The Dubai Racing Club announced on its website that 37-year-old Jack Mitchell will arrive in the UAE on October 29 to ride during the new season. Mitchell will work primarily with the Simon Crisford stable while operating as a freelance jockey for other trainers. He has joined leading agent Carl Hodgson and will ride at a minimum weight of 55 kilograms. The club noted that Mitchell brings experience with both Arabian and Thoroughbred horses.
Mitchell secured his first Group 1 win aboard Saddadd in the Grosser Preis von Baden in Germany on September 6, according to a Racing Post interview. That success came in the colours of the late Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and has boosted his confidence ahead of the Dubai stint. The Racing Post described the victory as the culmination of a 20-year career that began with his first winner in 2005 at Newmarket. Mitchell told the Dubai Racing Club website the win has strengthened his standing in British racing.
“I’m excited about working for Simon; I’ve ridden for the stable for quite a while and we’ve had quite a lot of success and a good relationship, so hopefully that continues,” Mitchell said in the Dubai Racing Club announcement. “I’ll effectively be freelance, but ride for Simon when he needs me.” The jockey added that racing on dirt represents “a new challenge, but another aspect to our riding as jockeys.”
Dubai Racing Club records show Mitchell has made only two previous starts in the emirate, the latest a seventh-place finish aboard Sisfahan in the 2023 Group 2 Dubai Gold Cup. Kick The Bookies statistics place his strike rate at 15.2 percent from more than 3,000 rides since 2022, with 469 winners and prize money exceeding £6.4 million. His association with trainer Roger Varian has produced a 21.4 percent win rate across 571 rides during the same period.
The move coincides with ongoing collaboration between the Dubai Racing Club and Britain’s Jockey Club, which renewed a reciprocal sponsorship agreement covering races at Meydan and Newmarket. A Dubai Racing Club statement on the partnership emphasised that such initiatives allow racing jurisdictions to share best practices for the benefit of the global sport. Mitchell’s participation adds to the regular flow of British riders and trainers who compete in the UAE each winter.
Mitchell reached his 1,000th winner in Britain in April 2025 and claimed the Group 2 German 1,000 Guineas earlier in 2026, Wikipedia entries on his career record. He served his apprenticeship with Chris Wall before joining the Michael Jarvis yard that later became Roger Varian’s stable. The jockey has also recorded multiple Royal Ascot successes, including the 2023 Wolferton Stakes aboard Royal Champion.
