Corey Brown remained firmly in trainer Gai Waterhouse's corner ahead of Sydney racing's spring finale despite conceding he had lost the ride on glamour mare More Joyous.Brown has one definite Group One ride for Waterhouse at Randwick on Saturday and is in the box-seat to land another for the leading trainer.A day after he was told he didn't have a Melbourne booking for glamour mare More Joyous, Brown was waiting for Tulloch Lodge confirmation to ride the Metropolitan favourite Herculian Prince a
Corey Brown remained firmly in trainer Gai Waterhouse's corner ahead of Sydney racing's spring finale despite conceding he had lost the ride on glamour mare More Joyous.
Brown has one definite Group One ride for Waterhouse at Randwick on Saturday and is in the box-seat to land another for the leading trainer.
A day after he was told he didn't have a Melbourne booking for glamour mare More Joyous, Brown was waiting for Tulloch Lodge confirmation to ride the Metropolitan favourite Herculian Prince at Randwick on Saturday.
Handicaps for the Group One staying test are expected to remain unchanged with the Lloyd Williams import Alandi tipped to run as the 59kg topweight.
Nash Rawiller, who will take over from Brown on More Joyous in Melbourne, had the Herculian Prince mount in the expectation Metropolitan weights would be raised 2kg to ensure a mandatory 57kg maximum.
Herculian Prince, a three-time stakes winner, has 53.5kg.
"Corey has been placed on standby in case the weights aren't raised," Tulloch Lodge's Mark Webbey said.
Brown is in outstanding form with his haul of seven metropolitan winners in 24 hours highlighted by his Group One George Main Stakes win on More Joyous.
The same can't be said for Herculian Prince after a shocking lead-up run in the Colin Stephen Quality last Saturday but he remains the $5 pre-post favourite for the Metropolitan.
Sent out a prohibitive favourite, Herculian Prince was beaten more than eight lengths when last of five runners.
Webbey confirmed a tongue control bit would be used on the former New Zealander on Saturday.
"We are not sure when he got his tongue over the bit during the race but it was evident when he returned to scale," Webbey said.
Brown will definitely ride Once Were Wild for Waterhouse in the $500,000 Epsom Handicap.
Like More Joyous, Once Were Wild is owned by businessman John Singleton and she is a $21 chance in the famous mile.
Once Were Wild will be lining up for her third start since her AJC Australian Oaks win.
The four-year-old could finish only eighth in the Shannon Stakes at Rosehill on September 18 but there were excuses for the run and with just 52.5kg she is a genuine lightweight chance.
Waterhouse will have two runners as she chases a seventh Epsom win and her third in a row after Theseo and Rock Kingdom triumphed in 2008 and 2009.
The former United States sprinter Cannonball takes his place with stable apprentice Blake Spriggs retaining the ride.
Tye Angland will have to wait until final acceptances to see if he farewells Australian racing with more than one Group One ride on Saturday.
Angland, who will leave on Sunday to take up a four-month club contract in Hong Kong, is on stand-by to ride Newcastle galloper Hidden Wonder.
The Kris Lees-trained mare is rated a borderline chance only to make it into the field.
A former Sydney apprentices' title winner, Angland will ride Fibrillation in the Flight Stakes.
Neeson held his place at the top of Epsom betting on Monday at $6, just ahead of the Bill Ritchie Handicap winner Drumbeats ($7).