Champion jockey Oisin Murphy handed fine and driving ban after crashing car while drunk

Champion jockey Oisin Murphy was fined £70,000 and banned from driving for 20 months after admitting a drink driving offence on Thursday. The four-time British champion Flat rider appeared at Reading magistrates court on Thursday where he faced one charge.

Murphy, 29, was involved in a serious road traffic collision in Hermitage, West Berkshire in April this year when a grey Mercedes A Class car left the road and crashed into a tree.

When he stood in the dock at Reading he pleaded guilty to having 66 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath. A second charge of failing to provide a breath test at the roadside was withdrawn.

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Outlining the details of the case Richard Adkins, the agent for the Crown Prosecution Service, said Murphy had been the driver of the Mercedes which was involved in a single vehicle road accident which struck a tree.

He said the police arrived just before midnight to find Murphy speaking on his mobile phone and a female friend, who was not named in court, was lying on the ground. The court heard she was the owner of the vehicle.

At the scene Murphy admitted he had been the driver of the car and appeared to be intoxicated. He was requested to provide a breath test but no sample was taken due to “a misunderstanding between him and the officers”, Adkins said, and Murphy was arrested.

Both Murphy and his passenger were taken to hospital and after he was discharged he was taken to a police station where he took a breath test.

Adkins said this procedure was carried out at 7am which recorded a result of 66 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath.

“This was just shy of twice the legal alcohol limit nearly seven hours after the last act of driving,” said Adkins.

The court heard that during a police interview Murphy was “unable to assist in terms of why the accident occurred and didn’t have any memory of the event”.

Murphy’s lawyer Alex di Francesco said the jockey accepted he had made a grave error, was deeply remorseful and apologised. The accident had left “no lasting consequences” on his passenger.

He said Murphy was aware of the “devastating consequences” of driving over the limit.

“He is a relatively young man of good character,” he said. “This is a case which can be dealt with by financial penalty.”

Di Francesco was pressed by the presiding district judge Sam Goozee for details of Murphy’s earnings.

The lawyer told him Murphy had net winnings of £250,000 in the last year and drew a salary of £1,250 a week.

Judge Goozee said: "You are lucky that neither you, your passenger, or the public were injured by your actions. I do balance that with the remorse you have shown for your actions.

“You have also recognised that you have let the public down by virtue of your actions, and your colleagues in the racing world.”

He fined Murphy £70,000, ordered him to pay a £2,000 surcharge plus £85 costs, to be paid by June 31.

His licence was disqualified for 20 months but will get a 20 week reduction if he completes a drink driving rehabilitation scheme by August 2026. Murphy left the court without making comment.

Murphy is due to fly to New York to ride at Saratoga on Friday night and return Saturday when he is booked for the 2,000 Guineas winner Ruling Court in the Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown. The BHA said he was free to take those mounts and continue riding.

A statement said: “Everyone at the BHA, like all involved in our sport, is disappointed today having learned the details of the offence to which Oisin Murphy has pleaded guilty. This is a very serious offence that, in the course of being committed, saw Mr Murphy jeopardise not only his own safety but that of his passenger and all other people travelling on the roads at the same time as him that night.

“His conduct fell a long way short of the standard we expect of all licensed individuals, in whom we place trust that they will represent our sport to the best of their abilities, upholding our collective reputation and ensuring racing is a safe place for all.

“In light of Mr Murphy’s guilty plea and the information revealed in court today, we will be working on the addition of new conditions on his licence that may be referred to the Licensing Committee for their consideration. As has been the case in recent weeks, Mr Murphy remains free to take up his riding engagements.

“We will issue an update on this process in due course and will be making no further comment at this time.”