Connaught. Through the virus Mercer missed out on a great chance to win the Derby, a race he was never to win. Remand was so ill after the race he did not appear again that season and the stable went into decline. Despite shutting down completely for months at a time the virus appears not to have left the stable until the end of the 1969 season.

Despite these setbacks with his stable Mercer remained loyal to West Ilsley. He did ride for many other stables and was particularly supported by Derrick Candy, for whom he rode horses such as Parbury (Ascot Gold Cup winner), Song (Champion Sprinter) and Fair Winter, and Peter Walwyn, who was just developing the string of horses that became so powerful in the 1970s. In 1969 he formed a lucrative partnership with Candy's High Line, winning many group races. He also rode for John Sutcliffe winning on such horses as Right Tack and Jimmy Reppin. The foremost jockey of this period was Lester Piggott and he was reported to have said ' There are only two real jockeys and the other one is Joe Mercer'. When Pigott declined the ride on Petingo in order to ride Sir Ivor in the 1968 2000Guineas Mercer was booked to ride Petingo by Piggott's father-in-law Sam Armstrong. Similarly when Piggott was unavailable for Ribofilio's 2000Guineas Trial in early 1969 Mercer took the ride on this Johnson-Houghton trained colt, then favourite for the classic.

Mercer's loyalty was repaid in 1970, but the year started inauspiciously. Joe had spent the winter riding in India. When it came time to come home he couldn't bring out his money because of exchange control issues and so decided to buy jewels to export. He fell foul of the Indian authorities and ended up in jail for several weeks, so missing the first month of the flat season. He returned at the end of April but Jimmy Lindley retained the ride on the then stable star Highest Hopes in the 1000 Guineas. He'd also missed the maiden win of the Queen's first really good horse at West Ilsley, Charlton. He rode this colt to his second win in the Predominate Stakes at Goodwood in May but due to an injury this colt did not take his chance in that years Derby. Mercer may never have won the Derby but he gave a fine ride on Great Wall in Nijinsky's 1970 Derby. Great Wall had almost jumped the far rail when he'd run in his Derby Trial and it seemed unwise for Scobie Breasley, his trainer, to declare him for Epsom and expect him to get round Tattenham Corner. Mercer got the ride for the first time and the colt's odds of 80 to 1 seemed ungenerous. Mercer kept his horse at the back of the field and going into Tattenham Corner had only one horse behind him. Entering the corner he set the colt alight on the rails to such effect that he passed the whole field in about a furlong and was leading with about two furlongs to go. He was then squeezed up by the giant French colt Gyr and was just run out of third place by Stintino. He'd never have beaten Nijinsky but such was the quality of the ride that Mercer got the utmost best out of him and was perhaps unlucky not to finish third.

At this stage it was impossible to say if the Hern stable had got over the virus, but by the end of June it appeared they had and Brigadier Gerard had also appeared on the scene (his story is covered extensively elsewhere on Wikipedia). There is little doubt that the Brigadier provided an enormous boost to the stable winning his 4 races in 1970, including the now Group 1 Middle Park Stakes. In addition Highest Hopes (Holliday owned)came back strongly after her disappointing Guineas run and won the Prix Eugene Adam and the Prix Vermeille, beating horses such as Caro and Lupe in the process and proving herself top class. The stable sustained its form to end of the season with Charlton proving to be just off top-class with a 4th in the St Leger, Heavenly Thought (Lord Rotherwick owned: who purchased many of the now dead Lord Astor's horses) winning a handful of good races and Fine Blade who then did not appear that far behind the Brigadier in ability. The end of the season saw a lot of activity as the last named was removed from the stable with the rest of Brook Holliday's horses following a payment disagreement with Hern and Astor. However at the same time was the news that with the retirement from training of Gordon Richards his owner's Sir Michael Sobell and Lady Beaverbrook would be transferring their horses to Dick Hern.

