OPINION

When it came to advancing women’s careers in horse racing this was like riding around Flemington side-saddle.

Any bold statement quickly followed by a grovelling apology is sure to do more harm than good — and that’s how it went this week for Michelle Payne and the actress who played her in a Hollywood movie about her historic Melbourne Cup-winning ride.

If you missed the news, Payne labelled prominent horse racing owner Brae Sokolski “a pig” this week after his decision to remove another female jockey, Linda Meech, from the job on Victoria Derby contender Thought of That.

In an explosive tweet, Payne implied the decision to replace Meech with multiple Group 1 winning hoop Mark Zahra smacked of sexism.

She was joined by Ride Like A Girl director Rachel Griffiths, who labelled Sokolski a “top d***head” before toning down her Instagram post but maintaining this was about women’s rights.

“She knows the horse. She had ridden him beautifully. They have a thing,” Griffiths wrote. “It’s disappointing to see this behaviour continue in an industry that needs women in its future and so many women were looking forward to backing her.”

Meech, while understandably disappointed, also lashed out in a style that was more befitting a junior rider than a 20-year veteran, saying she hoped Thought of That “got beat” in the Derby.

If their words were ill-advised, their timing couldn’t have been much worse.

Anyone looking to defend Sokolski’s decision — or at least highlight how it had nothing to do with Meech being a woman — had more than enough ammo to show this isn’t a case of sexism, but rather just the business of horse racing.

Just a few weeks earlier he’d booted rising star Jye McNeil from a Cox Plate ride on board Kings Will Dream, despite his victory the start prior in the Turnbull Stakes.

Luke Nolen also lost a Melbourne Cup ride on favourite Constantinople after a luckless ride in the Caulfield Cup.

It led jockey Dom Tourneur to speak out on social media. “Why is everybody whinging about this (Meech being taken off Thought Of That), it seems because it’s a female it’s more prolific, didn’t hear much about Nolen or McNeil, it happens get over it,” Tourneur wrote. “I’ve been replaced by women more times than I can count.”

Meech’s attempt to argue her case based on statistics also fell flat. “Mark Zahra has had 262 rides in Group 1s (for 15 winners) and I’ve had 23 for one winner,” she said.

“If you are any good at maths you will work out that he has probably had a lot more opportunities but his strike rate is pretty bad, the same with mine.”

A look at Zahra’s recent form includes getting outsider Cape of Good Hope home in the Caulfield Stakes and then backing it up by winning the Caulfield Guineas on Super Seth in the very next race.

For those who aren’t good at maths that’s two Group One wins for Zahra inside an hour.

Sokolski revealed the comments had deeply upset his family and issued a statement saying Payne had overstepped.

“You are not entitled to challenge the right of an owner to make that decision,” his statement read.

“You are most certainly not entitled to accuse or even imply insidious motives for that decision without any evidence whatsoever.

“And above all you are not entitled to defame and personally abuse an owner for that decision.”

Racing Victoria came down on the side of the owner, fining Payne $1000 and prompting an apology. “I have been made accountable,” she wrote. “I apologise for upsetting Mr Sokolski and his family and friends, especially his Mum.”

Griffiths wasn’t far behind. “My sincerest apologies to the owner for my personal sledging,” she wrote. “Shaming individuals does not inspire systemic change and I am sorry I have contributed to the vitriolic attacks on Brae and used this platform in such a course way. It is behaviour below my personal standards.”

The great shame in all of this is it weakens Payne’s voice on an issue she’s championed since famously describing racing as a “chauvinistic sport” after her Melbourne Cup triumph.

As former US president Barack Obama said this week, social media snark doesn’t effect change.

“I do get a sense among certain young people, and this is accelerated by social media, that the way of me making change is to be as judgmental as possible about other people and that’s enough,” Mr Obama said.

“Like if I tweet or hashtag about how you didn’t do something right … I consider that I can feel pretty good about myself because, ‘man did you see how woke I was, I called you out’.

“That is not activism, that is not bringing about change. If all you’re doing is casting stones, you are probably not going to get that far.”

Michelle Payne would do well to heed those words, especially if Zahra doesn’t win the Derby. But if he does it won’t be because a sexist owner put him in that position — it will be because of his own strengths and superior record.