It’s somewhat ironic that one of the ways Luke Cartwright has been trying to get his step count up this week is by walking a few extra laps of the block with his dog.
The wunderkind apprentice is on a mission to cut his weight to ride $7 equal second favourite Regal Award at 49.5kg in Saturday’s G1 Stradbroke Handicap at Eagle Farm.
He might not see himself as one of the “big dogs” of the weighing room just yet but there’s no doubt the racing world is quickly rating him as one of the sport’s next big things.
The 20-year-old has earned a reputation in recent months as one of the country’s go-to lightweight jockeys with narrow defeats in the G1 Goodwood on Extragalactic, as well as the G1 Newmarket Handicap and Oakleigh Plate on Gallant Son.
While he admits it’s a challenge, Cartwright also sees the weight-cutting exercise as a privilege and something he’s all too happy to put his body through in the pursuit of a coveted maiden G1 win.
“It’s never easy getting a Group 1 ride as an apprentice, let alone being booked for top chances and going close in them so it’s not lost on me how fortunate I am,” Cartwright said.
“I definitely look at it as a privilege.
“I wouldn’t say I see myself up there with the big dogs (top jockeys), that hasn’t sunk in yet and I still feel like I’ve got to prove myself.
“It’s going to take time to earn a place as a household name but I’m going to keep doing the best I can and hope that one day I can be viewed as that go-to jockey for top lightweight rides in big G1 races.
“I’m very lucky that my weight is light because I am still young, albeit 49.5kg isn’t a walk in the park.
“The ideal weight I walk around at the moment is between 52.5kg and 53kg but when I really lock in and watch what I eat, I can get down to 51.5kg quite comfortably.
“Anything lower than that I’ve got to diet even harder.
“I’ve cut back to just breakfast and lunch this week and am sticking to very low-calorie meals.”
Cartwright’s approach to riding on the big stage has matured with each experience.
While his career tally of wins is yet to reach 150, he’s sought advice from those that have been there and done it at the top level, including his coach and mentor James Winks, his brother Matt Cartwright and senior riders like Luke Nolen, Ben Melham and Craig Williams.
He welcomes nerves, treats pressure as a privilege and finds it easier to compartmentalise his emotions and “put the blinkers on” to focus on the job at hand.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to ride at most of the carnivals this season,” he said.
“My second ride in a G1 was in the Oakleigh Plate and I honestly was nervous because Peter Moody has been a massive supporter of mine and I wanted to go out and do well for him because he’s done a lot for my career so far,
“In the Newmarket, the horse was a big price and I went out there with the attitude of ‘go out, do your best and see what happens’ and that’s when I thought I rode freely and very well.
“That worked for me and I’ve tried to take that approach into my other rides in big races in the Sydney and Adelaide Carnivals.
“I feel like I was able to ride the horses to run well in the races and didn’t let the pressure get to me.
“If I do feel some nerves, I’ve just tried to tell myself to embrace them.”
The Phillip Stokes-trained Regal Award has emerged as a genuine G1 contender via a series of big performances in his three-year-old season, including a placing behind subsequent G1 winner Panova in the G3 Carbine Club Stakes in the spring and victory in the G3 Fred Best Classic at Eagle Farm last month.
It was that performance that earned the youngster ballot exemption for the Stradbroke and Cartwright believes that he can win the $3 million race, especially with the right run from barrier nine.
“It’s a good opportunity to go up and ride at the Queensland Carnival, let alone be on the second favourite in one of the best handicap races in Australia,” he said.
“I really think the horse can run a bold race.
“I know the horse’s ability is there.
“I’ve just got to get the first half of the race right and I think he can take care of the rest.”
