What began as a short-term stint to sharpen his skills has turned into a breakout season for apprentice Braith Nock, who has claimed the Sydney junior riders’ premiership with three weeks still to run in the 2024-25 season.

Nock made the move from Scone to Sydney on a three-month loan to Peter Snowden’s stable, and the decision has paid off handsomely. With a double at Canterbury on Wednesday, the young rider lifted his metro tally to 38 wins—14 more than Molly Bourke—and now sits ninth in the overall Sydney jockey standings.

Across the state, Nock has ridden 107 winners, second only to Aaron Bullock on 114, keeping him in contention for the NSW jockeys’ title as well.

This Saturday at Randwick, an early scratching trimmed his book to nine rides, but Nock will still represent leading stables such as Ciaron Maher, the Hayes team, and Annabel and Rob Archibald.

“It has been a little bit surreal,” Nock said.

“But it’s good to get the opportunities and make the most of them.”

One of those opportunities includes a ride on Katsu in The Agency Real Estate Handicap (1000m) for Lindsay Park. The sprinter has five wins over the distance and will carry 64kg after Nock’s claim—unusual weight for a city sprint.

Nock says weight won’t be a major concern, especially at the 1000m trip, referencing Joe Pride’s recent win with Storm The Ramparts at 62.5kg.

“It’s only ever won over 1000 and as Joe Pride says, weight shouldn’t matter unless it’s over 1400 (or further),” he said.

“As long as they go quick and it’s not a sit and sprint which over 1000 metres, they generally do.”

Nock will also reunite with It’s A Knockout in the TAB Handicap (1400m), after riding her to a dominant first-up victory last month.

“She has only got to run up to that and I’m sure she is going to take improvement off the first-up run. She really came up underneath me that day,” he said.

Despite his success, Nock has no immediate plans to move permanently to Sydney, enjoying the lifestyle and routine that comes with being based in the Hunter region.

“There is definitely lots of travelling but if there are a couple of days of racing in the same area I try to stay down so I’m not back and forth so much,” he said.

“I dare say at the end of the season I might take a week or two off.

“I know I have a bit of momentum but hopefully I’ve got the connections to help me get straight back into it.”

With momentum on his side, punters eyeing betting plays this Saturday may find Nock’s mounts, including Katsu, worth serious consideration.