A Win For The Ages - Winx Takes her Place Among All Time Greats

The highly anticipated match race between Winx and Hartnell in Saturday's $3 million Group 1 William Hill Cox Plate (2040m) looked likely to materialize when James McDonald made first run on Hartnell but one look at Hugh Bowman swinging off the champion Winx was all that was needed to see this race was done and dusted with 600 metres left to run.

Whipping off the banked home turn like a champion cyclist at the velodrome, Winx needed just two backhanders from Bowman to leave her demoralized opponents better than eight lengths in the rear vision mirror.

By any measure, this was one of the most dominant performances seen in the great race.

To thunderous applause from the crowd, the daughter of Street Cry (IRE) strolled home eight lengths clear of Hartnell who held off the 3yo filly Yankee Rose by three-quarters of a length for second. (photos Grant Courtney).

In making it two consecutive wins in the WFA championship, 12^th win on the trot and ninth at the elite level, Winx advances her overall record to 17 wins and 3 seconds from 23 starts with earnings of $9,348,175.

 "To ride a horse like this and to come out on to the track prior to the race and have the crowd cheer you on to the track, I was really moved by that," Bowman said.

"I had to regather myself when I got down to the start.

"I've had a bit of an in-and-out afternoon and an in-and-out couple of weeks but to produce a ride this mare is worthy of today gives me so much pride."

Winning trainer Chris Waller was so choked with emotion he was finding it hard to talk. But he did manage to say the great mare would be back next year in an attempt to match the great Kingston Town who remains the only horse in history to win three Cox Plates in a row. The winning margin of eight lengths bettered that of another duel winner, the champion Kiwi mare Sunline, who scored by seven lengths in her second Cox Plate victory in 2000.

"To get to this stage last year was something different to me," Waller said.

"To get back here again with the build-up, it was fantastic. For her to win like that, it was probably pretty fitting for the horse she is.

"I stupidly got involved in the build-up but I'm very proud now. It's just fantastic for racing."

Bred by John Camilleri's Fairway Thoroughbreds, Winx was a $230,000 Magic Millions purchase from the Coolmore draft for Peter Tighe's Magic Bloodstock.

A half-sister to Group III Kindergarten Stakes winner El Divino, Winx is out of the Al Akbar mare Vegas Showgirl who has a 2yo colt by Snitzel that was purchased for $2,300,000 out of the Segenhoe Stud draft by Gai Waterhouse Racing / J Blaxland at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling sale.

Vegas Showgirl foaled a Snitzel filly on September 7 after missing to the Arrowfield stallion in 2014.