Selby-born Dick Gooddisson (nicknamed ‘Hellfire Dick’ because of his highly seasoned language) rode the winners of the first three Oaks; Bridget for Lord Derby in 1779, Teetotum in 1780 and Faith for Lord Grosvenor in 1781.
The Oaks was first run on May 14, 1779
He was a slovenly dresser and, at one time, always carried a leather case containing £500 in his pocket, a legacy of once being unable to cover that amount when a tempting wager was offered him at an inn. He complained constantly about this missed opportunity right up to the day of his death.
Although he was jockey and trainer to the Duke of Queensberry, the two men failed to get on. Despite Gooddisson’s Classic winning record, the Duke did not rate him highly as a jockey: on one occasion, having booked him to ride, the Duke decided at the last moment to ride the horse himself, such was his lack of confidence in Gooddisson. This understandably infuriated the jockey – it was to be some time before the two spoke to each other again. The quarrel was finally patched up by the Duke who asked Gooddisson to watch a trial. Their association then lasted until the Duke retired from the turf in 1806. The Duke was a great fan of sprint racing and helped popularize them – Goodisson excelled at winning such races.
Richard Gooddisson married Jane Bentley. She bore him four sons, William, John, Thomas and Charles. Two of his sons (Charles & Tom) became jockeys. Charles died in 1813 aged 27, four years before his father. There were also two daughters, Catherine and Ann.
Richard Gooddisson died 9th September 1817 at Newmarket.
The Duke of Queensberry died on 23rd December 1810, leaving Gooddisson a legacy of £2,000.
There was a lot of bad blood between Richard Gooddisson and fellow jockey Sam Chifney Senior. After one particular race, they each accused the other of jostling and foul play. From words they came to blows and slashed at each other with their whips. As nothing short of a proper fight between them would settle things, they agreed to have it out with their fists for a stake of 25 guineas side. Both took the impending battle seriously and went into training under the best fighters of the day. On 1st January, 1790, they took each other on inside a roped ring. The fight took place before a select aristocratic audience in a room in the Duke of Queensberry’s house. The fight – long and desperate – lasted over an hour. Dick was both heavier and stronger than Sam who, although the cleverer boxer, eventually ran out of stamina giving Dick the victory. The fight had the desired effect – the bad blood had been let. From that day they were the best of friends and remained so throughout their careers.