Jason Hart quickens clear without a horse to win jockeys' race at Ayr

Favourite Jason Hart turned out to be a 'cert' in an amusing jockeys' race at the Ladbrokes Ayr Gold Cup Festival. Based on the viral edition in Peru earlier this year, ten riders went into the starting stalls without a horse in sight, wearing their usual racing gear.

And as ITV Racing's Rishi Persad pressed the button to allow the gates to crash back, Hart was quickly away to lead the field and his weighing room colleagues were always playing catch-up.

Callum Rodriguez tried his best in second to make inroads on the leader, as Paul Mulrennan and Rowan Scott battled it out third. But it was a one-man race and ITV Racing commentator Richard Holies said: "Jason Hart is away and clear, a handicap good thing! Jason Hart the favourite coming away..."

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Ladbrokes donated £200 to the Injured Jockeys Fund for every runner over the 110 yards and spokesman Alex Apati said: "We wanted to do something big to announce our return to Scotland's most iconic and valuable flat festival, and what better way to make a bang than with a jockey sprint race on Gold Cup day.

"We are chuffed so many names got involved for such a great cause. And huge congratulations to Jason Hart who walks away with the first Ladbrokes Jockey Sprint Trophy and bragging rights... for at least a year."

Hart, 30, is a front runner when he does have a horse to accompany him, sitting seventh in the jockeys' table this UK flat season. On September 7, the sportsman from the Scottish Borders town of Hawick celebrated his 1,000th career success. It came aboard the William Haggas-trained Rhapsody in the Sky Bet Build A Bet Fillies' Handicap at York, a race where Hart took the 2022 Group One Nunthorpe Stakes on Highfield Princess.

The most recent achievement also saw him record his fastest century of winners in a year and his successes number 66 for the current championship.

Hart's birthplace has produced its its fair share of international rugby players, but he fell in love with racing after his father gave him a pony named Paddy.

"I like both sports," he told Mirror Racing previously. "Donald Whillans' (trainer) son Callum got me on the scales one day and said I should focus on the Flat.

"I sat down in his living room at the age of 15 and filled out an application form for a job at Mark Johnston's."

Hart has gone on to work for several other trainers, including John Quinn who had so much success with Highfield Princess before she sadly died following an accident in her stable last year.

Jockey and trainer combined for third with Eye Of Dubai in the Ladbrokes Ayr Silver Cup, a consolation for the feature on the card. Richard Spencer sent out the winner Candy (8-1) and went on to land a huge double in the Gold Cup with Run Boy Run (12-1).