Marhoona, trained by Michael Freedman, emerged victorious in the 2025 Golden Slipper at Rosehill on Saturday, defeating Wodeton and the unlucky Tempted in a thrilling finish.

Marhoona (green silks) winning the 2025 Golden Slipper Stakes. Photo: © 2025 – Bradley Photos.

The fillies continued their recent dominance in the world’s richest two-year-old race.

Damian Lane, who previously won the Slipper on Kiamichi in 2019, timed his run perfectly on Marhoona.

Settling mid-field, Marhoona ($8) surged through the field, taking the lead 100m from the finish.

The Chris Waller one-time favourite Wodeton ($7) challenged strongly, but Marhoona held on for a narrow victory.

“Yeah, huge thrill,” Freedman told Sky Thoroughbred Central after claiming his second win in the event to add to his 2021 win with Stay Inside in partnership with Richard Freedman.

“You know, we’ve been through the ups and downs with the family over a lot of years with these sort of good results, bad results. But, yeah, it’s a huge thrill for my team.”

Marhoona’s win marked her second career victory, following a debut win at Canterbury and a runner-up finish to Tempted in the Reisling Stakes.

“If I’m being honest, I said to a few people, earlier today, I thought maybe it would have been nice to have had one more run under our belt, but she’s a special filly,” Freedman admitted.

“When she won at Canterbury at first start, she ripped half a foot off winning that race, and I thought you’re tough.

“And she bounced back from it, went to the Reisling a month later, and it’s a bit of an unusual preparation, I guess, going into a Slipper at your third start.

“But, yeah, she’s a special filly.”

Tempted ($4.80F), the James Cummings trained Reisling winner, finished third after encountering interference late in the race.

“She ran incredibly,” Tempted’s jockey Blake Shinn said after the loss.

“I think she should have arguably won the race.

“Momentarily got our run impeded when North England and Bellazaine came together.

“I think that cost us the race. A tough one to swallow. She ran a great race.”

Lane praised Marhoona’s performance, highlighting her bravery in the closing stages.

“She was great,” Lane said.

“She’s obviously been prepped perfectly for this, just peaking on the day.

“Not often you come up with a plan and execute it perfectly, well in Group 1s anyway.

“It really played out how we thought it might, and she was great.

“She just was there to be beaten at the 100m and Wodeton got to us, she really stuck at it, so very brave.”

The race was marred by an incident involving Within The Law, who went through the fence.

Both the filly and jockey Jason Collett escaped serious injury.

“Golden Slipper runner Within The Law has a minor abrasion to her near hind leg but at this stage she seems clinically ok, and we will continue to closely monitor her,” Bjorn Baker Racing announced on X.

“Thankful Jason & filly are ok.”

Marhoona is now being considered for the Group 2 $1 million Percy Sykes Stakes (1200m) at Randwick on April 12.

“Marhoona sits top of the latest all-in 2025 Percy Sykes Stakes odds online at $4 through Ladbrokes with Tempted the next best at $5 in the potential rematch,” a betting expert from Races.com.au noted.

2025 Golden Slipper Results

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

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