Jack Mitchell Ends Long Wait With Group One Glory
From Wild Pitch to Jack Mitchell
Jack Mitchell landed his first Group One success on Sunday when Saddadd got up close home in the Gr.1 Grosser Preis von Baden at Baden-Baden.
The Gr.1 Grosser Preis von Baden was run over 2,400 metres at Iffezheim Racecourse, where Saddadd, a 4YO colt trained by Roger Varian, beat Parachutiste by half a length with Giavellotto back in fourth. Owned by Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum and bred by Godolphin, the winner is by Pinatubo, giving the sire his own first Group One winner as a stallion.
"It's nice to finish in the first position," Mitchell said. "It's a great job by all of the team at Roger's. I'm speechless, I can't believe we've done it."
Mitchell's association with Varian's Newmarket stable stretches back 12 years, having stayed on when Varian took over the yard previously run by Michael Jarvis. Varian paid tribute to both his jockey and his owner after the Baden-Baden success.
"He's very talented and I'm delighted for Sheikh Ahmed, who has been a great supporter of the stable over the years, and the team at home and Jack of course, who has been very much part of our team of jockeys over the last 12 years and for him to ride his first Group One for us is a nice part of the story as well," Varian said.
A Near Miss in Hamburg
Mitchell won the Gr.2 German 1,000 Guineas on Timeforshowcasing, trained by Charlie Johnston, on 31 May 2026, and he had come desperately close to a first Group One breakthrough there before. Riding Torquator Tasso in the 2020 German Derby at Hamburg, Mitchell was beaten half a length into second by In Swoop.
His travels have not stopped at Germany. Rides have also taken him to Italy, France, the Czech Republic and Slovakia over the years, building a body of experience away from the Newmarket base that Varian credited as part of what shaped him into the rider who delivered on Saddadd.
From Amateur Rider to Gr.1 Jockey
Mitchell's route to Baden-Baden began a long way from the top level. Born in Epsom into a racing family — his father Philip Mitchell trained and was a five-times champion amateur jockey, while his grandfather Cyril Mitchell rode over jumps before turning to training — Mitchell rode his first winner on Wild Pitch, trained by his father, in an amateur riders' race at Newmarket on 22 July 2005.
His first Group success followed five years later aboard Premio Loco, trained by Chris Wall, in the Criterion Stakes at Newmarket on 26 June 2010. A six-month ban in 2011 after a positive test for cocaine set his career back further still, and he managed only four winners in each of the following two seasons before recovering to ride 14 winners in 2014.
The rebuild continued steadily rather than spectacularly. Mitchell rode his first Royal Ascot winner in 2023 aboard Royal Champion, trained by Varian, in the Wolferton Stakes, and passed 1,000 winners in Britain in April 2025 on Tawasol at Brighton for trainers Simon and Ed Crisford. He has now ridden 22 Group or Listed victories in Britain.
"We'll get him home and make sure that he's OK and I'll have a chat with the owner Sheikh Ahmed and we'll make a plan," Varian said. "It doesn't need to be decided today, we'll enjoy today and we're really delighted with the result."
The colt's form figures in 2026 have been building toward Sunday's result. Saddadd won the Gr.3 Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown in April, a conditions race over ten furlongs that marked his first outing of the season. He then finished third behind Almaqam in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at Newmarket, a Group One test that brought him up against some of the best middle-distance performers in training. His next start came in the Coral-Eclipse back at Sandown, where he finished fourth, beaten eight lengths, before travelling to Germany for Sunday's Grosser Preis von Baden. Each of those runs added to a season that had already taken in a Listed win, a Group One placing and a run at Group One level in Britain, before the step up to victory at the highest level in Baden-Baden brought the campaign to its conclusion for now, with connections to decide on the colt's next target in the weeks ahead.