BROWNIE'S BLOG: THE MOIR STAKES RESULT GAVE THE BUFFERING TEAM ONE OF ITS PROUDEST MOMENTS
By Damian Browne | Friday, October 9, 2015
Damian Browne is rated right up there with the best jockeys in Australia. After severe injury setbacks which would have ended a lesser man’s career, this eleven-time Group 1 winning jockey has fought back against the odds to establish a solid reputation both as a person ... through the calm, confident and professional manner in which he goes about his business ... and as a rider, where he has built an enviable race record largely courtesy of his exceptional expertise as a horseman. Today Damian looks back at last week's Moir Stakes victory which he considers to be one of Buffering's proudest moments. Damian’s column, ‘Brownies Blog’ appears exclusively on HRO
When Buffering arrived behind the barriers before the start of the Moir, he just stood there and looked back at the stands. He stood there for about twenty to thirty seconds taking it all in.
I really thought at that moment he was looking and thinking ... I know what this is all about ... and he just switched straight on and that was a great sign to me from him. It just gave me confidence.
We are always going to come out very positive as we normally do with him. I was expecting a little bit more speed to my inside then what eventuated but Buffering began as well as he ever has which was another good sign.
I still had to force the issue to a degree. Ball Of Muscle was a touch tardy to get going but he rolled up quickly underneath me. Luckily enough I was able to put enough pressure on and I was able to get the fence.
I couldn’t have been happier with the first 100m of the race and that’s when I knew we were going to be hard to beat from then on.
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I guess it might have looked at that stage like the favourite Petits Filous was stalking me, but with those three-year-old fillies and horses like that, they have never really been put under that sort of pressure before.
They’ve looked good when they are coming through being able to do it against your own age group ... but when you’re racing against good, old, tough Group 1 horses when the pressure goes right on from the start. sometimes those younger horses can crack.
I’m not saying that was what happened to her, but that was our intention ... to try and crack them before they cracked us sort of thing.
Luckily enough for us it worked out that way.
It was probably the most confident I’ve been on the corner at Moonee Valley. That’s because I knew Buffering was high-balling. I knew they would be off the bit trying to get to me ... and he just felt great.
He gave me a good kick on straightening. Quite often in the past, like in the Manikato, they get to within half a length of him on the corner and he just keeps fighting whereas this time he was able to put a length on them and I thought, they are going to struggle to get him now ... and he was just his usual, old, bold self right through the line.
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I think it was one of our proudest moments, just because of what he has gone through.
You must remember prior to going out to race nobody knew just where Buffering stood in terms of his on-going racing career. If he come out and went terrible it could have been curtains for his career and probably retirement would have been bantered around then.
So, in a sense, there was relief, but the overriding feeling was that we were just so proud of Buffering, not only on the night but with what he has achieved and what he continues to achieve.
I can tell you it made our chests puff out.
There might even be a bit of the old Seabiscuit story in there. A broken down old jockey. A tour guide trainer and an old horse.
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Anytime you go anywhere Buffering has got his fans.
He is just a great Queenslander and he does us all so proud. Even when he went to Hong Kong it was great to be representing the people around here.
He has been an old marvel for all of us and the ride he has taken us on.
It can’t be underestimated what he has achieved and I think years down the track people will look back and remember him as an outstanding achiever for what he has done.
Take the great mare Black Caviar out of Buffering’s formline and he probably would have won more Group 1’s and people would undoubtedly be calling him a true champion ... and that’s not a term to be used lightly.
This latest win took him past $5 million in stake earnings making him only the third Australian sprinter to have smashed through the $5 million barrier behind Black Caviar and Takeover Target ... and he only cost a bit over $20 000.
Maybe there is a moral in there somewhere.
You look at Buffering’s purchase price and that Takeover Target, who only cost $1250 or so, and it means you don’t have to spend big to find a superior racehorse.
That shows that the dream is always alive in racing.
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