Top 5 Verry Elleegant Stakes Winners
The Verry Elleegant Stakes (formerly the Chipping Norton Stakes) (1600m) is the first Group 1 race in Sydney for the calendar year and has been won by some champion gallopers over the years. See who made our list of top 5 Verry Elleegant Stakes winners since 2000.
In modern times, the feature race has been taken out by some outstanding gallopers.
Top 5 Verry Elleegant Stakes winners.
1. WINX (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019)
The Chipping Norton Stakes was one of three Group 1 races that Winx won on four occasions. The others were the Cox Plate (2040m) and the George Ryder Stakes (1500m). Those combined 12 victories made up part of her streak of 33 races without a defeat. She retired with 37 wins from 43 starts and is regarded as one of the best racehorses of all time.
2. TIE THE KNOT (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002)
Tie The Knot is another four-time winner of this race, achieving that feat from 1999 through to 2002. He appeared at a time when Australian racing boasted some big names and registered a then record 13 Group 1 wins. A champion for the late Guy Walter, he won the Sydney Cup (3200m) on two occasions and was runner-up behind Sunline in the 1999 Cox Plate (2040m).
3. LONHRO (2003)
Lonhro defeated Shogun Lodge in the 2003 edition of this race, which came in the middle of a streak of five straight wins. He picked up the George Ryder Stakes (1500m) following this race before running 4th in the Doncaster (1600m) when conceding 6kg to another top galloper in Grand Armee. The crowd favourite won 26 of 35 races overall with 11 coming at the highest level.
4. GRAND ARMEE (2005)
A tough galloper from the Gai Waterhouse camp, Grand Armee just misses out behind Lonhro in this list but did manage to defeat that horse on a couple of occasions, most famously in the 2004 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) by six lengths. He took out the Chipping Norton in 2005 before going on to take out the Ranvet Stakes (2000m) and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes for the second year in a row.
5. SHOOT OUT (2012, 2013)
Another multiple winner of the Chipping Norton Stakes, Shoot Out was too good for his rivals in 2012 and 2013. He was transferred to the Chris Waller stables from John Wallace prior to his 2012 win and helped establish Waller as a trainer. He claimed five career Group 1 wins and was a bargain buy that won feature races not only in NSW but Queensland and Victoria.
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