Peter Tighe on life after Winx, looking for his next good horse and the motto that keeps him grounded

Peter Tighe lived by a simple motto during the halcyon Winx years and it’s one that’s remained with him.

Peter Tighe lived by a simple motto during the halcyon Winx years and it’s one that’s remained with him.

“If you build yourself up too much, it’s very disappointing on the way down,” Tighe said.

“So you need to stay level headed and not get too over excited or too under excited.

“I never wanted to get carried away with things or get too far ahead of myself.

“One thing I knew was that Winx couldn’t race forever.

“And then we would all come back to normal days.”

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Hugh Bowman and Winx winning one of their four Cox Plates. Picture: Michael Dodge/Getty Images.

Tighe, part of the ownership group of Winx who was the horse of a lifetime and won four consecutive Cox Plates, was back at Moonee Valley this week.

Six years since the last of Winx’s Cox Plate wins in 2018, Tighe and wife Patty were guests of the Moonee Valley Racing Club for Breakfast With The Best.

In a previous era, Tighe would have been mobbed by reporters asking any question they could think of about Winx.

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These days, life is much calmer for Tighe.

But he said his racing portfolio is actually more expansive than it was in the Winx days.

He estimates he is in the ownership of 60 horses, spread across trainers including Chris Waller, James Ferguson in England, Tony Pike in New Zealand and Paul Shailer on the Gold Coast.

Tighe said it’s a very different feeling going to the races these days than it was during the Winx glory.

But in some ways, it’s just as enjoyable.

“My ownership portfolio is probably bigger than it was when I had Winx, even though the ability of the horses may not quite be the same,” Tighe said.

“Like everyone else, I just hope that we have got one horse who has got a bit more ability than the rest of them.

“Everybody’s ideal is to be winning Group 1 races, but I just enjoy going to the races wherever they are.

Winx co-owner Peter Tighe with Winx's four Cox Plates. Picture: Zak Simmonds

“I can’t train them or do anything like that but I like to have an involvement and go to Paul Shailer’s stables where I live on the Gold Coast and see what’s happening.

“I would go to the stables probably three or four times a week.

“It was fantastic what happened with Winx and it opened some great doors racing wise, we met a lot of people and it gave us a greater parameter of friends and associates in all racing jurisdictions.

“It’s like when people get together and play golf – instead of golf, we go and do racing.

“It has just continued on after Winx.

“I just enjoy going to races, I like going to the Gold Coast and it’s a quiet and friendly track, I bump into people and they ask me how Winx is going.

“At moment people are coming and saying they have enjoyed the Winx movie. It’s a different phase.”

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Peter Tighe with wife Patty.

For everything Winx achieved in her extraordinary 33-race winning streak, Tighe said it was the moments away from the cameras, bright lights and action on the track which meant the most to him.

“The really good times were about the family involvement and all the kids and their partners came down to Melbourne or Sydney and we enjoyed the big moments together,” Tighe said.

“Being able to share the journey with family and friends was fabulous.

“The rest of the nation came along for the ride with Winx, I couldn’t shake all their hands but they were there too.

“People have always been very complimentary towards Winx.”

Tighe is always on the lookout for his next good horse and had been hoping Waller-trained import Birdman could make an impact on the 2024 Melbourne Cup.

Birdman disappointed when finishing 10th in Wednesday’s Geelong Cup.

“We have never won a Melbourne Cup, so that’s something I would love to do one day,” Tighe said.

“I’m always looking for my next good horse, it could be a sprinter or a stayer.

“We had the best time with Winx but it’s fair to say we will never see another Winx.”

Originally published as Peter Tighe on life after Winx, looking for his next good horse and the motto that keeps him grounded