2024 Champions Stakes Day Tips & Preview

Nation’s Call is an honest type that almost never runs a bad race.  

A son to Frankel, the Griffiths and deKock-trained five-year-old gave a nice sight on return at Moe first-up, driving hard over the mile to win by less than half a length once he found top gear along the rail.  

He was faced with pouring rain that day and a very wet track, but I thought he saw out the trip nicely and was seen doing his best work through the line.  

Having missed the money only twice from 10 starts, he’s been super consistent and continues his rise through the grades in impressive style.  

Bubion gets Craig Williams again looking to improve on a solid debut effort at Caulfield three weeks ago.  

The pair made up late ground down the outside to grab second from a midfield position, passing a handful of runners in the process where for a strong finish through the line.  

The filly by All Too Hard was forced to shift out at the top of the straight, so with a clearer run this time from the middle gate, we should see a similar effort from this girl. 

Serpentine finds it tough to win, but I’m happy to take him on his latest effort in the Gold Cup at The Valley.  

The old boy by Galileo was under hard riding rounding the turn after settling just off the speed, but I thought he responded nicely once straightening to lay down a decent challenge to Okita Soushi, who has since gone on to run Top 5 in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup.  

His efforts here at Headquarters have been mixed, but with scope for further improvement fourth-up and solid fitness on his side now, he should handle the extra 100m providing he finds cover early under James McDonald from a slightly awkward barrier in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes. 

Nadal couldn’t have been more impressive three weeks ago when he came out and won a BM78 at Caulfield by 1.75 lengths.  

Ciaron Maher’s lightly-raced four-year-old went whooshka down the straight once he worked his way through a late gap at the 200m mark, bursting into the clear for a soft win on the line under Ethan Brown.  

Michael Dee takes over the reins now, and although the barrier makes this a tougher assignment, the son of Xtravagant should appreciate carrying 6kg less. 

Kept on ice with three weeks between runs, this guy is hard to tip against. 

Keen to give Private Legacy another chance in a very deep race between the stayers.  

This daughter to The Autumn Sun hasn’t had the best of luck in her last two starts, finding herself too far back to score a couple of runs back at Caulfield before being held up at the top of the straight on her way to finishing second.  

She was slow away and never really a chance two weeks later at The Valley in the Tesio Stakes, but this could be a more winnable assignment for her back on a bigger track. 

With that run over 2000m under her belt now, she’ll likely get right back in the run again and save something for late under Craig Williams in the Matriarch Stakes. 

Giga Kick and Bella Nipotina meet again in what is a standout edition of the Champions Sprint.  

The pair left nothing to chance when finishing first and second in The Everest last start, but I’m with the former to turn the tables on this occasion sticking to 1200m on his favourite track.  

Clayton Douglas’ gelding hasn’t won since he took out the Doomben 10,000 earlier in the year, but his run a fortnight ago was simply enormous, bursting clear from the middle before he was pipped right on the line by the mighty Ciaron Maher mare. 

His closing splits look great on paper and back on top of the ground, there’s absolutely nothing to say he can’t let down with an even quicker turn of foot to put this field away.  

Broadsiding comes back to the mile fourth-up for Godolphin after trying his guts out in the Cox Plate two weeks ago.  

He was a tired horse and brave all the way to the line when finishing a distant third to Via Sistina, another convincing performance after showcasing plenty of late speed to miss out on a place from a long way back in the Caulfield Guineas the run prior.  

Three wins from four starts over the mile reads well for this as he gets in carrying the lightest weight (52kg) under Michael Dee. 

Barrier 13 is the main knock, but back in trip and looking to cap off his prep with eyes towards bigger races next year, this rates a nice consolation prize against a very classy field.  

You could argue she’s a little on the short side, but it’s very hard to back against Via Sistina in what is an outstanding edition of the Champions Stakes. 

Her breathtaking win in the Cox Plate two weeks ago was the stuff of legends, a race she had shot to bits when James McDonald made a move approaching the turn to race up and find the front.  

The daughter of Fastnet Rock has only had the four starts to date this prep, so she should have plenty left in the tank and carry a very light 57kg to victory. 

For a bit of extra value, you could multi her with Eliyass to run Top 3.  

This French gelding by Group 1 Derby winner Le Havre was a complete forgive last start from a wide gate in the Caulfield Cup, finishing down the order beaten over 10 lengths. 

Take her on her previous form that saw her not only beat the talented Ceolwulf, but also finish third to Via Sistina in the Turnbull two weeks later.  

Pisanello has gone up decent value coming off an impressive win at Warwick Farm.  

The Godolphin gelding by Ribchester has run some very nice races first-up, as was the case a couple of weeks ago when James McDonald pushed the button at the top of the straight to race clear by over two lengths for a cozy win. 

This is obviously tougher up in grade, but drawn a perfect gate with big improvement still to come, he’s the logical play in a tricky race to end the day.