Hailing from the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, Andrea Atzeni, who previously rode in Hong Kong during the 2014/15 season, is a Group 1-winning rider in seven different countries. He has amassed more than 1,200 wins. Commencing his riding career in Italy, Atzeni has enjoyed his greatest success so far in Great Britain with Roger Varian’s stable as the trainer’s first elect, a position he assumed in 2013. A string of top-level successes quickly followed the 34-year-old’s move to Newmarket, including four consecutive Futurity Trophy wins aboard Kingston Hill (2013), Elm Park (2014), Marcel (2015) and Rivet (2016). Atzeni rode Stradivarius to successive wins in the Goodwood Cup (2017 & 2018). He also formed a strong partnership with trainer Luca Cumani early on in his career in Great Britain, partnering Postponed – Great Britain’s highest-rated horse in 2016 – to win four Group 1 races in Great Britain and the United Arab Emirates. Atzeni has two British Classic wins, landing the St. Leger Stakes twice with Kingston Hill (2014) and Simple Verse (2015). During the 2023/24 Hong Kong season, he won twice at Group 3 level – with Taj Dragon in the Chinese Club Challenge Cup and Nimble Nimbus in the Centenary Vase. He enjoyed a fruitful 2024/25 Hong Kong season, collecting his 100th win in Hong Kong with Blazing Wukong, and finished third in the jockeys’ championship behind Zac Purton and Hugh Bowman with 58 wins.
