Epona Stakes

Looking for this year’s Epona Stakes betting odds, field and tips? The experts at Neds have put together everything you need to know before this year’s race.

Epona Stakes 2026 Results

The official 2026 Epona Stakes results will be available below once the race takes place on Saturday, March 21, 2026. 

Last year’s WA Oaks / WATC Derby winner Machine Gun Gracie ($17) was huge in her Sydney debut for the Linsday Park stable heading the 2026 Epona Stakes results with a runaway two-length upset at Rosehill. Given a peach of a ride by Luke Currie, the four-year-old daughter of Maschino was settled up on speed sitting second on the turn for home. She quickly moved up on the straight to go past the front runner and drew clear to stamp her authority ahead of potentially tougher autumn assignments.

Epona Stakes 2026 Tips

Our exclusive 2026 Epona Stakes tips will be detailed here the week of the race and a full betting preview published on the Neds Blog.

CLICK HERE FOR OUR COMPLETE 2026 GOLDEN SLIPPER DAY PREVIEW & TIPS

Run over 1,900 metres in March, the Group 3 Epona Stakes is a staying event for fillies and mares held at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse over the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival. 

The set weights plus penalties showdown runs on Golden Slipper Day and serves as a potential lead-up into the Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) – held over less distance at Randwick during April – and in 2016 Heavens Above ran second in both the Group 3 and Group 1 events.

Epona Stakes 2026 – Quick Information

• Race Day: Saturday, March 21, 2026
• Track Location: Rosehill Gardens Racecourse
• Track Surface: Turf
• Track Direction: Right-handed
• Race Distance: 1,900 metres
• Weight Conditions: Set weights (plus penalties)
• Qualification: Three years old and over (fillies and mares)
• Type: Thoroughbred
• Grade: Group 3
• Operator: Australian Turf Club
• Prize Purse: $250,000
• Inaugural Race: 1986
• 2026 Epona Stakes Winner: TBD

Epona Stakes Betting 2026

There are many different ways to bet on the Epona Stakes, and we have included some of the most popular options below:

Bet Type	How To Place This Type of Bet on This Year’s Epona Stakes
Win Bet	Place your bet on the horse you think will take first place in this year’s Epona Stakes.
Place Bet	Place your bet on the horse you think will place in the top three finishers at this year’s Epona Stakes. Pays less than a win bet but offers safer odds.
Each-Way Bet	If your runner finishes 1st in the Epona Stakes, you will collect both the Win and the Place dividend. If your horse finishes 2nd or 3rd you will collect the Place dividend.
Quinella Bet	You must select the runners that finish 1st and 2nd in any order, within the Epona Stakes, in order to win the Quinella.
Exacta Bet	You must select the runners that finish 1st and 2nd in the correct order, within the Epona Stakes to win the Exacta.
Trifecta Bet	You must select runners to finish 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the correct order, within the Epona Stakes to win the Trifecta.
First Four	You must select runners that finish 1st, 2nd ,3rd and 4th in the correct order, within the Epona Stakes to win the First 4.
Quadrella Bet (Quaddie)	You must select the winners of four nominated races to win the Quaddie. This means you would have to select three other races apart from the Epona Stakes, in order to be eligible to place a Quaddie.

How To Bet on The Epona Stakes in 2026

1. Log in at neds.com.au
2. Make a deposit, using your credit card, PayPal or other safe electronic method
3. Make sure to check out form guide, once it’s released
4. Decide what kind of bet you’re going to place (Win, Place, Each-Way, Trifecta + more betting options, please read our section on Epona Stakes Betting above).
5. Select the horse(s) for the race.

Which Horse Will Win the Epona Stakes in 2026

The best way to pick which horse will win the Epona Stakes in 2026 is to take into account their lead-up form in similar grade autumn races, assess the barriers and consider the weights. 

Additional factors to consider when picking the Epona Stakes winner include: 

• Penalty Factor – Because this race has penalty weights, it’s worth researching which horses can some weight relief, and which horses are strapped with extra weight than they usually run with.
• Best Lead Up – The Coolmore Classic, which takes place a week earlier, is a great predictor for this race.  

Epona Stakes Favourites 2026

Favourites in 2026 Epona Stakes betting include Chris Waller’s last start Group 3 Aspiration Quality winning four-year-old Pinito, John O’Shea & Tom Charlton’s Bated Breath six-year-old Quietness set to appreciate the step up in distance and her consistent younger stablemate Polymnia coming off an Aspiration Quality third.

