Jockey returns from broken back to give 70-year-old trainer his first win under rules since 1994

It was a special evening at Worcester for Jamie Brace and Stephen Allen as the pair combined to win the 2m7f handicap chase with Grillon De Monty.

It marked Brace’s return to the saddle following a 12-week injury layoff, while 70-year-old trainer Allen was overcoming a long spell between visits to the winner's enclosure. This was just his second victory under rules – remarkably, 31 years after his first in 1994.

His last came with Blue Danube, who won the Vale of Evesham Hunters' Chase at Cheltenham in May 1994.

The result was emotional for both.

Brace said: “The win brought a tear to Stephen’s eye. I promised him after the injury that I’d ride him a winner, and I’ve done that now. He was absolutely over the moon.

“The last winner I gave him was in a point-to-point, so to do it under rules makes it even more special.”

He added: “Looking at his form, he ran well when finishing second at Warwick, but hadn’t quite followed up on that. It’s always great to get a winner – especially for Stephen, who supported me even when I was point-to-pointing.”

Brace was injured on April 25, when he was riding High Treason for Nigel Twiston-Davies in a handicap chase and fell. He broke his T9 and L1 vertebrae but has made a remarkable recovery, returning to race riding in just under 13 weeks.

Reflecting on his injury and recovery, he said: “From when I did it to when I came back four days later they couldn’t understand why I wasn’t in pain, even after MRI scans and x-rays.

“I’ve got a 30-degree compression in my spine. There was talk of an operation, but because I had no pain and and was going through the exercises with no effort, I didn’t need one.”

Now back in the saddle, Brace is looking to build momentum.

“I probably came back quicker than I should have. I’m very lucky in that respect,” he added.

“You’re always a bit nervous getting on that first horse back, especially going straight over fences again. But once you’re over the first, everything goes out [of] the window. At the end of the day, it’s your job, isn’t it?

“It doesn’t happen very often, coming back from a long injury and bouncing back with a winner like that.”

Looking forward, Brace said: “I’ve got a couple of rides booked – I'm at Stratford on Sunday riding Versace Twentyone for Sheila Lewis, who I’ve won on before, so hopefully it’ll be another nice, straightforward one.”

Grillon De Monty joined Allen’s yard from Dan Skelton in December 2024 and had been winless in eight starts since then before this breakthrough.

The ten-year-old is one of just six horses to run under rules in the last five years for Allen, who is based in Oxfordshire and trains primarily for point-to-point racing.

Read these next:

BHA calls on government to tax betting on racing at a lower rate than other sports with 'thousands of jobs' at risk 

Former head Cheltenham groundsman ordered by court to pay syndicate partners outstanding sums they are owed 

The Ballydoyle battalion: ranking Aidan O'Brien's star-studded crop of juveniles 

Share your views to help shape the future of Racing Post's products and content — and you could £500 in cash plus one of five £100 Amazon vouchers.