Jolly Jake

Jolly Jake is a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the New Zealand Derby in 1985.

It took five attempts for the colt to clear maiden company, which he did at Pukekohe four months before his Derby triumph, but he steadily improved, performing consistently throughout. He only finished further back than fifth twice, once in the Waikato Guineas and once over an unsuitable 1200 m at Te Aroha, and was also successful in the Avondale Guineas prior to winning the Derby.

He won the Derby in 2:27.39, a race record that stood until broken by The Phantom Chance 8 years later. This race, easily his greatest career performance, turned out to be his final career start.