Osmose ($2.90 in 2024) and Mare Of Mt Buller ($3.60 in 2025) are the latest Epona Stakes favourites to win.

 Epona Stakes 2026 Field

The official 2026 Epona Stakes field of final acceptances is announced on the Wednesday of race week and will be published in full below once released. 

The Epona Stakes 2026 final field features a capacity line-up of fillies and mares including Chris Waller’s Pinito coming off a Group 3 Aspiration Quality win and the consistent Danny O’Brien-trained Sun Gift up in Sydney off some strong lead-up runs in Melbourne.

Rosehill R3 - Bisley Workwear Epona Stakes (G3)

Final Race time: 

	Entrant	Last 6	Sex	Barrier	Weight
	1. Machine Gun Gracie J: Luke Currie T: Ben, Will & Jd Hayes	1x44x9	M	12	58kg
	2. Pinito J: James McDonald T: Chris Waller	212x41	M	13	57kg
	3. Kind Words J: Tom Sherry T: Kris Lees	241189	M	2	57kg
	4. Good Banter J: Dylan Gibbons T: Tom Charlton	3978x0	M	4	57kg
	5. Quietness J: Tommy Berry T: Tom Charlton	x342x6	M	7	55kg
	6. Movin Out J: Jason Collett T: Chris Waller	706x14	M	9	55kg
	7. Polymnia J: Zac Lloyd T: Tom Charlton	353x63	M	3	55kg
	8. Starphistocated J: Chad Schofield T: John P Thompson	1x5212	M	11	55kg
	9. Geemes (11)  Scratched:
	10. Sun Gift J: Craig Williams T: Danny O'brien	x21122	M	8	55kg
	11. Sweltering J: Damian Lane T: Chris Waller	621x57	M	14	55kg
	12. Maisy J: Jamie Melham T: M, W & J Hawkes	x736x2	M	1	55kg
	13. Placid Pearl J: Winona Costin T: Matthew Smith	331730	M	6	55kg
	14. Reflect J: Andrew Adkins T: Joseph Pride	15x836	F	10	54kg
	15. California Grass J: Alysha Collett T: John P Thompson	5477x8	M	5	55kg

View Results

Epona Stakes Race Day 2026

The 2026 Epona Stakes takes place as part of 2026 Golden Slipper Day on Saturday, March 21, 2026 at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse that features eight Group races and a Listed event. There are five Group 1 features on the program:

• Group 1 $5,000,000 Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m),
• Group 1 $1,000,000 George Ryder Stakes (1500m),
• Group 1 $1,000,000 Ranvet Stakes (2000m),
• Group 1 $1,000,000 The Galaxy (1100m), and the
• Group 1 $750,000 Rosehill Guineas (2000m).

Epona Stakes Barrier Draw 2026

The 2026 Epona Stakes barrier draw will be released to the public a few days before the race and published in our above Epona Stakes Field section. 

Epona Stakes Nominations 2026

2026 Epona Stakes nominations close at 11:00 AM on the Monday of race week. 

	Last 10	Horse	Sex	Age	Trainer	Hcp Rating
1	7×48152221	AHHA AHHA	M	4	Clinton McDonald
2	6x005477x8	CALIFORNIA GRASS	M	6	John Thompson	62
3	10x6111x52	GEEMES	M	4	Mitchell Beer & George Carpenter
4	125269×656	GENTILESCHI	M	5	Paul Messara & Leah Gavranich	71
5	76123978×0	GOOD BANTER (NZ)	M	5	John O’Shea & Tom Charlton	83
6	63×3241189	KIND WORDS	M	5	Kris Lees	89
7	12111x44x9	MACHINE GUN GRACIE	M	4	Ben, Will & JD Hayes	96
8	6x41x736x2	MAISY	M	5	Michael, John & Wayne Hawkes	71
9	4x09706x14	MOVIN OUT (NZ)	M	4	Chris Waller	91
10	157×67222	PILLOW FIGHT	F	3	Bjorn Baker
11	x323212x41	PINITO	M	4	Chris Waller	99
12	1×54331730	PLACID PEARL	M	4	Matthew Smith	70
13	230x353x63	POLYMNIA	M	4	John O’Shea & Tom Charlton	87
14	x322x342x6	QUIETNESS (GB)	M	6	John O’Shea & Tom Charlton	98
15	x38515x836	REFLECT	F	3	Joseph Pride	70
16	13421×5212	STARPHISTOCATED	M	4	John Thompson	87
17	4227×21122	SUN GIFT (NZ)	M	5	Danny O’Brien	86
18	0x04621x57	SWELTERING	M	4	Chris Waller	78

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

Epona Stakes Weights 2026

Set weights plus penalties apply to this race. Updated final weights are announced at 4:00 PM on the Tuesday of race week with the official 2026 Epona Stakes weights on the final acceptors to be published in our above Epona Stakes Field section. 

