Cox Plate favourite Winx will continue her 2018 Spring Carnival campaign in the Group 1 $500,000 Seppelt Turnbull Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on October 6.
Winx, above, will have her final Cox Plate lead up run in the Turnbull Stakes at Flemington. Photo by Steve Hart.
Winx won the 2017 Turnbull Stakes as her final lead up run before claiming a third straight victory in the 2017 Cox Plate and trainer Chris Waller will use the same program this year as the wonder mare tries to make history by claiming a fourth successive win in the ‘Weight For Age Championship’.
Winx is currently marked at $1.35 with Ladbrokes.com.au to win her fourth Group 1 $5m Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m) at The Valley on October 27.
Waller said that Winx is in picture perfect condition after winning her twenty-seventh straight victory with her third Group 1 George Main Stakes win at Randwick on September 15 and will head to Melbourne next week ahead of the Turnbull Stakes.
“Picture perfect and everything is good,” Waller said.
“She won well last week. It was a pretty exciting win and remarkably she continues to come through her races so well.”
“The next step is her next run. It is more than likely going to be the Turnbull and at some stage she will go to Melbourne.”
“I would say next week and we will work her the reverse way a few times.”
“Had a look to see what we did with her last year and she had a couple of reverse gallops, left handed, the Melbourne way of going.”
“The trip down there will be like a trial. She drops about 5kg on the trip which we use to our advantage. She gets a little bit tighter as we start to get a little bit serious towards her next few runs.”
“She will just get tighter as we step her up in distance for her next couple of runs. If she goes to the Turnbull it will be 2000m and then the Cox Plate would be 2040m.”
“So we will wind her up a little bit and are on track.”
Winx is the winner of thirty-one of her thirty-seven race starts, her last twenty-seven in succession and included in her twenty Group 1 wins are three Cox Plate victories.
Early betting for the 2018 Cox Plate at Ladbrokes.com.au: $1.35 Winx, $15 Humidor, $21 Grunt, $26 Benbatl, D’Argento, Kings Will Dream, $41 Kementari, Avilius, The Autumn Sun, Unforgotten, $61 Blair House, Cliffs Of Moher, Egg Tart, Folkswood, Lean Mean Machine, Night’s Watch, The Taj Mahal, Hunting Horn, $101 or better the rest.
