Multiple Group 1-winning Victorian jockey Daniel Moor is about to switch states and insists he is “all-in” on a permanent move to Queensland.
Moor has ridden all around the world, including Hong Kong, Singapore and Mauritius, and the hardworking jockey they call “Buckets” has won four Aussie Group 1s.
Early next week, he will hit the road and arrive in Queensland for the next chapter of his riding career which he says he has been considering for some time.
The 40-year-old, who will join the likes of fellow former Victorian jockeys Ryan Maloney, Ben Thompson, Damien Thornton, Andrew Mallyon and Nikita Beriman in the Sunshine State, is crystal clear on his priorities.
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“I am shoving all-in and I’m not coming for a holiday,” Moor told Racenet.
“I’m certainly not coming up for a party lifestyle, I’m too old for that.
“I want people to know that I’m having a crack.
“I’m under no illusions that I’m going to walk in and take over, I am willing to give it as long as it takes (to be a success in Queensland).
“I’m not going to be a fly-by-night type who gives it two weeks or a month and then goes home, that’s not me.
“I’m super keen to make it work.”
Daniel Moor is heading north. Picture: Racing Photos
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Moor intends to arrive in Queensland early next week and says he will get straight to work, turning up at trials and track work and making connections with trainers and owners.
He says he has been mulling over the move for some time.
The jockey, who has ridden more than 1100 winners, felt he needed a change because there were less opportunities in Victoria.
Moor said there were more jockeys than ever before in Victoria and the “butter was spread fairly thin”, with long and gruelling travel to regional race tracks also a factor.
Moor said the Victorian riding landscape had changed, with even the top jockeys in Melbourne often riding at synthetic race tracks in regional areas.
Advice from Melbourne Cup-winner Michael Rodd and former Victorian jockey Vlad Duric convinced him to make the move north.
Daniel Moor after scoring the 2021 Group 1 Manikato Stakes on Jonker for Queensland trainer Tony Gollan. Picture: Racing Photos
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“Every jockey who has come to Queensland from Victoria has gone up and enjoyed life and they haven’t gone home, hopefully I am one of them,” Moor said.
“I’d given it some thought for a while, the landscape in Victoria now is there are an awful lot of jockeys.
“My wife saw a change in me when I would get home and be exhausted or down, she said I had to make a shift.
“The travel and the workload hasn’t dropped in Victoria, but the rides are dropping as they are getting spread around a lot more.
“I will ride Thedoctoroflove at Moonee Valley on Saturday and then come up to Queensland after that.
“I’ve spoken to a few Queensland trainers, but I think the best way to go about it is to turn up and show my face and show that I am going to work hard.
“My family won’t come up initially, but I am hoping that is a decision that comes organically.
“I’m hoping that I get up to Queensland and do that well that it’s just a no-brainer for them to move up and we can make a new life up in Queensland.”
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Moor, who has ridden in Melbourne Cups, is a natural lightweight rider who can easily ride 54kg and get down to 51kg without much trouble.
One of his four Aussie Group 1s came for top Queensland trainer Tony Gollan when he scored the 2021 Manikato Stakes on Jonker.