Doncaster to host jockey draft for Racing League 2022

The draft is part of a new format for this year which includes new teams, team managers and prize money in excess of £2million.

Racing League starts at Doncaster on August 4 and ends at Newcastle on September 15, taking in further Thursday evening fixtures at Lingfield Park, Newcastle, Windsor and Southwell.

All six meetings will be shown live on ITV Racing alongside long term partner Sky Sports Racing.

Teams representing Ireland, London and the South, Scotland, the East, the North, Wales and the West, and Yorkshire will take part.

Each team will provide two runners per race, with horses and jockeys determined by the team managers.

A total of 123 trainers have signed up for the competition and they have all been assigned to represent either their preferred or second choice region.

The seven team managers are Kevin Blake (Ireland), Matt Chapman (London and the South), Linda Perratt (Scotland), Rupert Bell (The East), Mick Quinn (The North), Jamie Osborne (Wales and the West) and Leonna Mayor (Yorkshire).

Each team will have seven jockeys selected by the team manager via the draft.

Jockeys who have signed up for this year’s Racing League include Tom Marquand and last year’s leading rider Jack Mitchell.

Following a draw to decide the initial picking order, the team managers will select jockeys in turn to ensure a fair allocation.

Jeremy Wray, Racing League CEO, said: “We are delighted to announce team managers with such a wealth of racing knowledge and experience to represent the teams.

"They will play an important role this year starting with the jockey draft on Saturday which is something new for the sport and adds a really fun element to the competition.

"One hundred jockeys have registered and those selected will join over 120 trainers who have signed up across the seven regional teams.

"We greatly appreciate the support shown by so many horsemen and look forward to adding further new initiatives for Racing League 2022 over the coming months.”

More information can be found at www.racingleague.uk.