Jakie Astor negotiated to sell West Ilsley to Sobell and his son-in-law Arnold Weinstock, on the understanding that both Hern and Mercer were kept in place. Before the season started most interest was on the Beaverbrook owned pair of Seaepic and Seaswan (both by Sea Bird II). Both slightly disappointed in their trial races and got no better, whilst Brigadier Gerard, without a preparative race, won what many would regard the best 2000Guineas since 1947. A Sobell/Weinstock colt, Homeric, appeared who won the Lingfield Derby Trial ridden by Mercer. Homeric was the stable's first Derby runner since 1967 and ran well but was outclassed by Mill Reef, finally finishing fifth. Later in the year he finished a good second in the St. Leger, under a powerful ride from Mercer. Brigadier Gerard finished the year the unbeaten winner of 6 races that season (5 of them Group 1 today). The new power to appear was in the two-year-old ranks, where 3 smart colts were judged good enough to run at Royal Ascot, all ridden by Mercer. Sun Prince broke his maiden in winning the Coventry Stakes and later followed up by winning the Prix Robert Papin in France and finishing third in the Middle Park. The maiden Sallust was made favourite for the Windsor Castle Stakes but slightly disappointed finishing unplaced. However he won his next race before finishing his season with a win in the Richmond Stakes at Goodwood. The third colt Rampage, having won his maiden decisively, was strongly fancied to land the Norfolk Stakes even against such good horses as Deep Diver and Philipp of Spain. Challenging at the furlong pole he stumbled and died of a heart attack.

In addition Mercer rode the Queen's first good filly at West Ilsley, Albany, to two victories. She started the season by winning Sandleford Priory Stakes at Newbury in May and having failed to stay the Epsom Oaks trip ran out a good winner of the Prix de la Psyche in France. He rode the Brigadier in all his six wins but he also rode Lady Beaverbrook's Relko colt Royalty, who set up an unbeaten run of 6 wins in the UK. He was felt to have improved enough to take his chance in Mill Reef's Arc de Triomphe triumph when he finished a creditable sixth. Another horse to feature in 1971 was Lord Rotherwick's Colum who won a handful of races including the Dee Stakes and kept running and winning in England and France through to 1973. One milestone of note in 1971 was his first winner for trainer Henry Cecil. Pert Lassie was the first leg of a Mercer treble at the inaugural Timeform Canncer Charity Day at Doncaster (Charlton was another leg of this treble).

After the successes of the previous two years it is hard to believe that 1972 surpassed them with Hern ending up Champion trainer. Brigadier Gerard was of course the main money winner, winning seven of his eight races (six of which would today be considered group one races) with Mercer in the saddle on all occasions. The Sunday prior to the Brigadier's third race of the season (at Royal Ascot) Mercer flew to France in a small plane with three others. Soon after take-off the plane crashed and luckily Mercer was thrown clear. He rushed back to the plane and pulled out the trainer Bill Marshall. He could not get the pilot out of the wreckage and gave up trying just before the plane went up in flames. Unsurprisingly Mercer was shaken up and there was talk that he would not take the ride on the Brigadier on the first day of Royal Ascot. After taking a day off Mercer declared himself fit to ride on the tuesday of Royal Ascot and he lined up on Brigadier Gerard for the Price of Wales Stakes. As it was the Brigadier gave one of his most stunning displays beating a field which included the future Irish Derby winner, Steel Pulse, effortlessly. Unlike other runs he did not pull as much as usual. However Mercer felt unwell after the race and did not ride again at the meeting or for the next week. That same tuesday Sun Prince won the St James Palace Stakes under Mercer's friend Jimmy Lindley. Sun Prince had been ridden into third place in the 2000Guineas by Mercer, running well against High Top and the eventual Derby winner Roberto.

By this stage Mercer appeared to have three of the best milers in the country to ride as apart from Sun Prince and Brigadier, Sallust had revealed himself as top class. This colt announced his return to the top with a fine display at Epsom to win the Diomed Stakes. Ridden again by Mercer in a virtual match at Goodwood he wore down the 2000Guineas winner High Top in a thrilling Sussex Stakes. In late August he returned to Goodwood to win the Goodwood Mile and by then was regarded the best 3yo miler in England. In October he finished his career with a scintillating defeat of Lyphard in Mercer's hands at Longchamp to prove himself European's top 3yo miler.

