Via Sistina out to frank hot Cox Plate form
Champions Stakes win will vindicate camp’s decision for mare to bypass Melbourne Cup
MELBOURNE - Chris Waller will have a couple of last-start Group 1-winning mares headed to the Champions Stakes at Flemington on Nov 9.
The A$3 million (S$2.64 million) Group 1 Champions Stakes over 2,000m, to be run at 2.10pm Singapore time, will see Via Sistina and stablemate Atishu line up against another nine rivals (after Kingswood was scratched).
Waller hopes the decision to bypass the Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup (3,200m) with his emphatic Cox Plate winner Via Sistina will be vindicated in another Group 1 success at Flemington.
The Sydney champion trainer said the decision to miss the Melbourne Cup following Via Sistina’s record-breaking win in the Group 1 Cox Plate (2,040m) at Moonee Valley on Oct 26 was a difficult decision for all involved.
“We were very close to running and we were very tempted but there were so many aspects to suggest that we shouldn’t,” he said.
“You’ve got to draw a line somewhere and there were enough negatives to suggest that whilst she’s become the world’s highest-rated horse over 2,000 metres, how dare we try to run over 3,200 metres which is another extra third of the distance.
“She probably gets 2,400 metres, she probably gets 3,000 metres but that last 200 metres is what counts in the Melbourne Cup.”
Waller said he had the full support of the ownership team in bypassing the Cup, but racegoers will get the opportunity to see the seven-year-old mare by Fastnet Rock in action again on Nov 9.
He is not expecting another eight-length romp, but will be happy just to see her successful again.
If the Yulong-owned star is, she will be chalking up her fifth win – remarkably all at Group 1 level – in only seven starts since arriving in Australia from UK, where she won five races, including the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes (2,011m) at The Curragh in July 2023.
“Via Sistina’s come through her Cox Plate win very well. She’s gone to a new level in terms of running a track record at the Valley in such a time-honoured race,” said Waller.
“I thought it may have come at a cost, but it hasn’t.
“I wouldn’t say she’s improved but she hasn’t gone backwards. And if she can hold her own, the team are telling me she’s ready to do another great performance on Saturday.”
While Via Sistina is favoured to win the Champions Stakes – she is the A$1.50 top elect in Australia – Waller is not discounting the chances of Atishu (A$10).
Atishu won the 2023 Champions Stakes, which was until 2021 known as the Mackinnon Stakes, and finally broke through for her first win in the Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes (1,600m) in her third attempt on Nov 2.
“Atishu has got a great record of backing up in seven days,” Waller said.
“The first run they go in a little bit underdone, and she won the race in the final few strides.
“She’s come through it well. She spent the first couple of days of the week at the beach and it’s just perfect weather for horses at the moment. They’re not having to be rugged up and they’re getting plenty of sun on their backs.
“We are confident that she’ll back up well and race accordingly.”
Via Sistina will be ridden by her Cox Plate-winning partner James McDonald, who is aiming to better the record of 10 winners – which he holds himself – at the four-day Melbourne Cup Carnival, on its last day.
Amelita’s Group 3 Red Roses Stakes (1,100m) on Oaks Day on Nov 7 brought up the 32-year-old’s seventh winner.
Besides Via Sistina, Fangirl in the Group 1 Champions Mile (1,600m), Sunshine In Paris in the Group 1 Champions Sprint (1,200m) and Pisanello in the last race are the Kiwi jockey’s other top chances of reaching his target. Sky Racing
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