Peter Scudamore: unquenchable thirst for winners rewrote the jockeys' manual

One record within Peter Scudamore's collection defines him more accurately than the rest put together. Never mind those seven consecutive riding titles; set aside that new career benchmark of 1,692 winners in Britain and Ireland. The true measure of the man was his stranglehold on the 1988-89 season.

Jonjo O'Neill's record haul of 149 winners had stood for more than a decade until Scudamore smashed it to a pulp. He rode 221 winners at a remarkable strike-rate of 33 per cent. His nearest pursuer, Mark Dwyer, rode just 92.

That quantum leap in numbers reflected Scudamore's singular approach to race-riding. It reflected an astonishing professionalism that ran through his career, allowing him to dominate by insatiable hunger and force of will. His template was adopted by Richard Dunwoody, his successor as champion jockey, and after Dunwoody by Tony McCoy. It would become the definitive jump jockey's manual.