Caulfield Cup favourite Humidor is set to take on champion mare Winx in the Group 1 $500,000 Seppelt Turnbull Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on October 7.

Caulfield Cup favourite Humidor, above in green colours, is set to take on Winx in the Turnbull Stakes at Flemington. Photo by Ultimate Racing Photos.

Caulfield Cup favourite Humidor, above in green colours, is set to take on Winx in the Turnbull Stakes at Flemington. Photo by Ultimate Racing Photos.

Trainer Chris Waller announced today that Winx would be chasing her twenty-first straight win in the Turnbull Stakes as she marches on to claim a third victory in the Group 1 $3m Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m) at The Valley three weeks later.

Humidor shot to the top of the betting for the Group 1 $3.15m BMW Caulfield Cup (2400m) at Caulfield on October 21 after producing a barnstorming finish to win the Group 1 $750,000 PFD Food Services Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington last Saturday and trainer Darren Weir has pencilled in the Turnbull Stakes for the dual Group 1 winner.

“We are not changing anything, Humidor is definitely going to the Turnbull and then on the Caulfield Cup,” Weir told racing.com.

“We obviously respect Winx but you can’t just change your plans for one horse.”

Winx is yet to race at Flemington which is the scene of Humidor’s two Group 1 wins in the $1.5m Australian Cup (2000m) during the 2017 Melbourne Autumn Carnival and in last weekend’s Makybe Diva Stakes.

Winx has produced three stunning victories at Randwick from three Spring Carnival runs this campaign in the Group 2 $250,000 Warwick Stakes (1400m), the Group 2 $250,000 Tattersalls Club Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) and the Group 1 $500,000 Colgate Optic White Stakes (George Main Stakes) (1600m).

Winx is the winner of the last two runnings of the Cox Plate and is marked at $1.50 at Ladbrokes.com.au to claim her third straight victory in the ‘Weight For Age Championship’ which would see her equal the long standing record of the legendary Kingston Town who rattled off three consecutive wins in 1980, 1981 and 1982.

Early market order for the 2017 Ladbrokes Cox Plate at Ladbrokes.com.au: $1.50 Winx, $21 Hartnell, Humidor, $26 Egg Tart, Tosen Stardom, Royal Symphony, $41 Almandin, Bonneval, Catchy, Deauville, Gailo Chop, Happy Clapper, Redkirk Warrior, Vega Magic, $51 or better the rest.

About The Author

Mark Mazzaglia

Mark is a passionate journalist with a life-time involvement in the racing industry. He spent many years as an analyst and form expert at the Courier Mail and also has hands-on experience working with some of Queensland’s top trainers.