Craig Williams is under pressure to keep the ride on six-time Group 1 winner Mr Brightside following his performance in Saturday’s All-Star Mile.
SENTrack’s Gareth Hall revealed the news on Giddy Up after Williams rode the Lindsay Park galloper into second place of the $3.75 million feature race.
Mr Brightside jumped from barrier 11 in the 1600m affair and got too far back to reel in tearaway leader Pride Of Jenni for champion trainer Ciaron Maher.
Williams has ridden Mr Brightside in his last nine starts for a total of 29 race rides from the six-year-old’s 32 starts.
But it’s no certainty he’ll ride Mr Brightside in the Group 1 Australian Cup later this month.
“Craig Williams is under pressure to keep the ride on Mr Brightside… I just had a chat to one of the co-trainers, the story with Mr Brightside at the moment is that they’re going to a vote,” Hall began.
“There are a few owners after the ride on the weekend (that aren’t overly happy)… a vote for who rides the horse in the Australia Cup because I think there’s a jockey from Hong Kong who has been on the phone, Zac Purton.
“So the owners with Mr Brightside at the moment have got a decision to make and it goes to a vote, which is seen on a few occasions when there is a big syndicate involved in the horse.
“So there’s a vote. It’s either Craig Williams or Zac Purton. He probably goes to the Queen Elizabeth and then to Hong Kong (after the Australian Cup).”
Purton, who resides in Hong Kong but occasionally returns home to Australia, has piloted Mr Brightside on one occasion with a win in the Group 1 Doncaster Mile in April of last year.
Williams has been aboard for Mr Brightside’s five other Group 1s.
The Australian Cup is run over 2000 metres at Flemington on March 30, with Mr Brightside the current $3.50 favourite.
The Queen Elizabeth, also over 2000m, is run two weeks later on April 13.