Of the older horses Royalty was injured without running but Homeric stood out even if a little frustrating. In his second race of 1972 he took on the great Mill Reef in the Coronation Cup. Mercer took over the lead from Mill Reef's pacemaker and kept beautifully balanced was driven for the line. Joined by Mill Reef at the furlong pole everyone expected the latter to stride away but Geoff Lewis had to ride his Derby winner for all he was worth. He just hung on and won by a neck from Homeric.When Mercer next rode this colt he won the Prix Maurice de Niel, whereupon Homeric was transferred to Jack Cunnington in France. In the New Year's Honours List Mercer was made an OBE.

If 1973 was quieter for Mercer after ’72 there was still plenty to get excited about. Boldboy announced his arrival on the racing scene by winning the Greenham Stakes as a maiden gelding and the Astor colt, Sharp Edge, who had won three races when ridden by Mercer as a 2yo in 1972, won him his first Irish 2000Guineas after finishing third in the 2000Guineas at Newmarket. Sharp Edge then went on to win the Prix d’Isphahan in France. A new staying 3yo emerged in the shape of Buoy, whose owner Dick Hollingsworth moved his horses to Dick Hern in 1972, although they didn’t run that season. Buoy picked up a good maiden at Newmarket before taking the Predominate Stakes Derby Trial at Goodwood. Sidestepping the Derby, he next appeared in the Irish Derby running 3rd, before going to York and winning the Great Voltigeur Stakes. Buoy rounded of his first season when narrowly beaten in the St Leger. The stable jockey also rode Hollingsworth’s other 3yo, Tepukei, to two wins, including the White Rose Stakes. Mercer rode Sun Prince to win that colt’s third consecutive Royal Ascot victory in the Queen Anne Stakes. Boldboy finished off his season with victories in the Prix de Porte Maillot, Diadem Stakes at Ascot and the Challenge Stakes at Newmarket.

Mercer had another fine year in 1974 and the season really started with an Ascot 3yo maiden double on Pop Song and Gaily; the latter fulfilling the promise of her good runs as a 2yo. (She later went on to win the Irish 1000Guineas (but ridden by Ron Hutchinson) and was then 3rd in the Irish Oaks when Mercer ridden). Newbury’s Spring meeting saw Mercer picking up three winners, including a useful win on Tom Egerton’s Final Chord, who went on to complete a hat-trick of wins at Chepstow and Royal Ascot (Britannia Stakes). In addition Appleby Fair, the stables Derby hope, finished a good second in the Greenham. This was soon followed by the highly promising victory of the maiden Bustino in the Sandown Classic Trial. The 1000Guineas saw Mercer achieve every jockey’s ambition when winning a classic for the reigning monarch. He rode the archetypal Mercer race hitting the front at the distance and trusting the speed, class or momentum of the horse kept him there. In this instance the horse was the Queen’s own bred filly Highclere. Not particularly fancied she had form very near the best when placed as a 2yo. On her 2yo debut she had gone down narrowly to Polygamy. A few weeks later she was second again to Celestial Dawn after getting a little lost in the early part of the race. Significantly in that race, receiving 4 pounds, she turned the tables on Polygamy and beat her 2 lengths. She did win her third race, a maiden at Newbury, but made such hard work of it that by the time of her lining up for 1000 she was relatively unfancied. Mercer came with his well-timed run and led going into the dip. Her main pursuer, and old adversary Polygamy, was baulked in her run and struggled up the hill to catch Highclere. Fifty yards out Polygamy looked the likely winner but Mercer kept Highclere going to the line and the two fillies flashed by the post together. After some delay Highclere was named the short-head winner. Peter Willett in his biography of Dick Hern quotes the Bloodstock Breeders Review of that year:- A dead heat might have done more justice to this epic struggle, but nothing could detract from Highclere's superb rugged performance, from Mercer's immaculate jockeyship, or from Dick Hern's magnificent training technique. Six weeks later Mercer won his second classic on her when she won the Prix de Diane at Chantilly from a top class field of fillies. Highclere didn’t win again but she did run a fine race against Dahlia when second in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Appleby Fair failed to make up into a Derby colt and his place was taken at Epsom by what the stable had been considering their St Leger colt, namely Lady Beaverbrook’s Bustino. He had won a second classic trial when comfortably winning the Lingfield Derby Trial. He lined up for the Epsom classic with what seemed like a real chance, but was horribly baulked at the top of the hill. He ran on very strongly but could only finish fourth to Snow Knight, a colt Bustino had already comfortably beaten twice in 1974. This was probably Mercer’s best chance of winning the Derby. Afterwards Bustino proved his quality by giving Sagaro a good race when second to that good colt in the Grand Prix de Paris on softer going than suited him. He then thrashed the Irish Derby winner English Prince in the Great Voltigeur Stakes by 4 lengths. His season finished at Doncaster when Mercer and Jimmy Lindley, riding the same owner’s Riboson, dominated the St Leger, with Mercer guiding Bustino to victory with his pacemaker coming in third.

