Do you think that becoming a jockey is easy? – Think again! Apart from having to sacrifice a lot since you are on a strict diet and tight training schedule, jockeys also need to worry about their mental health.
Let’s say that you are a jockey, and you are preparing to get on a horse running at 40 mph. You then scroll through your phone just to find out that horse racing is one of the deadliest sports with 1.3 fatalities per 1000 starts. Do you think that you’ll be pushing the same knowing this fact?
Well, if you have a soft mind, then the answer is probably not. That’s why jockeys are working on improving their focus and staying calm. After all, that is the only way to make sure you are in sync with the horse and that you have a chance to win the race.
But how do jockeys stay calm in such an adrenaline-rushing scenario? Well, the answer lies in meditation. Here is how meditation helps jockeys stay sharp and prepared at all times.
Silencing the Noise
Jockeys are not like other athletes who put on some upbeat hip-hop songs just to pump them up full of dopamine and to make sure that they are motivated. In fact, most elite jockeys prefer a calm and quiet environment before the race.
Jockeys like Hollie Doyle, like to meditate before a race. She has been saying that she has a routine of slow breathing for 10 minutes before the race with her eyes closed. This helps her stay focused on the race, avoid any unnecessary mind games, and focus on the riding part.
They are not concerned about their odds, and most of them don’t even look at the news before the event. So, things like who are the winner of the Kentucky Derby are not in their interest before the event just because it can only mess with their minds during the race.
Of course, it is more difficult for big events like the Kentucky Derby, where you have more than 150,000 fans roaring, the odds are shifting, and there are 12 of the fastest horses in the world running beside you.
Keeping a clear head and making sure you are calm is the recipe for success. So, if you are in the spotlight at a big event, try deep inhales just to calm yourself down. Four seconds in six seconds out. This can drop the heart rate from 90 to 60 beats per minute and make sure you relax.
After all, there is a reason why all elite riders choose to meditate or spend at least 10-15 minutes before a race for mindful sharpness.
Laser Focus at Full Gallop
Once the bell rings, the focus turns razor-edged—jockeys like Irad Ortiz Jr. ride a 1,200-pound beast at 38 miles per hour, threading gaps half a stride wide in a pack of 20.
It’s mental chess at breakneck speed: spot a rival drifting left, feel a horse’s stride shorten at the half-mile pole, decide in a blink—push now or wait?
Meditation trains this—hours of visualizing a 1.25-mile course, every turn burned into memory, so instinct kicks in when dirt flies. In 2025, riders describe it as “flow”—a bubble where the crowd’s roar fades, and it’s just them, the horse, and the next move, a honed clarity that snags a photo finish by a nose.
Reading the Race
Jockeys don’t just steer—they listen, and meditation amps that bond. A horse’s mood—tail swishing, head tossing—telegraphs its game plan, and riders like Ryan Moore sink into a near-telepathic read.
Pre-race, they might sit stall-side, five minutes of quiet breathing, syncing with a colt’s rhythm—pulse steady at 40 beats per minute, spiking to 200 mid-race. In the saddle, it’s split-second calls: a tense flank means ease off, and a relaxed snort says gun it.
In today’s chaotic world of horse racing, this mindfulness is key riders who meditate spot a horse fading a stride before it shows, shaving a half-second off a 1:58 run, turning intuition into a winning edge.
Mental Muscle Memory
After the dust settles, the focus flips to film—jockeys hunker down with laptops, dissecting a 2:00 race frame-by-frame.
For example, Frankie Dettori, at the age of 54 is still razor-sharp, replaying a stakes run: did that filly pull right at the turn? Was the 5-1 rival pacing too hard at 1:10? Meditation fuels this—10 minutes post-race, eyes shut, replaying the feel of the ride in their head before the screen confirms it.
Basically, it’s a ritual: riders log mental notes—rival habits, track quirks—building a playbook so tight they know a horse’s next twitch before it happens. It’s not just watching; it’s reliving, etching every furlong into a steel-trap mind.
Staying Cool in the Clutch
Racing’s a pressure keg—a Belmont Stakes stretch, 1.5 miles, a Triple Crown on the line, and 100,000 screams shaking the stands.
Jockeys like Mike Smith leans on meditation to freeze the panic—five minutes pre-gate, visualizing a clean break, a steady 2:24 pace, drowning the what-ifs (a stumble, a clip).
In the clutch—say, a 40-mph duel, neck-and-neck—focus keeps them icy: no flinch, just a flick of the reins to surge. This mental armor’s clutch—riders who meditate shrug off a bad beat (fourth by a length) and remount for the next, their calm a weapon that turns a late fade into a last-gasp win.
So, if you want to become an elite horse rider, make sure you work on your mental health, and motivation is the best way to achieve mental clarity in a high-tense situation.
