Halis Karataş Passes The 7000 Wins Mark

The champion jockey, who started his career with a winner on June 20, 1987, succeeded to win 7,000 races with a 27% winning rate on the tracks on 25659 mounts.

Leaving behind the 35th year of his career, Karataş has set many records and important achievements during this time. He grabbed his first “Champion Jockey” title in 1991, with 135 wins, and held that title for 12 consecutive years and has 22 “Champion Jockey” titles in total.

The jockey, who has many records and awards in Turkey, achieved another very important success by winning all 7 races held on July 20, 2012. Another jockey who did this in the world was Frankie Dettori on September 28, 1996. There is an invisible bond between two jockeys in the same generation who achieved significant success in their profession in different countries. After his 7,000 wins, Dettori conveyed his congratulations to Halis Karataş through BOSPHORSE, and Karataş also conveyed his thanks through our Magazine. The two legends, who gave sincere images every time they met, came together for the last time in this year’s Turkish Derby.

Although the name Halis Karataş is associated with many champion horses, undoubtedly Bold Pilot is the most ascribed among them. Halis Karataş also says that they form a different bond with this Thoroughbred, “like two friends.” The relationship between these two is much more than a horse and jockey relationship, it is like two heroes in a dream. One of the heroes of the dream is Begüm Atman Karataş, who left us at a very young age. Those who watched the movie “Champion” will understand what we mean better, and for those who haven’t, watching this movie should be written at the top of the to-do list. More than 2 and a half million people watched the movie, which remained in first place in the list of the most watched movies for a long time. Adapted from real life and having an important place in the movie, Bold Pilot’s finishing time of 2:216.22 in the 1996 Turkish Derby stands as the unbreakable record of this race. The International Bosphorus Stakes, where he beat Galtee with Bold Pilot, is also remembered like yesterday.

The champion jockey, who won the Turkish Derby 6 times in total, with Popular Demand (2005), Hızel Beyi (2006), Anatoly (2011), Matador Yaşar (2012) and Blaze To Win (2014), apart from Bold Pilot (1996), has over 1000 Group race victories in his career. More should be done than hats off to a jockey who has won so many races in his career.

While the champion jockey had difficulty in expressing his feelings while cutting the cake we had prepared as BOSPHORSE, he said, “I am happy and proud that we have come to these days with my friend (Sadettin Boyraz), who we started together and have been riding horses for years. I would like to thank both my colleagues and the race fans for their interest.”