Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Brett Prebble announces retirement from the saddle

Brett Prebble, who won Group 1 races in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan in a stellar career, will step away from race riding.

Brett Prebble won three of Australia’s four big Group 1s during an outstanding career in the saddle. Picture: Jeremy Ng / Getty Images

Star international jockey Brett Prebble has announced his retirement from the saddle.

Prebble has decided to end his riding career to focus full-time on his successful Persuader business, making high quality equipment for his fellow riders from his Melbourne factory.

Prebble went from riding his first winner at Edenhope more than 30 years ago to an outstanding career in Australia and Hong Kong, booting home more than 2000 winners, including 37 at Group 1 level.

But the 46-year-old is happy to leave riding in perfect health.

“It’s a real mix of emotions, but I know the time is right,” Prebble said.

“I’ve had the most incredible career. It’s not lost on me just how fortunate I am to leave my time in the saddle a fit, healthy, happy and content 46-year-old.

“Over four decades of riding, I’ve seen way too many times just how incredibly dangerous, devastating and life-changing the job can be.”

Prebble won Group 1 races in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and Japan and set a then record of nine winners over the four days of the Melbourne Cup Carnival at Flemington in 1999 before repeating that effort a year later.

The record stood for more than 20 years until James McDonald eclipsed the mark in 2021.

The prolific jockey, who last rode at Rosehill on February 24, won three of Australia’s four biggest races in his stellar career with only the Cox Plate eluding him.

Prebble won the 2010 Golden Slipper on Crystal Lily for trainers Mathew Ellerton and Simon Zahra and the 2012 Melbourne Cup on Green Moon for powerful owner Lloyd Williams.

He also steered the Peter Moody-trained Incentivise to a memorable win in the 2021 Caulfield Cup.

Prebble also won more than 800 races in Hong Kong, engaging in enthralling battles with fellow riding great Douglas Whyte over multiple years.

Prebble’s time in Hong Kong featured partnerships with wonderful performers Sacred Kingdom, Lucky Nine and Bullish Luck with his time in Asian racing giving him three Hong Kong International Sprint wins, three Krisflyer International Sprint wins in Singapore and a win in the Group 1 Yasuda Kinen in Japan.

His international riding exploits were a long way from Prebble’s first meeting with his original master, Stawell trainer Terry O’Sullivan, at the age of 14.

“I clearly remember picking 14-year-old Brett up from Ararat races, a small boy with a smaller bag containing all his worldly possessions,” O’Sullivan, who remains a close friend of Prebble, said

“I also remember he came with a big handshake, plenty of respect and manners, and a massive desire to be a successful jockey.

“When we were feeding up one day, Brett told me he was going to be as good as Paddy Payne. I didn’t say anything but thought, ‘that’ll be bullshit’, but how wrong I was.”

Prebble rode his first Group 1 win at his maiden ride at the highest level aboard Daacha in the Sydney Cup for his later master John Meagher.

Likely to be inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame at some stage, Prebble’s career highlights include three Melbourne Apprentice Premierships, two Melbourne jockeys’ premierships wins and two Scobie Breasley Medal wins, one shared with Damien Oliver.

Prebble previously held the record of Melbourne wins in a season of 99.5, officially counted as 100, until Jamie Kah surpassed that tally in the 2020/21 season.

Originally published as Melbourne Cup-winning jockey Brett Prebble announces retirement from the saddle