M Barzalona (born 3 August 1991 in

Avignon Avignon (, , ; or , ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the Communes of France, commune had a ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) is a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

-born

Thoroughbred horse racing Thoroughbred racing is a sport and Horse industry, industry involving the Horse racing, racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter know ...

jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...

, who is the retained jockey in France for Godolphin.

Career

Barzalona was born into a racing family, his grandfather is Christian Barzalona, a trainer based in

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

, and his uncle Armand Barzalona, a former flat and jumps jockey. Barzalona began his career with

André Fabre André Fabre (; born 9 December 1945) is a French thoroughbred horse racing horse trainer, trainer. The son of a diplomat, Fabre graduated from university with a law degree but then decided to pursue a career in thoroughbred horse racing. He beg ...

as an apprentice in 2009 and rode out his claim within the year with 72 wins. His first victory for the Godolphin team came at the Dubai Gold Cup in Meydan, before winning his first Group 1 with Wavering in the Prix Saint-Alary at ParisLongchamp. In June 2011, Barzalona rode Pour Moi to win the 2011 Epsom Derby at

Epsom Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...

, performing a remarkable in-race move from last place to 1st over the final straight, winning by a head. As he approached the finish line, Barzalona stood up in the stirrups and celebrated. This caused much comment and photos in the media following the race. Less than 2 weeks later, Barzalona rode a good race to take 16-1 underdog, Opinion Poll to 2nd place in the Gold Cup at

Ascot Ascot, Ascott or Askot may refer to: Places Australia * Ascot, Queensland, suburb of Brisbane * Ascot, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a locality * Ascot Park, South Australia, suburb of Adelaide * Ascot (Ballarat), town near Ballarat in Victoria ...

behind odds-on favourite and defending champion,

Fame and Glory Fame usually refers to the state of notability or celebrity. Fame may also refer to: Books * '' Fame: an art project'', a 2013 book and series of paintings by Robert Priseman * ''Fame'' (novel) (German ''Ruhm''), a 2009 novel by Daniel Kehlmann ...

. Barzalona also won the 2011 running of the

Premio Roma The Premio Roma is a Group 2 flat horse race in Italy open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Capannelle over a distance 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles), and it is scheduled to take place each year in November. History The e ...

in Italy on Zazou. In March 2012, Barzalona was announced as a Godolphin jockey alongside Silvestre de Sousa. Later that month he comfortably won the $10 million Dubai World Cup, riding 20-1 outsider Monterosso from the Godolphin stable. It was Godolphin's first Dubai World Cup win since 2006. He won his second English classic aboard Encke in the 2012

St Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over ...

. In 2014, Barzalona returned to France and became Godolphin's lead jockey in the country. This came after he was demoted from the main jockey with trainer Charlie Appleby for Godolphin. He has since added a number of Group 1 wins there, riding horses such as Victor Ludorum, Castle Lady, Ultra and Kitesurf. In 2021 Barzalona was crowned Champion Jockey in France with 192 wins. Outside France, Barzalona has achieved successes at Group 1 level. He won the 2017

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

with Talismanic, and has four victories in the

Al Maktoum Challenge, Round 3 The Al Maktoum Challenge, is a horse race run over a distance of 1,900 metres (approximately one and three-sixteenth miles) on dirt in late January at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. The event was known as Al Maktoum Challenge, Round 3 and was the thir ...

at Meydan. He returned to the Great Britain to take victory in the 2019

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it i ...

with Earthlight.

Major wins

Poule d'Essai des Poulains Molof (Ampas, Poule, Powle-Ma) is a poorly documented Papuan languages, Papuan language spoken by about 200 people in :id:Molof, Senggi, Keerom, Molof village, Senggi District, Keerom Regency. Classification Stephen Wurm, Wurm (1975) placed it a ...

- (2) - '' Victor Ludorum (2020), Marhaba Ya Sanafi (2023)'' *

Poule d'Essai des Pouliches The Poule d'Essai des Pouliches is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile) ...

- (2) - '' Castle Lady (2019), Zarigana (2025)'' *

Prix de l'Opéra The Prix de l'Opéra is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1¼ miles) each ...

- (1) - ''Place Du Carrousel (2022)'' *

Prix Ganay The Prix Ganay is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged four years or older. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furlongs) at L ...

- (1) - ''

Cloth of Stars Cloth of Stars (foaled 6 April 2013) is an Irish-bred, French-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. He showed good ability as a two-year-old in 2015, winning the Prix des Chênes and being placed in both the Prix de Condé and the Critérium de Sain ...

(2017)'' *

Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère The Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère, formerly the Grand Critérium, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of ...

- (4) - ''Ultra (2015), Victor Ludorum (2019), Sealiway (2020), Belbek (2022)'' *

Prix Jean Prat The Prix Jean Prat is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,400 metres (about 7 furlongs), and it is s ...

- (2) - ''Havana Gold (2013), Territories (2015)'' *

Prix Saint-Alary The Prix Saint-Alary is a Group 2 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Longchamp in Paris over a distance of 2,000 metres (about 1 miles), and take ...

- (1) - ''Wavering (2011)'' *

Prix Vermeille The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles) ...

- (1) - ''Kitesurf (2018)'' *

Prix Morny The Prix Morny is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to two-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,200 metres (about 6 furlongs), and it is schedule ...

- (1) - ''Earthlight (2019)'' *

Prix Maurice de Gheest The Prix Maurice de Gheest is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Deauville over a distance of 1,300 metres (about 6½ furlongs), and it is s ...

- (1) - ''Marianafoot (2021)'' *

Prix du Moulin de Longchamp The Prix du Moulin de Longchamp is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 1,600 metres (about 1 mile), and it is s ...

- (1) - ''Tribalist (2024)'' ----

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Champion Stakes The Champion Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile 1 furlong a ...

- (1) - '' Sealiway (2021)'' *

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, more commonly known as the Derby and sometimes referred to as the Epsom Derby, is a Group races, Group 1 flat Horse racing, horse race in England open to three-year-old Colt (horse), colts and Filly, fillies. It is run at Ep ...

- (1) - '' Pour Moi (2011)'' *

Fillies' Mile The Fillies' Mile is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old fillies. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is sc ...

- (1) - ''Certify (2012)'' *

St. Leger The St Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over ...

- (1) - '' Encke (2012)'' *

- (1) - ''Earthlight (2019)'' ----

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

- (1) - ''Zazou (2011)'' ----

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

Dubai World Cup The Dubai World Cup (Arabic: كأس دبي العالمي) is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually since 1996 and contested at the Meydan Racecourse in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The race is operate ...

- (1) - ''Monterosso (2012)'' *

- (4) - ''Long River (2017), Capezzano (2019), Matterhorn (2020), Hypothetical (2022)'' ----

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

- (1) - ''Talismanic (2017)'' ----

References

External links

Racing Post Profile
1991 births Living people French jockeys {{France-horseracing-bio-stub