There has never been a better horse than Winx, writes Bruce McAvaney

IN THE space of one astonishing afternoon Winx uniquely broke or equalled three of the most important records in the sport. There has never been a better horse, writes Channel 7’s Bruce McAvaney.

Cox Plate favourite Winx is taken for a walk by strapper Umut Odemislioglu after jockey Hugh Bowman took her for a gallop during the 'Breakfast with the Best' trackwork session at Moonee Valley Racecourse in Melbourne, Tuesday, October 24, 2017. (AAP Image/Joe Castro) NO ARCHIVING

THERE has never been a better horse in Australia’s racing history than Winx.

That’s how good she is.

Whereas in the past two years she has won the Cox Plate by massive margins and completely dominated I think in many ways Saturday was as equally as impressive.

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We celebrated her courage and will to win — that’s what great champions do.

There was a moment halfway up the straight where she was in serious trouble and yet she was able to hold off a high quality horse in Humidor that ran the race of his life.

She was able to win and break her own race record.

It was fitting that it was such a contest because I think we will appreciate it even more.

A fitting finale to what has been a huge build up and a massive achievement in historical sense.

In the space of one astonishing afternoon, she uniquely broke or equalled three of the most important records in the sport.

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Fourteen horses have won the race twice since 1922 — and we are talking the greats of Australian racing such as Phar Lap — but only two have won it three times.

The second bit of history is the prizemoney.

Winx going past Makybe Diva as our greatest earner, $15.62 million, has a lovely synergy about it because the Diva did it after winning a third Melbourne Cup in her last race — that got her to $14.5 million.

Hugh Bowman celebrates on Winx after her record-equalling win. Picture: Alex Coppel.

The third record is that she will win her 15th Group 1 race.

She passes Kingston Town’s 14, and by going to 15 she equals Black Caviar’s Group 1 tally.

She has done this on the biggest stage you can get in terms of a weight-for-age race in this country. It’s pretty big stuff.

So then you can’t help asking yourself, “Well, where does she sit?”

It’s impossible to be definitive, but to my eye I’m doubting that we’ve seen a better horse. And that includes Phar Lap.

If you put her career on a sheet of paper alongside the original racing hall of famers — Kingston Town, Phar Lap, Tulloch, Bernborough and Carbine — it stacks up extremely well.

Since those original five we’ve had a couple of horses in the past 14 years do remarkable things.

Makybe Diva wins three Melbourne Cups — I didn’t think that was possible — and Black Caviar has an unbeaten career, including going to Royal Ascot, winning all the big races in Australia.

They’ve all got something special about them and Phar Lap has been considered, generically, the greatest horse of all time.

Hugh Bowman and Winx after their amazing achievement.

But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a horse that could have beaten Winx on the day she won her second Cox Plate.

Now, I’m not saying she’s the best of all time because I didn’t see Phar Lap. But I don’t think you could say definitively that Phar Lap was better than her.

When you are assessing greatness in sport, and there’s a bit of Usain Bolt about this, you look at what races or gold medals they’ve won. What’s the career, how does it stack up? That’s No.1.

Two, you look at longevity.

The third thing is the breathtaking manner of the performance. And that’s what set Usain Bolt apart from Carl Lewis, I think.

To the eye Lewis was the most beautiful athlete but Bolt was even more stunning. And to me Winx’s first two Cox Plate wins were absolutely breathtaking.

The first year she wins by almost five lengths, runs the fastest Cox Plate ever and beats Criterion and Highland Reel.

They are high quality horses. Criterion was a multiple-Group 1 winner, Highland Reel is an international star and she absolutely donkey-licked them.

"Enjoy it, you're a legend"@hugebowman speaks with @cdsymons after making history with #Winx#7racing pic.twitter.com/4SYZio3stN

— 7HorseRacing 🐎 (@7horseracing) October 28, 2017

The next year Hartnell was in rare form, the height of his career, and she won by the biggest margin in the history of the Cox Plate.

The absolute greatest champions have to have versatility. They have to be able to win on a slow track, a heavy track, a fast track or a good track.

Kingston Town went from 1200m to 3200m, Phar Lap had an enormous range. Both went through unbeatable phases.

A day for everyone: Jockey Hugh Bowman with two children dressed in the colours of Winx. Picture: AAP

Winx is the same. I would back her to win the richest sprint race in Australia, The Everest, and I would back to her win the richest staying race in Australia, the Melbourne Cup — from 1200m to 3200m.

I would back her to win on a Heavy 10 or a Good 3. I would back to win whether the race was in Sydney or Melbourne.

So when you combine the collective career of 15 Group 1s, 22 straight victories, three Cox Plates, a Queen Elizabeth, the Doncaster, the fact she has been knocked over in three or four races and has picked herself up, the fact she has looked beaten on the home turn and managed to win other races or she’s donkey licked the best — to me, I’m not sure I’ve seen a better one.

I’m thinking she is as good as it gets.

Memorable: Streamers fly from the stand after Winx’s wins her third Cox Plate. Picture: Getty Images