"It's been a long journey" - Konfusion's jockey Callum Bewley opens up

When Saturday comes, little Gene Bewley will take a trip to a local farm park with mum Samantha to celebrate his second birthday. On any other day, Callum Bewley would be there with his young son and long-term partner to mark the latest memorable milestone in family life.

Except this Saturday isn’t just any other day. Not for a jockey who spent the guts of a year out recovering from his latest injury setback dreaming of the opportunity that has now come his way, but inwardly wondering if it ever would.

So rather than packing the cake and candles and setting his sat-nav for Walby Farm Park near Carlisle, Bewley will do his best to park the feelings of paternal guilt that many sportsmen in his position wrestle with, and instead head to Haydock to partner Konfusion in a belting renewal of the Sky Bet Peter Marsh Chase.

Thumping victories in November’s Rehearsal at Newcastle and Wetherby’s Rowland Meyrick on Boxing Day have already marked out the Joel Parkinson and Sue Smith-trained eight-year-old as one of the most progressive staying chasers on this side of the Irish Sea.

This weekend sees him face  a higher calibre of opponent, including two-time winner and dual Betfair Chase champion Royal Pagaille, plus a fellow upwardly-mobile handicapper in Myretown. Could this be the next step of Konfusion’s meteoric rise towards a tilt at the Gold Cup?

It’s also an unexpected, yet entirely welcome and deserved, upturn in fortunes for 31-year-old Bewley, who spent much of 2025 deliberating whether it was worth putting in all the hard yards - both physical and emotional - to get back on the horse when he no longer had a Saturday one to look forward to.

“It’s been a long journey to get back to where I am now,” reasoned the Scot, who suffered a broken left ankle and thumb in a fall at Ayr in October 2024 that rendered him wheelchair-bound and unable to use crutches. 

It was during that long period of rehabilitation, when he had to go under the knife to correct a long-standing shoulder problem that flared up again, that he considered whether the time had come to seek an alternative, more stable career path.

“I’ve had my share of setbacks, particularly with injury in the last three years,” Bewley continued. “The biggest thing I had going through my mind was: ‘Am I just wasting my time?’. You want to be riding good horses and it’s not as if I had an Aye Right or a Sounds Russian to come back to this time. 

“But I got to a point where I felt that if I didn’t give race-riding another go, I might end up regretting it. I have a good group of trainers who’ve been really supportive and encouraged me to come back. Same with my agent Richard Hale, who’s been absolutely brilliant. Without all of them, I’m not sure if I’d have been able to do it.”

Nine winners later, including two of the most significant of his career on Konfusion, have made all the graft and perseverance worthwhile. Bewley, however, also recognises the hand fate has played in bringing him and his latest Saturday hopeful together.

Danny McMenamin was unshipped shortly after halfway when Konfusion was sent off favourite on his only previous visit to Haydock on Betfair Chase day in early November. Showing no ill effects from that Merseyside mishap, Parkinson and Smith sought compensation in the Rehearsal seven days later - opening the door for Bewley to return to the big time.

He explained: “Danny rides a lot for Ian and Ann Hamilton and was already claimed to ride Dare To Shout for them in the Rehearsal. That gave someone else an opportunity to get on Konfusion - and I was the lucky one to get the call-up.

"Then on Boxing Day, Danny had to go to Market Rasen to ride for Nicky Richards, so I got the call again in the Rowland Meyrick. Danny’s a good friend of mine and he had a nasty fall at the last Haydock meeting before New Year. He hasn’t ridden since, and now he’s banned this weekend.

“It’s strange how these things work out, but it’s also lovely. I’m very grateful to all the owners and trainers who have been so supportive before I came back in October and since then. I’m getting to ride some really nice horses and Konfusion is one of those. I’m extremely thankful to Joel, to Sue and to Anne Ellis, who owns him, for the opportunity they’ve given me.”

Bewley’s most high-profile success prior to this season came on the Harriet Graham-trained Aye Right in the 2021 Rehearsal Chase. He steered Sounds Russian to two wins over fences before losing the ride on him prior to the Cotswold Chase in 2023, while his sole Graded triumph was with Donnas Diamond in the 2018 Rendlesham Hurdle at Haydock. 

While reluctant to draw comparisons with that classy trio, Bewley believes Konfusion possesses the potential to be the best he’s ever partnered. 

“We just don’t know how good he could be,” the Galashiels-born rider said. “When he won his first chase at Wetherby last February, he was rated 92. I’ve only ridden him the last twice, but he won the Rehearsal off 126 and the Rowland Meyrick off 136. He’s up to 145 now, so he’s gone up 19lb for those two wins alone.

“He’ll need to improve again on Saturday as we’re also going up against a higher class of opposition. But as Joel has said, we don’t know what his ceiling is yet. Maybe Saturday will be it, but we’re hopeful it’s not.”

While the best of Konfusion may still be to come, Bewley believes the same is also true of himself. He credits age, experience and the ability to learn from previous mistakes as key factors in his evolution into a more rounded professional. Crucially, he also believes he’s become a more-rounded person.

“With age you learn, don’t you?,’ he mused. “I’ve made some mistakes, as every jockey does. But as long as you learn from them, then I believe those are mistakes well made. I’d certainly like to think that’s how I’ve dealt with them. I’ve always tried to be as professional as possible and to conduct myself in the best manner I can. 

“Things have gone as well as I could have hoped for since I came back, maybe even better, but I’m not one for setting any targets other than what’s immediately in front of me. So I’ll just keep my head down, keep working hard and try to be as consistent as I can.”

As for the impact of becoming a father, Bewley said: “I’m probably more focused and driven now than I’ve ever been. It’s not that I wasn’t either of those things before, but having a family has sharpened my focus and increased my desire and drive even more.

“Gene is two on Saturday and Sam’s taking him to the farm park, which he really enjoys. In fact, he loves it so much we’ve got an annual membership there! 

“Sam and Gene are going there in the morning, then they’ll head back to watch the race at home. It’s a really exciting day for all of us. Fingers crossed it all works out like we hope and I can bring home the best present of all for Gene.”