HISTORY AWAITS
CHAMPION galloper Winx will join racing legends at Moonee Valley today if she can record her third consecutive Cox Plate victory, for 22 wins in a row. The mighty mare will start $1.15 favourite as she aims to equal Kingston Town’s s weight-for-age treble
JOCKEY Kerrin McEvoy has yet to get the photos, but the day he got to take champion Winx for a spin around Rosehill remains clear in his mind.
It was March this year and the champion mare’s regular jockey Hugh Bowman was in Melbourne riding at the Australian Cup meeting at Flemington. McEvoy took the world’s best horse on turf around in a race day gallop seven days before she claimed the Group One George Ryder Stakes by more than seven lengths.
Although only a gallop, it was still a thrill for the jockey, who rides Folkswood against her in today’s Cox Plate at Moonee Valley.
“It was great to have a little spin on her,” McEvoy said.
“I haven’t yet got some photos of the gallop but I will be getting that just to show the grandkids one day.”
McEvoy was immediately taken by how Winx was even bigger and stronger than she looked and how balanced she was when she moved.
“She’s very balanced. And you can look at her, but then when you’re on her she’s big- ger and stronger again,” McEvoy said.
Another photo McEvoy does not yet have is one of him winning a Cox Plate. He has 63 Group One wins to his name, including two Melbourne Cups, a Caulfield Cup and a Golden Slipper, but Australia’s premier weight-for-age race has eluded McEvoy.
Earlier this month, he steered Redzel to win the inaugural $10 million Everest at Randwick, the richest turf race in the world.
McEvoy gets his latest Cox Plate chance on the Charlie Appleby-trained English visitor Folkswood. But a formidable opponent awaits in Winx. She is $1.15 favourite to win her third Cox Plate.
“There’s no denying the fact that we’ve got a mountain to climb,” McEvoy said.
He said Folkswood was “quite stylish” when he rode him to victory in the recent Cranbourne Cup and believes he can run well.
“You’ve got to go out with the mindset that it’s a horse race and anything can happen,” he said.
Royal Symphony will start second favourite at $15, with Gailo Chop next at $18 and Folkswood at $19.