Top jockey Damian Browne was suspended for eight meetings after stewards found him responsible for a scrimmage in the Mother Energy Handicap at Doomben on Wednesday.

Chairman of stewards Martin Knibbs said his panel believed Browne on Celestial Dragon had caused tightening to three horses inside him which led to Tegan Harrison nearly falling from Few Are Chosen.

Browne pleaded not guilty and argued he had been a victim of pressure from the outside.

The suspension will begin at midnight on Sunday and end at midnight on Sunday, August 31.

Browne will not be heading south for major spring racing in Sydney and Melbourne until early September when he will reunite with top sprinter Buffering.