The 2018 Wakeful Stakes is a Group 2 race held annually at Flemington racecourse at the very end of October, right in the heart of the Melbourne spring racing carnival. The event is contested over a 2000m trek specifically for three year old fillies and pays out prize money worth $300,000.
Traditionally run on the first day of the Melbourne Cup Racing Carnival the Wakeful Stakes is on the Derby Day card, a program which features four Group 1’s including the Victoria Derby, Myer Classic, Coolmore Stud Stakes and the Mackinnon Stakes.
Other black-type races that the Wakeful Stakes shares a program with include the Group 2 Salinger Stakes, Group 3 Carbine Club Stakes, Group 3 Lexus Stakes and Group 3 Chatham Stakes.
The Derby Day line up pleases all tastes with sprint and middle distance events and the Wakeful Stakes plays a key role as gruelling 2000m trip.
Coming into this event horses will usually come from Group 2 level in the Edward Manifold Stakes or potentially from the Group 1 Thousand Guineas at Caulfield.
From here the obvious move is the Group 1 Crown Oaks providing the horse is in good shape to take on the extra distance.
The Wakeful Stakes is a handy guide to what may await in the Crown Oaks however it’s not a concrete certainty given the extra distance.
Hollow Bullet in 2004, Serenade Rose in 2005 and Faint Perfume in 2009 are all modern horses which have completed the double.
There’s been more than a few top quality winners of the Wakeful Stakes over the years and plenty have gone on to find further glory.
Research in 1988 and Kensington Palace in 1997 are some of the older horses which appear on the winners list.
More recently Tuesday Joy won in 2006 and Brazilian Pulse triumphed in 2010.
2018 Wakeful Stakes Field
The Wakeful Stakes field attracts horses from a variety of preparations, but usually at the upper end of black type racing. Expect to see quite a few group level winners lining up in the Wakeful Stakes field. Because it’s run over 2000m, the type of fillies who enter the Wakeful Stakes field are usually committed stayers, rather than milers stepping up.
The 2018 Wakeful Stakes field will be published below.
| No | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Penalty | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3x4213x303 | EL DORADO DREAMING | Kris Lees | Damien Oliver | 3 | 58.5kg | – | 102 |
| 2 | 21131 | VERRY ELLEEGANT (NZ) | Darren Weir | John Allen | 6 | 56kg | – | 81 |
| 3 | x740x48504 | QAFILA | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | Jim Crowley | 2 | 55.5kg | – | 70 |
| 4 | x242x53792 | ARISTIA | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | Damian Lane | 10 | 55kg | – | 71 |
| 5 | 5x023x5143 | SIZZLEME | Cindy Alderson | Ben Melham | 1 | 55kg | – | 70 |
| 6 | 6×1220 | YULONG METEOR | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | Michael Walker | 12 | 55kg | – | 62 |
| 7 | 55×611 | TYSONIC | Darren Weir | Ben Allen (a) | 5 | 55kg | – | 65 |
| 8 | 54×063654 | EXCLUSIVELY OURS | Matthew Brown | Ben Thompson | 8 | 55kg | – | 57 |
| 9 | 14 | MAUI GIRL | Tony McEvoy | Luke Currie | 4 | 55kg | – | 64 |
| 10 | 323 | SEALED | Grahame Begg | Jordan Childs | 9 | 55kg | – | 59 |
| 11 | 7×42 | SKYWAY STAR | Symon Wilde | Craig Williams | 7 | 55kg | – | 59 |
| 12 | 805×73 | LESEDI | Robbie Laing | – | 11 | 55kg | – | 52 |
2018 Wakeful Stakes Nominations
The Wakeful Stakes nominations are released less than a week prior to the race. When you’re perusing the Wakeful Stakes nominations, you’ll likely notice a pattern of fillies that have regularly lined up against each other throughout the spring racing carnival. The Wakeful Stakes nominations provide a good guide to the fillies that are expected to perform strongly the following year.
| No. | Last 10 | Horse | Sex | Age | Trainer | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 422×1111 | AMPHITRITE | F | 3 | Darren Weir | 105 |
| 2 | x242x53792 | ARISTIA | F | 3 | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | 71 |
| 3 | 2224 | COLLECTABLE | F | 3 | Robbie Griffiths | 60 |
| 4 | 6×22186 | DARK CONFIDANT | F | 3 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 62 |
| 5 | 3x4213x303 | EL DORADO DREAMING | F | 3 | Kris Lees | 102 |
| 6 | 54×063654 | EXCLUSIVELY OURS | F | 3 | Matthew Brown | 57 |
| 7 | 805×73 | LESEDI | F | 3 | Robbie Laing | 52 |
| 8 | 8511 | MARACAIBO | F | 3 | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | 62 |
| 9 | 14 | MAUI GIRL | F | 3 | Tony McEvoy | 64 |
| 10 | 5x22x216 | MIRETTE | F | 3 | Archie Alexander | 64 |
| 11 | 29251 | MISS MOANA (NZ) | F | 3 | John Sargent | 61 |
| 12 | x740x48504 | QAFILA | F | 3 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 70 |
| 13 | 4221 | SCAMPER | F | 3 | Leon & Troy Corstens | 62 |
| 14 | 323 | SEALED | F | 3 | Grahame Begg | 59 |
| 15 | 5x023x5143 | SIZZLEME | F | 3 | Cindy Alderson | 70 |
| 16 | 7×42 | SKYWAY STAR | F | 3 | Symon Wilde | 59 |
| 17 | 33317 | STRIPPING ROYALTY (NZ) | F | 3 | Darren Weir | 62 |
| 18 | 55×611 | TYSONIC | F | 3 | Darren Weir | 65 |
| 19 | 21131 | VERRY ELLEEGANT (NZ) | F | 3 | Darren Weir | 81 |
| 20 | 6×1220 | YULONG METEOR | F | 3 | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | 62 |
The 2018 Wakeful Stakes nominations are published below.
