Cox Plate: Winx or Phar Lap – who was the greatest of all time?
They are both all-time equine greats, horses that captured the attention of the nation and dominated the best race in the country. But who is the greatest Winx or Phar Lap?
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Jim Pike and Hugh Bowman share an enduring Cox Plate link.
Born almost a century apart, the proud New South Welshmen are two of the most pivotal figures in Cox Plate history.
Pike’s two victories in the weight-for-age championship came aboard Phar Lap in 1930 and ’31. The equine hero of the depression was untouchable.
Bowman’s four triumphs at The Valley on Winx represents a domination unmatched, even by ‘Big Red.’
It says everything about the futility of comparing eras that, three days out from the 100th running of the WS Cox Plate, there is still no consensus on the most nebulous discussion of all – Who is the greatest Cox Plate champion of all?
The simple answer is, as with all of these debates, is that there is no answer.
Tennis great Rod Laver has distilled the argument perfectly – for all sports.
“The best you can ever hope to be is the best of your generation,” Laver said.
He should know, He was.
Pike partnered Phar Lap in 30 races, winning 27.
Soon after retiring in 1936, Pike said: “During my 30 years as a jockey, I rode many a great horse in their successes, but the best horse I ever rode was that great horse Phar Lap.
“He was just one of those freak gallopers and I think it will be a very long time before we see his equal.”
Prophetic words.
The towering records of both champions underscore their superiority, both overall and at The Valley.
Phar Lap had 51 starts for 37 wins, three seconds and two thirds.
Winx had 43 starts for 37 wins and three seconds.
Phar Lap contested the Cox Plate twice for two wins. Winx was unbeaten in four Plates.
Like Pike with Phar Lap, Bowman suspects he will never ride a horse of Wink’s ilk ever again.
“I’ve never had anything to do with a more competitive animal, horse and human,” Bowman said.
“The longevity is what gives her the legacy that she has.
“There are horses of her ability that come along around the world but I can’t think of any other horse that raced as consistently at the highest level as she did.”
From the second Cox Plate romp in 2016 through the Sydney autumn and the George Ryder and then onto the ’17 Cox Plate when she broke her own track record represented Winx’s “prime time”, according to Bowman.
Old-timers, notably Ron Hutchinson, insist Winx’s four-peat makes her the Queen of the Plate because of the international nature of the race.
While some argue against placing too much emphasis on the race’s recency – and therefore Winx’s achievements – Bowman points to the horses from abroad who challenged her.
Torn between choosing Preferment and Winx in 2015, Bowman eventually realised just how good the champion mare was.
“It probably wasn’t until later in the season when I reflected on the success of horses that race started to win around that world, that I started to think about it,” he said.
“Obviously she broke the track record that day, but you have to pinch yourself and ask ‘Am I actually involved with a horse that good?
“As the season went on, and Criterion and Highland Reel – to name a couple – went on to succeed around the globe at the highest level, the realisation that she was very special came to fruition.
From considering Winx’s Epsom win to be “substandard” before she headed south to The Valley, Bowman admitted he had made an error of judgment.
“I wasn’t convinced she was of the same class as him (Preferment), how wrong I was.”
While Bowman revelled in the glories of 2015, joining Pike and Phar Lap as a successive Plate winner, the ‘16 edition remains his fondest memory of the race with Winx.
There was the much-hyped clash with James McDonald and Hartnell and, when the pair eyeballed each other from the 800m mark, Bowman understood just how superior his mount was.
“Stephen Baster edged out and pushed me into the three-wide line and it’s not where I would normally like to be,” Bowman.
“I accepted my fate and stayed out wide.
“James had a look around and see where I was and I could sense straight away his agitation.
“I’m not sure if he expected me to be there at that point. I gently increased Winx’s pace and every time I did, Hartnell quickened too, until he couldn’t quicken any more.
“I let her go just inside the 800m mark and the rest is history.
“That was the most confident of all the four wins.
“Of the four, it’s probably the favourite because the pressure, the expectation wasn’t there.
“As we got into that third Cox Plate and beyond, every race was a milestone.
“I was the only person between her and the winning post and her rivals, so I couldn’t afford to make a mistake.”
Pike on Phar Lap also understood the burden of expectation but for entirely different reasons. Big Red was a rare beacon of light in a grim period of Australian life.
With each of his wins, the massive chestnut bore deeper in the nation’s psyche and affection.
Craig Williams, a dual Cox Plate-winning jockey, argues the race is not merely one of Australia’s elite races, but is regarded as such globally.
“It’s the only weight-for-age in our top three Victorian spring races and it’s truly regarded around the world as our great race,” he said.
“For me, it was always a dream. I wanted to have my name etched in that honour roll. Since the Bill Collins’ calling days, and the great horses that win, only really good horses win it.
“It is a proven quality race at the highest level and what makes it really interesting is that it’s ridden at Moonee Valley on that interesting track, the crowd feels so close.”
Bowman and Pike experienced the same sensation of two of Australia’s greatest horses.
The honour roll is peppered with outstanding gallopers and a host of repeat winners, including Winx, Kingston Town, Phar Lap, Chatham, Young Idea, Beau Vite, Tranquil Star, Hydrogen, Tobin Bronze, Sunline, Fields Of Omagh, Northerly and So You Think.
As one of only three jockeys – Darby Munro (five) and Brent Thomson (four) are the others – to ride four Cox Plate winners or more, Bowman respects all of the great race’s winners.
On the sidelines through suspension this year, Bowman will have none of the sapping pressure he endured as a bittersweet burden.
As he looks back at the Winx’s hegemony, his relief is palpable.
“The second one was the most emotional but, by the fourth one, I had almost become numb. I was excited but I was there to do that job,” he said.
“Once I’m in that position, it’s just me and her and the only person who can make a mistake is me. So I’m very focused at that point.
“It was my job not to make a mistake.”
Bowman returned to the race last year and finished sixth on Kings Will Dream – and was given a taste of what is like to ride against Winx.
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Asked if Winx, at her top, would have beaten Japanese marvel Lys Gracieux, Bowman said: “Would she have beaten that filly, I don’t know about that?
“I did follow her (Lys Gracieux) into the race and when she went through the field to go and win, she reminded me of Winx. She was dominant. She was the benchmark of the year.”
The Winx versus Lys Gracieux conundrum serves to illustrate the difficulty of comparing horses, even a year apart – let alone almost 90.
The record shows Winx is the race’s most prolific champion and probably its greatest winner. Phar Lap remains the most iconic and possibly the greatest.
It’s as close to the one result the Cox Plate hasn’t produced in its long and stirring history – a dead-heat.