Tighe lives Winx dream
SITTING in Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s office on Tuesday night, sharing one of the specially made Winx beers, Peter Tighe thought about how surreal the story around his champion has become.
Winx runs for history at Moonee Valley this afternoon.
No horse has won four Cox Plates. If Winx runs in the first five today, she will become the first to win $ 20 million.
Tighe and his wife Patty, along with fellow part- owner Debbie Kepitis, were special guests at a function held by Thoroughbred Breeders Australia in Canberra this week, where politicians were keen to hear about the great mare.
“We were inside the Prime Minister’s office with the three Cox Plates sitting on his desk. It was a bit surreal. We went to Bill Shorten’s office and he did the same thing,” Tighe said.
“They were all like school kids when we opened ( the trophies) up and showed them all. People at the function had Winx hats on and were drinking Winx beer.
“If you buy a horse and think you’ll get to meet the Prime Minister people would think you’re a bit ridiculous, but that’s how it’s been,” he said.
The Winx beer has been popular in Melbourne this spring and there will be many cans sold at the Valley today.
“One of the girls at Moonee Valley thought it would be a good idea if they honoured Winx with a beer,” Tighe said.
“Carlton and United said that sounds like a great idea and that’s what they’ve done.
“Everywhere you go down here they serve Winx beer. I bought a pallet of it myself.”
Melbourne has been gripped by Winx fever this week. The riverfront adjoining Crown Casino was decked out with a massive screen, demountable grandstand and a host of Winx memorabilia as a place to go for those who missed out on tickets to Moonee Valley.
“The Victorians have embraced it on a personal basis like an AFL Grand Final. It’s as big as that,” Tighe said. “The town is almost blue and white from one end to the other.”
But Tighe never loses sight of the reason he has become a figure of public prominence.
He says Winx “means the world” to his family.
“She’s given us opportunities we would never even imagine,” he said.
“It’s something we can’t thank her for in a human kind of way, but we will always be indebted to her.
“The gratitude we will show to her is that she will have the best of everything for the rest of her life.
“You couldn’t have dreamed of it ever happening. Win, lose or draw ( today), it’s just been the trip of a lifetime.”