Comeback filly Autumn Glow shows her class in Darby Munro Stakes at Rosehill

Unbeaten filly Autumn Glow provided a reminder of her class with an emphatic comeback win in the Darby Munro Stakes at Rosehill.

Autumn Glow made a winning return in the Darby Munro Stakes at Rosehill. Picture: Getty Images

Boom filly Autumn Glow lived up to the hype with an impressive return to remain unbeaten at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.

The Chris Waller-trained filly gave an emphatic reminder of her class when scoring a commanding Listed $200,000 Darby Munro Stakes (1200m) success.

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It was the daughter of The Autumn Sun’s first start for six month but she proved well worth the wait with her fourth win in as many starts.

“It was a great return,” Waller said.

“You are never quite sure until you put them under race pressure and it’s just like a game of footy, it doesn’t matter how well you are training or how you’re pre-season games are, you have to turn up race day.

“It was good to see her do that, and we asked her to do it. She didn’t get her own way.

“We put her in the race. She travelled into the straight with purpose and took a while to go through her gears but it was just great to see strong that last 100m.”

Autumn Glow is BACK! 🙌

She defends her unbeaten record to win the Listed Darby Munro Stakes with ease!@mcacajamez | @cwallerracing | @aus_turf_clubpic.twitter.com/J71rmwtYZf

— SKY Racing (@SkyRacingAU) March 22, 2025

Champion jockey James McDonald had to use a bit of petrol early to allow Autumn Glow ($1.80 favourite) to take up a prominent spot.

The Michael Freedman-trained Enriched ($14) made sure to make a race of it at the top of the straight but Autumn Glow’s class shone bright late to score by two lengths.

Gangsta Granny ($6) was a further 1¾ lengths back in third.

“The win was better than it looked because I was stuck in a really odd spot, drawn three, it was three wide for a bit,” McDonald said.

“The inside ones made us work a tad, so I was a little bit out of my comfort zone a tad.”

“If she wasn’t Autumn Glow, I probably would have taken her back and ridden like a 10-1 chance, but she took no chances because she is very good, and it’s good to get that one out of the way.”

“She’s all class, she’s very good.”

Autumn Glow went unbeaten in a brilliant spring campaign that saw her win three straight, including black-type victories Group 3 Up And Coming Stakes and Group 2 Tea Rose Stakes.

But a setback saw her Group 1 Flight Stakes bid end prematurely before she got the chance to take on gun stablemate Lady Shenandoah.

As Lady Shenandoah continued to set the track alight with a pair of Group 1 victories in the early autumn, Waller has bided his time with Autumn Glow.

A date with the Group 2 $1m Arrowfield 3YO Sprint (1200m) on day two of The Championships is now on the horizon for Autumn Glow.

Originally published as Comeback filly Autumn Glow shows her class in Darby Munro Stakes at Rosehill