October
JanuaryGot them covered
Arguments on these pages about a fictional Cox Plate involving Might And Power, Sunline, Northerly, Saintly, Octagonal and Super Impose overlook the bigger question: why wasn’t Winx in it?
Let’s not allow a rose-coloured view of the past to obscure the existence of a champion in the present.
In 2015 Winx donkey-licked a big, strong field that included Highland Reel, who has since proved himself one of the world’s best middle-distance horses. He finished third in that Cox Plate, 5½ lengths from Winx.
There wasn’t as much depth in this season’s but the fact remains that she smashed Hartnell by a record eight lengths.
Hartnell had won his last three lead-up races by a combined 16¾ lengths, including a last-start defeat of the subsequent Caulfield Cup winner by 3¼ lengths.
He went on to run a top race for third in a strong Melbourne Cup despite probably failing to run out the 3200 metres.
Winx has won her past 13 races, at distances from 1300 to 2200 metres, nine of them at Group 1 level.
Even against that lot, she’d be entitled to start a warm favourite.
Cremorne (Vic)