The Jockey Club has announced that Simon Philip will join its Board of Stewards on January 1st 2026, while also electing eight new Ordinary Members and five new Honorary Members.
Simon was elected a Member of The Jockey Club in 2022 and is currently a Racecourse Committee Member at Epsom Downs, as well as Chair of Epsom Training Grounds Management Board.
Now retired, Simon was a partner at Deloitte who spent his career working in professional services. As a racehorse owner, Simon was a prominent member of the The Knot Again Partnership, which owned the four-time Grade One winner and Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up Might Bite.
A lifelong cricket fan, Simon is also a Vice President of Kent County Cricket Club, having previously served as its Chair between 2017 and 2024.
The Jockey Club’s Board of Stewards is its non-executive Board of Directors, with the use of the title Steward reflecting The Jockey Club’s unique heritage.
The Jockey Club Board of Stewards now consists of:
Baroness Harding, Senior Steward
The Lord Grimthorpe, Deputy Senior Steward
Richard Fuller, Steward
Simon Philip, Steward
William Rucker, Steward
William Sporborg, Steward
Tim Syder, Steward
Sam Waley-Cohen, Steward
Lady Carolyn Warren, Steward
William Wyatt, Steward
The Jockey Club also announces that eight new Ordinary Members and three new Honorary Members have been elected in 2025.
The eight new Ordinary Members are:
Fred Barrelet
A veterinary surgeon, Fred was previously a senior partner of Rossdales Veterinary Group in Newmarket. He is a highly valued member of the National Stud Board and consults internationally on veterinary issues.
Pepita Harris
Pepita is currently the Chair of Carlisle Racecourse. A keen racing enthusiast, she has a share in a horse trained by Nick Alexander. Previously she spent 20 years in Hong Kong and Singapore where she worked for an international property company and was a member of The Hong Kong Jockey Club.
Andy Hornby
Andy has a wealth of commercial experience. Having started his business career at ASDA, Andy was CEO of HBOS and Alliance Boots before entering the racing world when he was appointed CEO of Coral in 2011 and becoming COO of Ladbrokes Coral after the merger between the two bookmakers in 2016. He left the bookmaking industry to take over as CEO of The Restaurant Group in 2019, a role he still holds today. Andy became Chair of Epsom Downs Racecourse Committee in 2025 and is also Chair of Jockey Club Catering - The Jockey Club’s joint venture with Compass Group. He has Flat horses in training with Clive Cox and Rod Millman.
Max McNeill
Max is the founder of Ultima Business Solutions, a leading IT business solutions partner which has also been the sponsor of the Festival Trophy Handicap Chase at The Cheltenham Festival since 2015. A keen Jump racing enthusiast and owner, he has horses in training in the UK and Ireland and has enjoyed success with the likes of Mille Chief, Walkon, Grumeti and No Drama This End, amongst others. Max is also a Racecourse Committee Member at Cheltenham, as well as a passionate supporter of Blackburn Rovers Football Club.
Mary Plowden
Mary grew up in rural Shropshire and has been around horses as long as she can remember, catching the racing bug in her teens. She studied Real Estate at university and has ridden out for various yards in the UK, the US and Australia, as well as working on stud farms and bid spotting for Goffs UK. Mary spent time working in Residential Property Sales in the Cotswolds before joining the Racing Post Bloodstock commercial team at the beginning of 2022. She is a highly regarded Racecourse Committee Member at Kempton Park and is passionate about encouraging the next generation of racing fans.
Rt Hon Sir Hugh Robertson
Hugh Robertson is a Member of The International Olympic Committee, an Independent Non Executive at Deloitte and Chair of Birmingham International Airport. He was previously the Vice Chair and Chair of The British Olympic Association from 2015 to 2025, Chair of Camelot from 2018 to 2023, the Minister of State at The Foreign Office from 2013 to 2015 and the Minister for Sport and the Olympics from 2010 to 2013. He previously worked at Schroders and served as an Officer in The Life Guards, seeing active service in Northern Ireland, Cyprus, the First Gulf War and Bosnia. He passed the Mounted Officers’ Equitation Course in 1993 and is a Racecourse Committee Member at Epsom Downs.
Sam Sangster
A son of the late outstanding owner-breeder Robert Sangster, Sam has made a significant contribution to the industry encouraging young and old into racehorse ownership. He is a successful and talented horseman and a contributor at board level to The National Stud. In 2025, he enjoyed significant success on the racecourse as joint-owner of Group One Prix Jacques Le Marois winner Diego Velazquez.
Richard Thompson
Richard is a Director of Cheveley Park Stud, which was established in its current form by his parents David and Patricia. As the leading British-owned racing and breeding operation, Cheveley Park Stud has enjoyed success under both codes with the likes of 1000 Guineas heroine Russian Rhythm and Cheltenham Gold Cup victor A Plus Tard among its huge number of big-race winners. Richard is also a former Chair of Windsor Racecourse and was also Chair of Queens Park Rangers Football Club and a director at Leeds United Football Club. He and his family are major donors to a range of charitable causes, with more than £100 million awarded in the last 15 years.
The five new Honorary Members are:
HH Prince Fahad bin Khalid al Saud, HH Prince Saud bin Khalid al Saud and HH Prince Ahmad bin Khalid al Saud
HH Prince Fahad bin Khalid al Saud, HH Prince Saud bin Khalid al Saud and HH Prince Ahmad bin Khalid al Saud are the three sons of the late HH Prince Khalid bin Abdullah Al Saud (1937–2021), one of the world’s leading owner-breeders in the 20th and early 21st Century. The three brothers are passionate about preserving the heritage and success of their father’s Juddmonte operation which has studs in the UK, Ireland and the US. Throughout its history Juddmonte has been responsible for some of the greatest thoroughbreds to have ever graced the turf, including Dancing Brave, Enable and Frankel, who currently heads Juddmonte’s stallion roster at Banstead Manor Stud at Cheveley on the outskirts of Newmarket.
Teruya Yoshida and Katsumi Yoshida
Teruya Yoshida and Katsumi Yoshida have developed the Shadai and Northern Farm operations in Japan, established by their late father Zenya, into one of the true powerhouses in world horseracing. The success of Japanese racing on the world stage is due largely to the Yoshida Family and its leading stallions, Sunday Silence and his son Deep Impact.
A full list of Jockey Club Members and Honorary Members can be found online at: https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/about-us/our-structure/members/
Baroness Dido Harding, Senior Steward of The Jockey Club, said: “I am delighted to welcome Simon Philip to the Board of Stewards at The Jockey Club. As a true racing and sports enthusiast who enjoyed an impressive career in business, I know that he will prove a very valuable addition.
“Our newly elected Members and Honorary Members have excelled in a wide range of roles and sectors, both in the UK and globally. We are extremely fortunate to be able to call upon their experience and diverse expertise and perspectives to help the Club in its purpose to support the long-term success and sustainability of British racing.”
