Ireland-based jockey Colin Keane will face 14 days of quarantine after reuniting with Siskin at Glorious Goodwood – but the red-hot rider says that's a sacrifice he was willing to make in a heartbeat.
Dual Classic winner Keane piloted Ger Lyons' cracking colt to a brilliant victory in the Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas last month, toppling Vatican City at the Curragh to extend Siskin's flawless record to five wins from five.
Lyons confirmed that Goodwood's Qatar Sussex Stakes will be next for the 3-year-old, as the trainer targets another Group One glory following Even So's triumph in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks this weekend.
The coronavirus restrictions mean Keane will face two weeks of quarantine upon returning to Ireland after Goodwood, however, severely jeopardizing his chances of usurping Shane Foley's lead at the summit of the Leading Jockeys table.
“It's definitely worth sacrificing the two weeks,” Keane told Nick Luck's Daily Podcast. “There are not too many like Siskin that I've got to sit on before, so when a horse like that comes around you want to be on him everyday – especially on the big days.
“Hopefully there'll be other championships in the future, but there might not be another Siskin for a very long time, so I want to take every opportunity.
“He's been great since the Guineas, he looks a million dollars and we couldn't be happier with him. We'll keep him wrapped up and it's about getting him there in one piece.”
The Keane-Lyons axis banged in their second Classic winner of the season on Saturday as Even So followed in Siskin's glittering footsteps in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks.
The fabulous filly reeled in Jessica Harrington's Cayenne Pepper – with Foley on board – as Keane delivered a red-hot performance of his own to make things spicy in the Leading Jockeys table.
The 25-year-old has now ridden 28 winners this season, one behind Wayne Lordan but still 11 triumphs adrift of Foley's table-topping 39 efforts.
Foley and Harrington remain without a Classic victory this campaign, however, with Aidan O'Brien landing the other two races with wins for Peaceful and Santiago in the Tattersalls Irish 1000 Guineas and Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby.
Keane, the 2014 Champion Apprentice, is a man for the big occasion and while both his Classic triumphs have come behind closed doors, it's done little to diminish his joy.
“It was a brilliant weekend – it's still surreal, and one we'll remember for a while I think,” he added.
“Anytime I've ridden a Group One winner there's been nobody there, so it's strange but we're not going to complain.
“There was a lot of pressure for Siskin, but not so much on the filly, so we were just hoping for black type. To go and do what she did was surreal, she was very good.”
The post ‘Worth Sacrificing’: Ireland-Based Jockey Colin Keane Faces Quarantine By Partnering Siskin At Goodwood appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
