RACING Victoria stewards yesterday fined jockey Danny Brereton $2000 after they alleged he attempted to strike fellow rider Dwayne Dunn moments after the finish of the New Gleam Handicap.

Brereton, who rode the unplaced Kapu Star, clashed with Dunn, who rode the unlucky Fuduchonne, as they passed the post.

"We became a bit heated and I voiced my opinion to Dwayne but at no stage did I strike him. I rode up close to him and said a few things but it was in the heat of the battle," Brereton told the inquiry. "But at no stage did my arm go out and strike any part of his body."

But in his evidence, Dunn said he felt soft contact to his arm and hip.

Chief steward Terry Bailey believed, that from Dunn's evidence, contact looked to have taken place. "But Dunn has told us that contact was made on the hip and the arm - what do you say to that?" he asked.

Brereton replied: "We were close, I will say that, and I was upset but I know that no blow took place."

When quizzed again, Brereton said: "Look, I was pretty upset I'd warned Dwayne that Kapu Star can be a problem during the race and to keep a close on eye him.

"He's got this habit of diving into the fence, and the harder you try to stop him the harder he goes. But I'd warned the boys of his antics.

"But I didn't make contact with him and I don't think Dwayne is certain whether I did or not. Perhaps the horses brushed together."

Dunn believes that Fuduchonne should have won had interference from Kapu Star at the 300m mark not occurred.

Brereton, 43, has been riding since he was 15 and told stewards it was his first charge of misconduct.

In handing down the fine, Bailey said that it was a "Saturday meeting at Caulfield and you are a senior jockey who should know better".

Kapu Star has proved a nightmare for Brereton, as at its previous start, at Moonee Valley, the horse hung in so badly stewards requested that trainer Colin Little trial it before yesterday's race. And they repeated the order after yesterday's antics.

Little confirmed last night that Kapu Star would now be spelled.

Jockey Craig Williams was again the toast of punters at Caulfield, winning four of the eight races.

"It's not my best, I won the first five races, which I think is a record, on the program at Caulfield a couple of years ago and they were all for David Hayes," Williams said.

Williams was successful on Be That As It May in the first, Going Spending in the third, Rolling Stock in the seventh and Gotta Keep Cool in the last.

■ Toowoomba trainer Tony Gollan will resist the temptation of starting his first Magic Millions runner next week, despite slick colt Temple Of Boom's blistering win in the $100,000 Magic Millions Prelude at the Gold Coast yesterday. But runner-up Psychics and Fast Lover (unplaced) were confirmed as starters in the Magic Millions Classic.