ROBERT Thompson rode more winners than any other jockey in Australian racing history. Across every state and over almost half-a-century, he saluted a total of 4447 times.
His legacy will now live on at the region’s top track, with Newcastle’s refurbished jockey rooms being named in honour of the retired Hunter hoop. Newcastle Jockey Club’s chief executive officer Duane Dowell said it was “very appropriate” for the upgraded facility to be known as the “Robert Thompson Jockey’s Rooms”.
Thompson, who hails from Cessnock, started in the saddle as a 14-year-old and called time in 2021. He registered seven group 1 victories and claimed his hometown Jungle Juice Cup on 11 occasions.
The acknowledgment towards Thompson’s storied career was officially unveiled on Tuesday as part of the latest Newcastle And Hunter Racing Hall Of Fame induction. There were eight new entries, spread evenly across four separate categories, added to the list in 2025. Billy Lappin and Mervyn Maynard were the jockeys, Jim Johnstone and Betty Shepherd the trainers, Razor Sharp and Angst the horses while the associates were George Ryder and the Mitchell brothers – Arthur and Harry.
“My fellow committee members, Greg Radley, Ray Thomas, Gary Harley, and Sam North were unanimous in their selections. Each inductee has made a remarkable contribution to our racing industry,” Dowell, also chairman of the selection committee, said.
Lappin hailed from Charlestown and was a champion apprentice jockey who died in a race fall at Randwick aged just 18. Maynard, an Indigenous rider, learned his trade at Newcastle and twice won the club’s premiership before embarking on a 46-year career across Australia and overseas.
Ryder, formally based in Cessnock, was a businessman, horse owner and long-time racing administrator linked to multiple farms, the formation of the Golden Slipper and with a group 1 named in his honour while the Mitchell family connection to Scone’s Yarraman Stud dates back almost six decades.
The Newcastle And Hunter Racing Hall Of Fame, formed in 2017 and with inductions made biannually, already features the likes of jockey Thompson, trainer Max Lees, horse Luskin Star and associate Doctor Bill Howey.
Meanwhile, the Everest-bound Private Harry resumed with a comfortable trial win at Gosford last week and Newcastle trainer Kris Lees has both Barazin and Inver Park nominated for Big Dance qualifier the Murwillumbah Cup (1500 metres) on Thursday.