Sent out the odds on favourite with punters, Winx showed her customary acceleration to reel in the leader and second favourite Solicit and then race clear for another feature victory.
Winx was racing for the first time since her record breaking win in last October’s WS Cox Plate at Moonee Valley and she showed she’d lost none of her brilliance with her Apollo triumph.
“Today was probably the most nervous I have been in recent years,” trainer Chris Waller said. “The early days were pretty nervous when I was getting there my first time, but there is a sense of importance with a horse on the cusp of being a super star and in our eyes she already is, but I feel it is important for racing to keep her winning,” said Waller.
“I just think that it is fantastic for racing and I hope everyone is with us. Every race is important now, the Queen Elizabeth is a bonus because of the prizemoney, but every race will be taken very seriously as they always are,” he said.
The Group One Chipping Norton Stakes is likely to be the next start for Winx, a $230,000 purchase from the Coolmore Stud draft at the 2013 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale.
“I started to feel that we were here for an occasion when everyone started to line the fence to take a photo of her on the way out,” winning rider Hugh Bowman said. “She has really drawn the attention of anyone in racing and beyond,” said Bowman.
“It is early on for her. She is in the infancy of her career I think. She certainly put the writing on the wall in the spring and she has had a good return and hopefully she continue on this path.”
“She is a special mare and it is a privilege to be part of her,” Bowman added.
Bred by the Camilleri family’s Fairway Thoroughbreds operation, Winx boasts the outstanding record of 10 wins and three runner-up placings from just 16 starts and earnings of $3,781,925.
Earlier in the day at Randwick, Perignon showed she was in for a big autumn campaign when she powered home to win the Group Two Light Fingers Stakes (1200m).
The daughter of Snitzel, a $350,000 Gold Coast Yearling Sale purchase from Arrowfield Stud, gave her rivals a start and a beating in rtecording a valuable breakthrough group win.
The filly has always shown above average ability and was second in the Group Two Magic Night Stakes and Group Two Furious Stakes as well as third in the Group One Flight Stakes.
A full sister to the group performed Hollyweird, Perignon is trained by Gerald Ryan, the man who put the polish on their former outstanding Group One winning sire Snitzel – a graduate of the Gold Coast Yearling Sale himself.
Perignon, who is from a Japanese winning daughter of Edward Manifold Stakes heroine Rubidium, has purchased her earnings to over $310,000 from just nine starts.
Meanwhile, star Victorian three-year-old Mahuta continued his winning streak in today’s Group Two Autumn Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield with yet another tough win in a feature event.
One of four winners on the day for all conquering trainer Darren Weir, Mahuta showed dashed and tenacity to hold out a lighter weighted runner-up Sailing By.
Mahuta was back in Victoria after his all the way win in the $2 million Gold Coast Magic Millions 3YO Guineas (1400m) in January.
The Group One Australian Guineas at Flemington will be the next goal for Mahuta who has now won six straight races and earned over $1.68 million – not bad considering he cost $35,000 when purchased by Weir from the draft of Redbank North at the 2014 Adelaide Yearling Sale.
The son of Flying Spur was originally sold by Glastonbury Farms at the 2013 National Weanling Sale on the Gold Coast.
