Haydock double puts Oisin Murphy on brink of third successive champion jockey title

OISIN MURPHY stands on the brink of becoming champion jockey for a third successive year after a final race win at Haydock.

The success on Whitehaven completed a double following the earlier win of Magisterial and moved him to the 153-winner mark.

It leaves Murphy three clear of the pursuing William Buick who had closed the gap in the title race to just one with the win of Chairmanoftheboard in an earlier race.

This is the closest title race since 2011 when Malton’s Paul Hanagan led by four winners from Silvestre de Sousa – an advantage that was never threatened at Doncaster.

The difference now is the championship ends three weeks earlier on Qipco Champions Day at Ascot – Britain’s richest raceday.

Murphy has four rides – and it would be fitting if his first mount, Dragon Symbol, wins the Qipco British Champions Sprint Stakes.

This is the luckless horse that was actually first past post in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot under Murphy before being demoted following a stewards’ inquiry.

Dragon Symbol has since been placed in four further sprints and victory would be made all the more remarkable by the fat that Murphy was fortunate to emerge unscathed following a fall at Chelmsford on Thursday. The favourite appears to be Art Power as Great Habton trainer Tim Easterby looks for further big race success in what is a career-best campaign.

Meanwhile Buick, a one-time Northern Racing College graduate, has five rides with the highlight likely to be Adayar in the Qipco Champion Stakes – the feature race.

The Derby and King George victor lines up less than two weeks after a courageous fourth place finish in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

Yet the final irony is Buick, who is chasing his first title, opted to ride Hurricane Lane and not Adayar at Epsom when it won the Derby for Adam Kirby.