Champ Brown back in saddle
COREY Brown’s career resurgence is complete after his second Melbourne Cup win on Rekindling at Flemington yesterday.
The champion Sydney jockey left for Singapore nearly five years ago, disenchanted with the sport and looking for a fresh start.
He admits he probably stayed a year too long but his overseas riding stint “reignited the fire in the belly”.
Brown returned to Sydney racing in January and has quickly re-established himself among the nation’s best jockeys, riding five Group 1 winners this calendar year, culminating with his Melbourne Cup triumph on Rekindling.
“This seems more surreal the second time around,’’ said Brown, who won a Melbourne Cup on Shocking back in 2009.
“But it’s great to be back home and riding in the big races again. I don’t think I’ve quite found my place yet, it’s hard with the young guns we’re competing against.
“In the big I’ve been getting a lot of opportunities and having some luck. This is my fifth Group 1 winner since I’ve been back. To get those opportunities in big races is great. I would like to get the midweek thing happening a bit more and hopefully this is going to open doors.’’
Brown said his career rebirth had its genesis when he decided he was stale riding in Sydney, where he had been premier jockey in 2001 and had forged a hugely successful career over 20 years.
“I was going through a bit of a sour patch I’d run a heap of seconds,’’ Brown said.
“I’d become quite friendly with Christophe Lemaire and he asked me to go over France in our winter time.
“I packed up and left just to freshen up, but because of Joao Moreira I called into Singapore on a four-week working holiday before I went to France.
“I’d had a lot of luck and Joao told me he was on his way to ride in Hong Kong but no one knew at the time.
“Instead of heading back home, I detoured to Singapore. I was a big fish in a small pond. I went for a four-week working holiday and nearly spent four years there.”