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WALLER'S TRIO READY TO RUMBLE IN G1 COX PLATE
The Straits Times
|October 22, 2025
Champion trainer confident 2024 winner Via Sistina can repeat the feat in Melbourne
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It was an uneventful morning for the Chris Waller trio of Cox Plate contestants, as they had their final workouts ahead of the weight-for-age championship at Moonee Valley on Oct 25.
In 2024, Fastnet Rock mare Via Sistina dumped her rider James McDonald, and galloped a couple of extra laps at Moonee Valley before returning to the track the following Saturday on Oct 26 to win the Group 1 Cox Plate (2,040m) by eight lengths.
She also smashed Winx’s Moonee Valley track record set in the 2017 Cox Plate by stopping the clock in 2min O1L07sec, 1.87 seconds faster than Australia’s legendary mare and four-time Cox Plate winner.
Now an eight-year-old, it was a more sedate Via Sistina who stepped out with McDonald in the saddle, and sporting a set of earmuffs when working solo.
Her stablemates, Aeliana (Group 1 Australian Derby (2,400m) winner) and Buckaroo (2024 Group 1 Underwood Stakes (1,800m) victor), also worked solo to round out their preparations for the Group 1 showpiece worth A$6 million (S$5.1 million).
This story is from the October 22, 2025 edition of The Straits Times.
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