Zac Lloyd always destined for greatness

By Jordan Gerrans

As Queensland teenager Zac Lloyd puts the finishing touches on his Sydney apprentice title this week, his first boss in the metropolitan area has been watching on full of pride.

And, while the son of a gun’s feats may have surprised a few with how quickly he has taken the NSW racing scene by storm, Lauren Abbott saw it coming almost a year ago.

Lloyd went into Wednesday’s second last metro meeting of the season as a hot $1.22 favourite with TAB to capture the premiership over rival and close mate Dylan Gibbons, who was rated a $4 outsider.

The 19-year-old – who hails from the Gold Coast – put it to bed pretty quickly with the opening two winners of the day.

He finished the day with two winners and a three victory lead over Gibbons, who will need to ride out of his skin to upset Lloyd on Saturday.

Before transferring south to the powerful Godolphin team of James Cummings, Lloyd was indentured to Brisbane trainer Lauren Abbott.

Godolphin’s global network of racing and breeding is a far cry from the Abbott’s dozen or so gallopers she has on her books.

The son of champion hoop Jeff only spent a short period of time working under Abbott, after beginning his career as an apprentice with the Edmonds’ on the Gold Coast.

But, the emerging hoop most certainly made an impression on Abbott and her family.

A former jockey herself, Abbott was convinced Lloyd was a star in the making through his outstanding work ethic.

“I am so proud of Zac,” Abbott said.

“And, I knew he would go down and do what he has done in Sydney, he is such a natural rider.

“He is so determined and loves what he does, he lives and breathes racing. He is always thinking about his rides and how he can improve himself.”

Abbott’s stable was up in lights during the winter carnival as the trainer had her first runner in a Group 1 event with Superstorm contesting the Stradbroke Handicap.

Lloyd has not forgotten his roots despite his Sydney stardom.

He sent Abbott a message during Stradbroke week about Superstorm while he was on holidays in Greece before he returned to Australia to continue riding winners.

Godolphin’s Nacim Dilmi – who travelled the team's horses north for the recently completed carnival – is smiling that his barn can call Lloyd their stable apprentice.

“Zac has clearly settled into life in Sydney very well and he is going great as a successful apprentice,” Dilmi said.

“Hopefully by the time his claim is gone he can keep going as he is a very talented rider.

“He has picked the right stable to make his mark in Sydney with.”

Lloyd has picked up some black type in his strong season south of the border, as well, claiming the 2023 Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes.

The Abbott clan are invested in Lloyd’s journey now and keep a close eye on his progress.

“It has been great for our family as well, we usually just stick with watching Brisbane races,” Abbott said.

“But now, every Saturday we look up what Zac is riding and we watch all his rides and we get just as excited as his Mum and Dad would when he rides a winner.

“I am so happy for him and the sky is really the limit for Zac.”

Lloyd is likely to just fall short of breaking the record for most winners in a season by an apprentice in 2022-23.

He is on track to just miss out on surpassing Wayne Harris’ 89 winners in the 1980-81 campaign.

He has a strong book and is likely to come close to the milestone.

Lloyd’s prolific season has caught the attention of many of the senior Sydney jockeys with Kerrin McEvoy full of praise.

“Zac is a real talent and he has a head on his shoulders that is years above the age that he is right now,” the Melbourne Cup champion said.

“He is a great talent and he sits on a horse really well, he understands what to do within a race.

“He has taken Sydney by storm the last few weeks to months.

“He is riding winner after winner and he is getting good support from big stables. He is ahead of his time, for sure.”

Lloyd’s father Jeff was a multiple premiership-winning jockey around the globe before retiring.

Zac’s older brother Jaden battled the Brisbane apprentice riders’ premiership out with Kyle Wilson-Taylor last campaign but was forced to settle for second.