2026 Epona Stakes Topweight:

• No. 1 Machine Gun Gracie (58kg)

Epona Stakes Acceptances 2026

2026 Epona Stakes final acceptances must be declared before 9:00 AM on the Wednesday of race week and will be published in our above Epona Stakes Field section. 

Epona Stakes Jockeys 2026

The final riders’ announcement is at 12:00 PM on the Wednesday of race week with the official 2026 Epona Stakes jockeys to be published in our above Epona Stakes Field section. 

Epona Stakes Scratchings 2026

2026 Epona Stakes scratchings close at 7:30 AM on Saturday, March 21, 2026. 

Epona Stakes Prize Money 2026

The 2026 Epona Stakes prize purse is worth $250,000 in total, distributed from places first through tenth.

Place	Prize Money
1st	$140,000
2nd	$46,250
3rd	$22,400
4th	$11,000
5th	$6,100
6th	$4,000
7th	$3,500
8th	$3,500
9th	$3,500
10th	$3,500

Epona Stakes Race Number 2026

The 2026 Epona Stakes race number is scheduled as Rosehill Race 3 at 1:30pm (AEDT) on Saturday, March 21, 2026. There are ten races in total that day at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse.

Epona Stakes Form Guide 2026

The final form guide will be available the week of the race. You can check below for a link to our full 2026 Epona Stakes Form Guide following final acceptances. 

CLICK HERE FOR OUR FULL 2026 EPONA STAKES FORM GUIDE

Epona Stakes Live 2026

You can watch or listen to the 2026 Epona Stakes live, across the following mediums.

Pay television: Sky Racing 1 (channel 526 on Foxtel)

Radio: Radio Sport National

Streaming: Racing NSW

Epona Stakes Winners

Winners of the Epona Stakes going back to the year 2001 are displayed in the table below. 

Year	Winner	Trainer/s	Jockey	Weight	Time
2026	Machine Gun Gracie	Ben, Will & JD Hayes	Luke Currie	58kg	1:58.12
2025	Mare Of Mt Buller	Chris Waller	Zac Lloyd	54kg	1:56.04
2024	Osmose	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott	Tim Clark	54kg	1:55.82
2023	Gin Martini	John Sargent	Damian Lane	55kg	1:56.12
2022	Monegal	Theresa Bateup	Rachel King	54kg	2:00.62
2021	Polly Grey	Chris Waller	James McDonald	55kg	1:57.80
2020	Missybeel	Bjorn Baker	Tim Clark	54kg	1:57.64
2019	Semari	Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young	Tommy Berry	54kg	2:02.30
2018	The Pinnacle	Peter & Paul Snowden	Christian Reith	54kg	1:58.51
2017	Consommateur	Michael Kent	Dwayne Dunn	54kg	2:06.45
2016	Vergara	Anthony Cummings	James McDonald	55kg	1:56.83
2015	Scratchy Bottom	Michael Kent	Craig Williams	54kg	1:57.30
2014	Intimate Moment	Ron Quinton	Sam Clipperton	54kg	2:00.07
2013	Aliyana Tilde	Kerry Parker	Corey Brown	55kg	1:55.85
2012	Fibrillation	Tim Martin	Brenton Avdulla	56.5kg	1:57.64
2011	Galizani	John Thompson	Jim Cassidy	53kg	1:57.00
2010	Messenger	Anthony Cummings	Damien Oliver	56.5kg	1:59.89
2009	Divine Rebel	Michael Moroney	Kerrin McEvoy	54kg	1:58.54
2008	Ready To Lift	Gerald Ryan	Corey Brown	53kg	1:57.69
2007	Safwa	John O’Shea	Glen Boss	54kg	1:55.62
2006	Kosi Bay	Bart Cummings	Michael Rodd	53kg	1:57.78
2005	Natural Woman	Bruce McLachlan	Hugh Bowman	57kg	1:55.06
2004	Great Anna	John Hawkes	Darren Beadman	55kg	1:56.55
2003	Airlie Bird	Paul Cave	Terry Jones	56.5kg	1:55.80
2002	Ilze	Gerald Ryan	Darren Beadman	54kg	1:58.43
2001	Market Price	Tony McEvoy	Damien Oliver	57.5kg	1:57.85