| # | Last 10 | Horse | Sex | Age | Trainer | Ballot | Weight | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2x31x16311 | BANISH | F | 3 | James Cummings | 1 | 57kg | 84 |
| 2 | 4321 | BRING ME ROSES | F | 3 | Tony McEvoy | 2 | 57kg | 80 |
| 3 | 92211 | PINOT | F | 3 | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | 3 | 56kg | 80 |
| 4 | 1x316x9747 | PURE SCOT | F | 3 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 4 | 55kg | 69 |
| 5 | 60×11424 | GLAM GURU | F | 3 | Leon Macdonald & Andrew Gluyas | 5 | 55kg | 69 |
| 6 | 32x47x4536 | LUCKY LOUIE | F | 3 | Anthony & Edward Cummings | 6 | 55kg | 64 |
| 7 | 5×123 | HIYAAM (NZ) | F | 3 | Mick Price | 7 | 55kg | 70 |
| 8 | 22×2212 | RIMRAAM (NZ) | F | 3 | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | 8 | 55kg | 70 |
| 9 | 17762 | LUVALUVA (NZ) | F | 3 | John Sargent | 9 | 55kg | 64 |
| 10 | 3415 | IMPROVISE | F | 3 | Chris Waller | 10 | 55kg | 63 |
| 11 | 674×34857 | SMOOTH LANDING | F | 3 | John P Thompson | 11 | 55kg | 58 |
| 12 | 114 | TEODORA | F | 3 | Darren Weir | 12 | 55kg | 67 |
| 13 | 933301 | PRES DE TOI | F | 3 | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | 13 | 55kg | 64 |
| 14 | 4×6216 | SHEEZDASHING | F | 3 | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | 14 | 55kg | 62 |
| 15 | 434193 | SNOGGING | F | 3 | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young | 15 | 55kg | 62 |
| 16 | 31 | CABIERRO | F | 3 | Anthony Freedman | 16 | 55kg | 62 |
| 17 | 935 | BERKSHIRE LADY | F | 3 | Danny O’Brien | 17 | 55kg | 57 |
| 18 | 066×84 | MISS ADMIRATION | F | 3 | Mick Price | 18 | 55kg | 55 |
Wakeful Stakes Results
Wakeful Stakes winners, place getters and winning times since 2000 are listed below.
| Year | Results | Winning Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1 TBD | 2 TBD | 3 TBD | TBD |
| 2017 | 1 Luvaluva | 2 Glam Guru | 3 Rimraam | 2:03.9 |
| 2016 | 1 Tiamo Grace | 2 Sebring Dream | 3 Missrock | 2:04.4 |
| 2015 | 1 Ambience | 2 Beluga Blue | 3 Muzyka | 2:04.7 |
| 2014 | 1 Thunder Lady | 2 Abduction | 3 Fenway | 2:03.4 |
| 2013 | 1 Kirramosa | 2 May’s Dream | 3 Solicit | 2:05.2 |
| 2012 | 1 Zydeco | 2 Maraatib | 3 Transonic | 2:02.8 |
| 2011 | 1 Atlantic Jewel | 2 Rahveel | 3 Dowager Queen | 2:04.98 |
| 2010 | 1 Brazilian Pulse | 2 Placement | 3 Heartsareforlove | 2:04.2 |
| 2009 | 1 Faint Perfume | 2 Silent Surround | 3 Melito | 2:03.2 |
| 2008 | 1 Rocha | 2 Miss Scarlatti | 3 Estee | 2:05.5 |
| 2007 | 1 Zarita | 2 Riva San | 3 Katherine Gold | 2:05.8 |
| 2006 | 1 Tuesday Joy | 2 J’adane | 3 Anamato | 2:02.7 |
| 2005 | 1 Serenade Rose | 2 Astronomia | 3 Zenarta | 2:02.5 |
| 2004 | 1 Hollow Bullet | 2 Storm Alert | 3 Mango Daiquiri | 2:02.1 |
| 2003 | 1 Timbourina | 2 Special Harmony | 3 Dane Beltar | 2:05.5 |
| 2002 | 1 Hierogram | 2 Its Who Deanie | 3 Lashed | 2:02.9 |
| 2001 | 1 Quays | 2 Gold Lottery | 3 Li Lo Lill | 2:01.2 |
| 2000 | 1 Lolita Star | 2 Lang Kwai Fong | 3 Tanith | 2:04.7 |
