If there was ever an hour on a racetrack that captured the soaring highs and grim lows of racing, it was there for all to see at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
At 3pm, Winx sashayed into the Theatre of the Horse to a rousing reception from a huge audience only previously afforded the champion sprinter Black Caviar. She then won the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes as a $1.12 favourite with impudent ease.
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Winx wins 17th in succession
Winx has continued her incredible run of consecutive victories, winning the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick by five lengths.
Chris Waller was so emotional, so relieved, that it took a hug from wife Stephanie and part-owner Peter Tighe midway through a television interview for the country's biggest trainer to finally crack a smile.
At 4pm, in the Sydney Cup, there were different tears as Almoonqith was dragged from the track having been euthanised after breaking down as the field went past the winning post for the first time.
That's when all hell broke loose. Some jockeys had heard officials yelling at them at the 800m that the race had been called off for safety reasons and pulled up their mounts. Others didn't and kept going.
In the end, stewards declared the time-honoured Sydney Cup a "no-race", meaning punters got their money back but that was no consolation for the horse's strapper, David Brown. He stood on the course proper, looked down the straight beyond the finishing post where the galloper he shared a special bond with was being attended to behind black tarps. "I'm shattered," he said as he walked away.
The incident had happened right in front of the winning post where, only 40minutes earlier, Winx had stormed to her 17th straight victory amid scenes not witnessed at Randwick for years.
"That just puts it into perspective," Waller said. "You never see that on a racecourse and you should just be happy when they all get around. It just shows how high you can go to how low you can go."
![Magic moment: Hugh Bowman secures another Winx win.](/web/20170409151824im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/g/r/g/u/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvgpu7.png/1491661867070.jpg)
Waller's Libran – ridden by Winx's jockey Hugh Bowman – was the first of the horses to be pulled up.
"I thought the worst straight away," Waller said. "I thought he'd broken down. I had that awful feeling that you can get on a racetrack. I was so relieved that my horses are OK."
![Sad scenes: Almoonqith was euthanised after breaking down and dislodging jockey James Doyle (pictured).](/web/20170409151824im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/g/s/2/v/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvgpu7.png/1491661867070.jpg)
It wouldn't surprise if Waller travelled back to his Rosehill stables in the float with Winx, the horse that is single-handedly bringing thousands back to the track.
An official crowd figure of 26,801 was posted late in the day. It surpassed the 25,535 set four years ago when Randwick's new, but only partly finished $150 million grandstand, was full of people wanting to see Black Caviar.
Earlier, Winx stood in stall number 118, black ear muffs on, coolly looking over the mass of people standing 10 deep, Winx hats firmly on heads, mobile phones cocked, Instagram images being frantically posted.
It was on this day two years ago that Winx suffered her last defeat – a two-and-a-half length second to Gust Of Wind in the Australian Oaks. Hong Kong-based Brazilian jockey Joao Moreira was in the saddle that day. Richard Treweeke – the 86-year-old part-owner who on Saturday made a rare appearance at the track – remembers the ride well.
"I thought she was a special horse the day she got beaten in the Oaks," Treweeke said. "That bloke from Hong Kong ... What's his name? Rode her shocking. Now we've got Hughey on her, nothing is going wrong. He just gets on with her so well."
Bowman has now been in the saddle for all but two starts in this magical ride of 17 consecutive wins.
He rarely gets pre-race nerves but on the day before he rides a horse like Winx he needs to keep busy otherwise he'll spend the night staring at the ceiling instead of sleeping.
On Friday morning, he hurt his shoulder while playing golf at The Australian. "The worst thing was I couldn't finish my round," Bowman said. He left the course and had three hours of physiotherapy.
Bowman showed rare emotion after the Queen Elizabeth win, which explains the mounting expectation building around the mare.
With 600 metres left to travel, he found himself three wide but his main concern was the tempo.
Asked afterwards if the win was as easy as it looked, he said: "Yes it was. But it wasn't as smooth throughout as her other races. The pace really slackened midway through the event.
"She seems to be more comfortable when the pressure's right on from a long way out."
Waller, you sense, has had enough of the pressure. "Hughey," he said, "is calm – and that keeps me calm."
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