Star mare Winx is now on top of 2015 Cox Plate betting markets and she is set to start the Australasian Weight-For-Age Championship as favourite.
Winx is set to start the 2015 Cox Plate as a clear favourite and has the chance to record a fifth straight win. Photo by: Steve Hart
Winx opened at 2015 Cox Plate odds of $7.50 when the Cox Plate field was released on Tuesday morning, but there has been constant support for the four-year-old and she is now into $5 to record her third win at Group 1 level.
The daughter of Street Cry made her racing debut with a win at Warwick Farm on June and she stamped herself as a horse to watch when she won the Group 2 Furious Stakes (1200m) in September of last year before she was beaten by First Seal in both the Group 2 Tea Rose Stakes (1400m) and the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m).
Winx made a slow start to her 2015 Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival campaign and she only recorded one win from five starts, but she went to another level when she was sent North for the 2015 Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival and she recorded impressive victories in both the Group 3 Sunshine Coast Guineas (1600m) and the Group 1 Queensland Oaks (2200m).
She returned to the races with another explosive victory in the Group 2 Theo Marks Stakes (1300m) at Rosehill Gardens on September 12 before she stamped herself as a leading Cox Plate contender with another visually stunning win in the Group 1 Epsom Handicap (1600m) at Royal Randwick on October 3.
While punters are clear confident that Winx is the horse to beat in the 2015 Cox Plate, favourites have not had the best record in the Group 1 event in recent years.
The Cox Plate was dominated by favourites in the late 1990s and early 2000s, but since Northerly took out the race in 2002 only two favourites have been able to get the job done.
Lonhro was beaten as an odds-on favourite by Fields Of Omagh in the 2003 edition of the race and Elvstroem lost 12 months later before Makybe Diva ended the run of losses for favourites with her arrogant win in 2005.
Racing To Win (2006), Miss Finland (2007), Samantha Miss (2008) and Whobegotyou (2009) were all upstaged as the punters elect in the Cox Plate before So You Think won as a $1.50 chance in 2010, but since then Helmet (2011), Green Moon (2012), It’s A Dundeel (2013) and Fawkner (2014) were all beaten as favourites.
Winx is currently available at 2015 Cox Plate odds of $5 with Ladbrokes and she is now favourite from Highland Reel ($6), Criterion ($6), Arod ($8.50) and Kermadec ($9.50).
You can score the best 2015 Cox Plate odds with Ladbrokes, who are offering Best Tote or Starting Price +20% on every single runner in the Cox Plate field.
