Peter Tighe made a promise to himself that he would only come to watch the Dubai World Cup if he had a runner. And now that dream may come true as he hopes to come to watch his mare Winx race.
The Queen of the Valley has been nominated for The US$6 million Dubai Turf. She will resume racing in with the 1600m Gr. 1 Chipping Norton Stakes at Royal Randwick (March 3) under jockey Hugh Bowman.
In the World's Best Racehorse Rankings, she is ranked both the world's top-ranked filly or mare and the world's top-ranked turf horse. She was also inducted to the Australian Racing Hall of Fame (2017), only the third horse to earn this honour while still in training.
In her last race which was her third Cox Plate Winx broke a few records. She managed to:
- Beat her own track record by .04s when she recorded 2.02.94s
- Pass Makybe Diva’s stakes earnings record of $14.52 million
- Draw level with Kingston Town’s record of three Cox Plate wins
- Draw level with Black Caviar’s record of 15 Group 1 wins
- Record her 22nd victory in a row
SW in conversation with the soft spoken charming co-owner of Winx and her greatest fan Peter Tighe:
Q – Winx, daughter of the Dubai World Cup winner Street Cry is entered in the US$6,000,000 Dubai Turf. Will it be her first run outside Australia? What made you decide to look at coming to the UAE?
A – I have the greatest respect for Dubai and we are very lucky to have a horse worthy of being invited to a Dubai World Cup race meeting. Although I have travelled to a great many places, I had promised myself that I would come to watch The Dubai World Cup only when I had a runner for the night. And what a runner she may be!
Q – The Queen of the Valley beat Redzel in her last trial and she ran a great race against Humidor in the Cox plate. Is there a specific runner whom you would be cautious off in the Dubai Turf?
A – There is absolutely no horse here in Australia or elsewhere we are worried to race against. But we do not want to push her too far. We are being very selective about the races we hope to run Winx in. Right now we are happy to go race-by-race. She is likely to be retired after 2018. She is already a 6-year-old mare and we want to do what is best for her. We want to try and keep her record intact. She is almost a national treasure in Australia. She is one of Australia’s greatest horses. Her racing career has to be managed in a way which is best for her.
Q - What is on your radar for her post the Dubai World Cup, if you come?
A – If all goes to plan, we hope to race her at Ascot and bring her back to Australia to defend her Cox Plate title.
Q – Have you decided on a jockey for her Dubai Turf run?
A –Her regular jockey Hugh Bowman,(who was recently acclaimed as Longines World's Best Jockey) will always have the right of first refusal. So we would definitely want Hugh Bowman to ride her in Dubai.
Q – What is the plan for Dubai?
A – We will wait until she has hopefull had a successful run the 1600m Gr. 1 Chipping Norton Stakes before discussing out the Dubai details in a meeting with the owners, her trainer (Chris Waller) and jockey (Hugh Bowman).
Q - What is your favourite racing moment with Winx?
A – It has got to be her third Cox Plate win. It was a surreal spectacle and a unique achievement. I will always consider it her best.
Q – How did you come to buy her? Was there a conscious plan to target her for Gr.1 races?
A – We bought her at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling sale. We had an agreement between the three owner (Richard G Treweeke, Mrs Debbie N Kepitis, my wife Patty and myself) to join together to buy a horse. That horse was Winx.
We always believed she had potential. Once she started showing her ability, we decided to run her in the ATC Oaks, in which she came second. We then gave her a small break before the Queensland Oaks. After her break she came back bigger and better. Ofcourse she won the Queensland Oaks.
Q – What kind of personality does she have?
A – Winx is a singular type of animal. She prefers her own company. Winx is definitely not a pet and won’t come to you when called. She is happiest on a race course and loves to compete. She has a particular friend in the stable, a calm, friendly, grey Gr.1 winning mare called Foxplay. But otherwise she likes to be left alone. Infact she doesn’t like hanging around the paddock either for too long. She would rather be back in the stable.
We wish Winx all the best of luck for run on 03 March and look forward to seeing her racing at Meydan.
