Maddison Brown Lands Her First Group 2
Maddison Brown in the sulky after Diego NZ win at Gloucester Park just weeks ago. Photo Credit – Hamilton Content Creators
It was only fitting that Maddison Brown drove the Cup winner at Pinjarra on Monday, when she piloted Diego NZ to victory in the Group 2 $30,000 Coolup Landscaping Supplies Pinjarra Cup, just one day ahead of International Women’s Day.
“I was so happy; I’ve had a pretty good affiliation with Diego, and he deserved to win a feature race like that,”
“Super proud of how far he has come this prep, he has never let me down.”
There may have been the slightest bit of disappointment when she wasn’t offered the drive on Chicago Bull NZ, but Brown wasn’t surprised when she retained her drive on Gary Hall Snr’s other runner, Diego NZ.
“Callan (Suvaljko) is the foreman, so he was always going to get the drive, he does the work out there, I don’t,”
“I’ve just been through it all with Bull and had driven him before, so thought I might have had a slim chance.”
Making her debut in the 2013/14 season at just 17-years-old, Brown has had plenty of success in the cart, but in 2016 she made the switch to thoroughbred racing and made her debut as an apprentice jockey in trials in December 2016, where she went on to ride in 266 races for 29 wins before hanging up the reins in February 2018 and making the full time return to harness racing.
“To simply put it – I was burnt out,”
“I needed a break, for my mental health, but that break was longer than I hoped. I got messed around a bit trying to find a new master and my weight got up to 56kg, not that heavy but it felt a long way off 52kg. I just gave up in the end.”
Whilst she may have walked away from riding in races, Maddison is still involved in the industry, currently riding for dual licenced trainer Michael Grantham, but at this stage, she has no plans to regain her licence.
“I feel like if I was ever going to get back out there, I would have by now,”
“Michael (Grantham) really wants me to, and I have thought about it,”
“I’m just unsure and it’s not something you can he half-hearted about. You need to really want it because it’s not easy.”
Returning to driving exclusively straight after her stint in the saddle, Brown hasn’t looked back, recording her first group 1 winning drive in June 2020 when she drove Longreach Bay to victory in the 3YO Colts and Geldings Westbred Classic. Mondays win in the Pinjarra Cup was her first Group 2 win
With an obvious introduction to the industry through her dad, Colin Brown, Maddison knew she wanted to be involved from a young age, and after helping her dad with track work and competing in pony trots, she always dreamed of driving in ‘real races’.
Brown has been lucky enough to have some talented influences in her life, with her partner Gary Hall Jnr a very accomplished reinsman, who was crowned last years Reinsperson of The Year in WA at the recent harness awards held at the Crown.
“Dad; he got me started and taught me everything I know,”
“More recently Jnr, he’s so tough on me when it comes to driving, but it has helped me tenfold.”
Brown accredits a lot of her success to the opportunities she was offered by Gary Hall Snr when she came back to harness racing from her jockey apprenticeship, giving her the kick start she needed when she made her return.
“I probably wouldn’t be driving now if it wasn’t for those.”
“I’m pretty lucky that driving is a hobby for me, it’s not something I do full-time. Sure, there have been times where I have just needed a break but it’s easy for me to take a step back when I need to.”
Ashleigh Paikos