Michael O'Leary has criticised Davy Russell's decision to return to the saddle weeks after retiring as a jockey.
Russell, the current leading jockey in Cheltenham Festival history who is still riding, returned to the saddle back in January less than four weeks after he retired from the sport on a winner at Thurles.
The 43-year-old's decision came after Gordon Elliott's number one stable jockey Jack Kennedy suffered a broken leg in a fall at Naas and the Meath trainer asked Russell to come out of retirement.
But Ryanair boss and Gigginstown House Stud supremo O'Leary claims Russell had “nothing to achieve by coming back”.
Speaking in an interview on ITV Racing broadcast on Tuesday, O’Leary said: “He’d retired and, personally, I wish he’d stayed retired. He has a young family with young children and at a certain point in time you should put your family first and not your riding career.
“When you get out at that age in your early 40s you don’t bounce, you don’t mend the way you did before. Particularly if you’re married and you have children you put your family first.
“He’s had a glorious career and he has nothing to achieve by coming back and I don’t think he should’ve come out of retirement.”
Despite O'Leary's comments, Russell will partner one of his horses in the race the airline boss sponsors on Thursday, the Ryanair Chase, in Fury Road.
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