Of the older horses Mercer rode Boldboy to a Lockinge Stakes victory, that gelding having already carried him to an Abernant Stakes victory. Buoy improved on his first season and as a 4yo blossomed into being a top middle distance colt with Mercer riding him in all his victories. After a second in the Jockey Club Stakes, he won the Yorkshire Cup and three weeks later followed this with the Coronation Cup at Epsom. Dahlia was odds-on to win this race but all 5 jockeys riding had instructions to come with a late run. After a ludicrous first furlong with the whole field dawdling along, Mercer took the lead but only at a moderate gallop. However going down towards Tattenham Corner he set Buoy alight such that entering the straight he was 10lengths clear. By the final furlong he was dead beat but Mercer kept him going to the line to record a one and a half length victory over Tennyson. Buoy’s final victory was in the Princess of Wales Stakes at Newmarket when he beat Jupiter Pluvius in a workmanlike fashion. As regards 2yos two Sobell youngsters came to the fore. The first, Auction Ring, was ridden by Mercer to win a Newbury maiden, before appearing a month later to follow up in the July Stakes. Unfortunately he didn’t win again in ‘74, but ran well to be placed in both the Gimcrack and the Middle Park. The second was Bold Pirate and he again won two races, in his case his first and last, the latter being the Prix Roman at Longchamp. But he also was placed in the Richmond and Champagne Stakes. There were many other 2yo winners but no others stood out in the same way for Mercer.

1975 started slowly for Mercer and at the end of April he had ridden only 5 winners, 3 of them for Peter Cundell plus a victory in the Earl of Sefton Stakes for Herbert Jones on Jimsun. Hern’s stable was running plenty of horses (including Baronet (Craven Stakes), Harmonise (Free Handicap), Light Duty (Nell Gwynn Stakes) and School Bell (Princess Elizabeth Stakes) all ridden by Mercer) but not winning any and even Boldboy was only second in his opening race. Mercer did not ride Hern’s contender for the Fred Darling (Garden Party) and instead rode the Queen’s filly Joking Apart for Ian Balding into 4th place. Bill Curling reports in his book ‘All the Queen’s Horses’ reports that Irish trainer Stuart Murless (a great fan of Mercer’s skills) was seeking Joe to ride his filly Nocturnal Spree in the season’s first classic the 1000 Guineas. However Mercer stayed with Joking Apart and rode another finely judged race. He delivered his filly at the distance just as the previous year on Highclere and leading up the Rowley Mile hill was run out of it in the final 100 yards by the winner Nocturnal Spree, finally finishing third. On such a tough course Joking Apart probably did not stay the full 8 furlongs and she was confidently expected to return to her 2yo winning form in Royal Ascot’s Jersey Stakes. Mercer had no luck in running but blamed himself for his filly’s second place. Soon after he made amends when winning the Duchess of Montrose Handicap at Newmarket, and he rounded off her season when she won the 8 furlong Strensall Stakes over the easier York course.

