Top Tasmanian apprentice on cusp of switch to Maher stable

After months of speculation, Tasmania’s leading apprentice Jabez Johnstone is set to move to Victoria for an opportunity with trainer Ciaron Maher.

In the 18 months since he debuted in November 2024, Jabez has ridden 79 winners at a winning strike rate of 14 per cent. It seemed an inevitability that he would follow in the footsteps of his sister Taylor Johnstone and further his career outside Tasmania.

Jabez is set to begin a three-month loan with the Maher stable next week, though there is one important hurdle that he needs to clear.

“I can’t transfer until I have 80 winners, so I’ve got a few cracks in the next week, and hopefully at least one of them hits the post first,” Jabez said.

Jabez has had multiple trips to Victoria in the past month on a visiting licence, landing his first interstate win at Caulfield on 29 April. He is back there again this week, with a chance of landing his 80th win at Seymour on Thursday.

It’s been a rapid ascent for the 19-year-old through Tasmania’s jockey ranks.

In his first full season of riding, Jabez has an insurmountable lead for the apprentice premiership, and his 48 wins sit behind only Erica Byrne Burke (74) on the overall table. – Tasracing