Michelle Payne sets sights on spring return after fall

MICHELLE Payne says she has the “fire in the belly” to overcome her latest career-threatening fall and defend her Melbourne Cup crown on Prince Of Penzance.

Michelle Payne is expected to leave hospital on Wednesday.

MICHELLE Payne says she has the “fire in the belly” to overcome her latest career-threatening fall and defend her Melbourne Cup crown on Prince of Penzance.

Payne, 30, continues to improve from pancreatic surgery and was expected to be released from the Alfred Hospital on Wednesday after a two-week stay.

But her father, Paddy, said on Tuesday afternoon his youngest daughter had a rough morning and was unsure if she were coming “out or not”.

It was initially feared Payne could lose her pancreas after falling and being trampled on by her brother Patrick’s horse during a race at Mildura on May 23.

Now she is talking about a comeback.

“The main thing is to get better but at this stage I still have the fire in the belly for another spring carnival,” Payne told Sky Sports Radio’s Andrew Bensley on Tuesday. “A binder will help protect my organs and the scar for the next month or when I start training again.”

The first woman to win the Melbourne Cup was fitted out in the binder at the Alfred Hospital on Monday, a compression pullover designed to protect her chest area.

She is not expected to make an official announcement on her future for at least a month.

The Alfred Hospital would not comment on Payne’s recovery on Tuesday or the prospect of her riding again.

But Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Darren Weir said “hopefully she can get back to full health and see what she does from there”.

Darren Weir says Michelle Payne is in ‘‘good spirits’’.

“I haven’t spoken to her about (her future), but the word around is she’s pretty keen to do it again,” Weir said. “She works for us and does quite a bit of riding for us but we’ve just been updated about how she’s going through social media and the stable talks to a family member to see how she’s getting on.

“She’s in good spirits and I think she’s keen to ride again so she must be feeling all right.”

Weir said he expected Payne would be reunited with history-making horse Prince Of Penzance if she were to regain full fitness before the spring.

“It’s the owner’s decision at the end of the day, who they want to put on, but I’m sure if she is fit and well and riding well, they won’t have a problem with doing that,” Weir said. “There’s a lot of time to go before those decisions are made.”

Payne’s family have continued to plead with their famous sibling to retire after a spate of nasty falls.

She suffered a fractured skull and bleeding on the brain in 2004, broke four vertebrae and several ribs in 2012 and damaged her spleen last month.

Michelle Payne is keen to continue her association with Melbourne Cup winner Prince Of Penzance in the spring. Picture: Michael Klein

But her father, Paddy, said the decision would always be Michelle’s.

“She’s got to make up her own mind, weigh up everything that is going on,” he said. “If she keeps going, it’s OK. But if she decides to give it up, well that’s OK as well.”

The unthinkable possibility of Payne winning successive Cups became a reality last month when Prince Of Penzance made a stunning return to the track.

In their first race together since their unforgettable November triumph, they finished a fast-finishing second in the 1600m Group 3 R.A. Lee Stakes at Morphettville.

“It’s obviously very hard to win one, let alone two, but he’s a special horse, so who knows?” Payne said after the Adelaide run.

She fell at Mildura and was rushed to hospital two days later.