'I just hope that, even if I'm out for two and a half months, the people I was riding for are there when I come back'

Flat jockey Phil Dennis admits thoughts of returning from injury before the end of the turf season are "a write off" but hopes to be back on the all-weather in November.

He broke his right arm when unseated before a race at Newcastle and said: "I had an operation and they put a plate and four pins in it. The plate is nearly the length of my forearm, luckily the break is in the middle so it's not near any joints or anything.

"I have a full arm cast on until the beginning of October, then I'll have a smaller cast until the end of the month. Initially I was thinking I could possibly be back for the last two weeks but if I don't have my cast off until October 31 and the turf season finishes on November 11 it's a write off really.

"I usually keep my head down and kick on over the winter so I hope a few of the yards I ride for will have a few for the all-weather and I can get back on them."

Dennis suffered his injury when unshipped from Cusack on the way to the start for a 1m2f race at Newcastle earlier this month.

"We were going out on to the track and the horse sort of anticipated jumping off to the start," he said. "I came out of the chute at an awkward angle and ended up coming off and I hit my arm on the leg of the white rail. I was fairly certain straight away I'd broken my arm.

"I had to have a few easy days after the operation because of the pain, but I'm back in the gym and my personal trainer is happy enough to work around the broken arm. There is plenty of stuff I can be doing with my lower body and my left arm."

28 and out

Dennis, who raised more than £2,600 for Racing Welfare by running the London Marathon in April, had ridden 28 winners this year, making it more than 250 in total during a career which began in 2013.

Phil Dennis: completed the London Marathon and raised over £2,600

"There's never a good time because there's always racing but if it had happened a month later I wouldn't have missed this very busy week," he reflected. "Even if you're not at Ayr, you could be picking up spares at Catterick or Pontefract.

"I was injured in 2021 so my numbers were down but I rode 34 winners last year and I felt like I was building on that again this season.

"I was on 28 with a constant flow – I just hope that even if I'm out for two and a half months, the people I was riding for are there when I come back and we can try our best to get back going again."  

Dennis was speaking as his girlfriend was due to give birth to their first child imminently and he said: "The silver lining to being off is that I'll be at home for the little one – not that I'm much help with one arm!"

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