Toshio Uchida

Born in Saitama in October 1961, 'Mr Pink' is the son of a motorcycle racer. One of his father's friends was involved in NAR, and that was the way Uchida-san was introduced to the sport. He graduated from jockey school in 1978, making his NAR debut on 7th October that year, and claimed his first win on the following day.

He started his career at the Takasaki track, but that closed. Then the Ashikaga facility went the same way, and the Utsunomiya track closed in 2005. After that, he decided to become a gypsy - moving from place to place on short-term contracts until he settled at Urawa for the 2013 season. From 21,945 NAR rides so far, he's had no less than 9070 top three finishes, of which 3389 were wins - one of those being the 'Coventry Friendship Race', of course.

It should be noted that he's also won three JRA wins from 47 appearances, and has claimed numerous victories abroad, including a G1 win in Macau. During his time in Korea, when he had almost 700 rides, he clocked up a win rate of 19.9%. After his stint across the water, he was considered the most popular Japanese man in Korea due to his amiable demeanour, and it's easy to see why if you're lucky enough to spend even a few minutes with the guy - a more pleasant chap would be hard to find anywhere. In the saddle, too, nothing changes - he's one of the only jockeys I can remember that bows to the horse before getting a leg-up from the groom, and never pushes his mount beyond 99.9%.

He was awarded the NAR 'Best Jockey' title at Utsunomiya ten times, and was also Leading Jockey in Korea. In private, he has been in an Indies band, where he used the stage name of Richard Pink. I've actually seen a picture of him with a guitar painted in the same colours as his distinctive silks, but have yet to hear him sing!