Winx in danger of track traffic

AN equine traffic jam and not a barrier mishap is the biggest threat to Winx’s famous winning streak at Royal Randwick on Saturday.

Champion mare Winx’s presence in the weight-for-age Group 2 $250,000 Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) has not deterred the connections of another 15 runners from nominating for the race.

Winx has won her past 18 races with 10 coming in Sydney weight-for-age races.

In those, she has met an average of eight rivals, with the biggest field size of 12 runners.

If all the Chelmsford entries accept for Saturday’s race, this would be the biggest field Winx has tackled. She won the 2015 Doncaster Mile against 14 opponents.

She goes into the Chelmsford Stakes after her memorable comeback win in the Warwick Stakes, where she blew the start by four lengths yet still unleashed an irresistible late surge to run down stablemate Foxplay on the line.

Trainer Chris Waller has been given approval to use ear muffs on Winx in an endeavour to stop the great mare missing the start again.

“It (ear muffs) just helps to block out the background noise,’’ Waller said.

“She’ll still hear Hugh Bowman say, ‘it’s time to go’.

“She wears ear muffs when she works and when she parades before they come off prior to the start. This time they will stay on for the race.’’

Despite the surprisingly large number of Chelmsford entries, Winx is likely to start at the shortest price of her celebrated career – she is $1.06 in early betting with Foxplay next at $15, then $26 the field.

The shortest price offered about Winx so far is the $1.09 bookies bet before her George Main Stakes win last year.

But she will almost certainly start at shorter odds on Saturday as Foxplay is an unlikely Chelmsford runner.

Waller said Foxplay could contest the Group 2 $200,000 Tramway Stakes (1400m) instead this Saturday or be reserved for Rosehill next week. She has also been entered for the Group 1 $1 million Memsie Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield this weekend. Winx’s stablemates Antonio Giuseppe, Libran, Life Less Ordinary, Sarrassin, Tom Melbourne, and Who Shot Thebarman have also been entered for the Chelmsford.

Tom Melbourne is also a dual entry with Waller also nominating him for the Tramway along with stablemates Egg Tart, Mackintosh and McCreery.

Egg Tart, chasing her eighth win in succession, has opened as equal favourite at $6 with Happy Clapper and Invincible Gem for the Tramway Stakes.

Talented sprinter Spieth starts his preparation towards the $10 million The Everest when he contests the Group 3 $150,000 Concorde Stakes (1000m).