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Elite horses throughout their careers have taken out the Champagne Stakes run at Randwick on Saturday as babies.
Pierro won his to take the Triple Crown. The 2019 Champagne Stakes (1600m) at Randwick on Saturday hasn’t one that good.
2019 Champagne Stakes: Nominations
2019 CHAMPAGNE STAKES - RACE HISTORY AND BACKGROUND
The Champagne Stakes is a Group 1 race for Two Year Olds conducted by the Australian Turf Club at Randwick.
The Champagne Stakes was first run in 1861 and was won by Exeter.
The Champagne Stakes is run over 1600m under Set Weight conditions. It has had many distance changes and was a sprint race until the early 70s. (1000m (1861), 1600m (1862-1864), 1400m (1865-1866), 1000m (1867-1880), 1200m (1881), 1000m (1882), 1200m (1883-1971), 1600m (1972-onwards)).
In the last 25 years, 10 Fillies have won the Champagne Stakes with the previous filly winner – Seabrook (2018).
Three people share the most wins as a trainer at six being Tom Lamond, Maurice McCarten and Tommy Smith.
Shane Dye, with six of his own, has most titles for the jockeys ahead of Tom Hales with five.
The ATC Sires is the obvious lead up run two weeks earlier with the Champagne winner running in it 20 times in 25 years. The Fernhill Hcp is the other race to look to.
Six times the Triple Crown was completed in the Champagne Stakes – Baguette (1970), Luskin Star (1977), Tierce (1991), Burst (1992), Dance Hero (2004), Pierro (2012).
AJC Sires-Champagne Stakes double – 40 times with the most recent winner being Guelph (2013).
Golden Slipper-Champagne Stakes double – Todman (1957), Sky High (1960), Storm Queen (1966), Baguette (1970), Vivarchi (1976), Luskin Star (1977), Tierce (1991), Burst (1992), Dance Hero (2004), Pierro (2012).
1957 saw Todman defeat Tulloch reversing the result from the Sires. A ‘good’ crop of 2yos you’d say.
Helmet ducked off the track in the straight and almost threw the 2011 race away. Viscount did the same thing 10 years earlier when he shied at a flock of seagulls.
The 2019 Champagne Stakes is worth $500,000 in prizemoney.
Notables winners of the Champagne Stakes include Hyperion (1875), Robinson Crusoe (1876), Malt King (1909), Furious (1921), Heroic (1924), Manfred (1925), Hall Mark (1933), Ajax (1937), Flight (1943), Todman (1957), Wiggle (1958), Noholme (1959), Sky High (1960), Storm Queen (1966), Vain (1969), Baguette (1970), Luskin Star (1977), Red Anchor (1984), Bounding Away (1986), Tierce (1991), Burst (1992), Dance Hero (2004), Samantha Miss (2008), Helmet (2011), Pierro (2012) and Prized Icon (2016).
The 2018 Champagne Stakes was won by Seabrook from Bondi and El Dorado Dreaming.