A feature of 1975 was the increased number of winners and rides he had for the stable of Ian Balding. The winners included the very useful 2yo filly Outer Circle, Mill Reef’s sister Memory Lane and the useful handicapper Idiot’s Delight. But after the Guineas weekend the Hern stable hit form and winners flowed for Mercer.

A feature of the season was the two very good colts owned by Dick Hollingsworth. The first, Zimbalon, got off the mark in a Chester maiden in Mercer’s hands. He then won his next two races but in these handicaps was ridden by other jockeys but was reunited with him for his fourth victory on the trot. This was Royal Ascot’s King George V Handicap and this victory rounded off a treble all on the Thursday of the meeting. The second winner was Hollingsworth’s Alcide colt Sea Anchor. This colt had got off the mark at Sandown when ridden by Mercer to win his maiden impressively. His next race, the King Edward VII Stakes, was a big step up in class but Sea Anchor was a commanding winner. The colt promised much and ran well in both the Irish Derby (4th to Grundy) and Great Voltigeur Stakes (2nd to Patch): however he didn’t win again that year.

The third winner of Mercer’s Royal Ascot treble was Lord Porchester’s hitherto unraced colt Smuggler. Despite being stoutly bred this Exbury colt romped away with the 6 furlong Chesham Stakes. This promising 2yo followed up with a comfortable victory in Newbury’s 7 furlong Donnington Castle Stakes at Newbury and was expected to complete a hat-trick in the Prix de la Salamandre. He ran unaccountably badly and was retired for the season. Hern was blessed with a number of stoutly bred 2yos. Right up with Smuggler was Lady Beaverbrook’s Riboboy who Mercer rode to win his debut, the Plantation Maiden stakes, then Goodwood’s Lanson Champagne Stakes before missing out at the third time of asking when 7th in the the Laurent Perrier Champagne Stakes at Doncaster behind Wollow. Similarly useful was Sir Michael Sobell’s colt Over to You who ridden both times by Mercer won the Yattendon Maiden at Newbury first time out and followed this up with a workmanlike victory in the Solario stakes. All useful colts they did not create the same stir that Lady Beaverbrook’s Relkino did when he won his first race, the Echinswall Maiden Stakes, most impressively, Mercer ridden. His total eclipse when last in the Washington Singer Stakes was a mystery to both Hern and Mercer.

His nickname was 'Smokin' Joe' and shortly after his retirement he was the subject of a biography by Richard Baerlein. Joe Mercer The Pictorial Biography Queen Ann Press 1987

On retiring as a jockey Joe Mercer worked initially as a jockey’s agent for Brent Thomson and Tony McGlone before accepting a job as racing manager for Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Gainsborough racing operation in 1987. He retired in January 2006.

Joe Mercer's brother, Manny Mercer, was also a jockey who was killed in a racing accident in 1959, and his niece Carolyn is married to Pat Eddery. Joe is married to Anne Carr, the daughter of an earlier Royal Jockey, Harry Carr.

[edit] British Classic wins

• 1,000 Guineas - (2) - Highclere (1974), One in a Million (1979)
• 2,000 Guineas - (1) - Brigadier Gerard (1971)
• Epsom Oaks - (1) - Ambiguity (1953)
• St Leger - (4) - Provoke (1965), Bustino (1974), Light Cavalry (1980), Cut Above (1981),

[edit] References

• Wright, Howard (1986). The Encyclopedia of Flat Racing. Robert Hale. pp. p181. ISBN 0709026390. 
• Baerlein, Richard (1987). Joe Mercer: The Pictorial Biography. Queen Ann Press. ISBN 0356120007. 
• Willett, Peter (2000). Dick Hern: The Authorised Biography. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 0340 79263 9.