Winx wins 19th in a row

HER trainer admits he was worried and her jockey has had a few anxious moments but Winx has remained cool under pressure to record her 19th straight win.

Josh Parr on Red Excitement ($26) took the bull by the horns and cleared out to a lead of about 10 lengths in Saturday’s Group II Chelmsford Stakes at Randwick.

Chris Waller sat watching without any emotion as Hugh Bowman made a move before the turn, realising there was work to do.

In the end, it looked easy with Winx ($1.09) striding out down the straight to catch the leader and win by a length with Bowman having time for a pre-post celebration.

‘‘I don’t think she knew he was out there in front and I have to admit I was more worried this time than last time,’’ Bowman said.

‘‘I’m concentrating on just keeping her balanced but when she hit the afterburners at the 150m mark today I just can’t explain the feeling. ‘‘I couldn’t do that on any other horse.’’ Waller echoed those sentiments. ‘‘I was worried. I didn’t think she was going to get there,’’ Waller said.

Winx joins New Zealander Gloaming and American star Zenyatta on 19 consecutive wins, six short of the unbeaten sprinter Black Caviar.

Josh Parr, who rode the Gerald Ryan-trained Red Excitement, thought he was about to pull off the biggest upset in recent history. ‘‘I thought I had pulled it off,’’ he said. The Stephen Marsh-trained Chocante was mighty impressive in his first start since winning the Brisbane Cup.

Meanwhile, ATC Derby winner Jon Snow finished a close sixth in Memsie Stakes at Caulfield.

AAP