Both riders re waiting for the first career black type win.
Mitchell, the daughter of four-time New Zealand Trotting Cup winning driver Todd Mitchell, has had an outstanding season but Hannan has also really arrived on the national scene and possibly could have the apprentice title sewn up but for breaking her wrist in a fall that kept her out of the saddle for 13 weeks.
“I am still having a few issues with it and went to see the doctor on Monday and we have two options,” says Hannan. “It might need surgery, but if so, we will put that off until the end of the season so I can chase the premiership.
“So I might just get a cortisone injection to get me through until then. It isn’t that bad, I’m just thinking more long term.
“I set myself a goal of trying to win the apprentice title and I still really want it, so I’m going after it.
“But Tayla isn’t making it very easy for me because she’s riding so well.”
Mitchell rides next at the Cambridge meeting tomorrow so today’s synthetic track meeting at Riccarton provides Hannan with the perfect opportunity to close the margin on a track she enjoys.
“I like riding on the Riccarton synthetic. I find you can ride your own race there more than maybe at Cambridge; I don’t know why.”
The fact Hannan even thinks like that confirms how far she has come.
She arrived on the scene clearly able to ride and seemingly fearless but with little understanding of the nuances of race riding. But she has absorbed an enormous amount of information and now understands her role enormously better than she did at the start of this season.
“I have been really lucky having so many good people around me, from Shaun [Phelan, boss], Aidan [Rodley, manager] and all the other jockeys and the trainers so I have been learning heaps.”
Hannan says Rocastano [R6, No 2] is her best chance today, the 5-year-old having already won three times on the Riccarton synthetic, including his last two under Hannan.
“He doesn’t go up in grade and there’s no reason he can’t win. I have a good book overall but also think Tap ‘n’ Go [R5, No 3] is suited to his race and is an each way chance.”
Young guns
New Zealand’s leading young jockeys this season
1 Tayla Mitchell, 65 wins.
2 Kelsey Hannan, 62 wins.
3 Joe Kamaruddin, 55 wins.
4= Wiremu Pinn (currently riding in Australia) and Lily Sutherland, 48 wins.