Top 5 Flight Stakes Winners

The Flight Stakes (1600m) is the top race for the three-year-old fillies in the Sydney spring and has been won by some champion gallopers over the years. See who made our list of top 5 Flight Stakes winners since 1990.

In modern times, the feature race has been taken out by some outstanding gallopers.

Top 5 Flight Stakes winners.

1. SUNLINE (1998)

The grand mare, Sunline, heads our top 5 Flight Stakes winners and had an extraordinary record, winning 32 of 48 career starts. The New Zealand gun would often settle in the lead before upping the ante at the business end, breaking those that would assume the chasing role. She won the Cox Plate (2040m), Doncaster Mile (1600m), Coolmore Classic (1500m), Waikato Sprint (1400m) and the All Aged on two occasions each, while she took out a stirring edition of the Hong Kong Mile (1600m) in the year 2000. Her win in the Flight Stakes of 1998 was when when she announced herself as a future star.

2. MORE JOYOUS (2009)

The Gai Waterhouse-trained More Joyous proved to be an enduring and versatile galloper. Her 2009 win in this race was the first of her eight Group 1 wins and she continued her fine form deep into her career, named as the Champion Middle Distance Racehorse in 2012. She went on to take out the Doncaster Mile with 57.5kg, just shy of the 58kg that Sunline carted to victory in 2002. She was the dominant filly and mare of her generation.

3. SAMANTHA MISS (2008)

Samantha Miss announced herself earlier on in 2008, claiming the Champagne Stakes (1600m) as a two-year-old, defeating Sebring and was the dominant filly as a three-year-old, taking out four on the trot, including the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m). The Kris Lees-trained galloper did what few fillies have been able to do, mixing it with the guns in the Cox Plate (2040m), running 3rd in the 2008 edition of that race to Maldivian. She then took out the Crown Oaks (2500m) before retiring with seven wins from 12 starts.

4. GUELPH (2013)

Similar to Samantha Miss, Guelph was another outstanding filly and the dominant girl in 2013. After running on for 4th in the Golden Slipper, she claimed the Inglis Sires and the Champagne Stakes before winning three of four as a three-year-old, defeating Sydney and Melbourne’s best in the Flight and the Thousand Guineas (1600m).

5. ALIZEE (2017)

Alizee was the 2017 winner of the Flight Stakes and went on to claim the the Queen Of The Turf (1600m) in 2018 and the Futurity Stakes in 2018. The Godolphin mare picked up a Group race in all of her campaigns except as a two-year-old. In the 2017 Flight Stakes she found a gap at the 200m and displayed a devastating turn of foot to defeat Champagne Cuddles.

Notable Mention: UNWORLDLY (2000)

The story of Unworldly is a mix of tragedy and what could have been. Regarded as one of the best ever that the all-conquering Ingham family owned, the John Hawkes-trained galloper won her six career starts and booted clear to win the 2000 Flight Stakes by three lengths as a $1.25 favourite. She had a mortgage on the Thousand Guineas (1600m) and VRC Oaks (2500m) that year but broke down in track work and was euthanised.

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