The Cox Plate, held annually at Moonee Valley Racecourse, is the weight for age championship of Australasia and known, rightfully, as the race where legends are made. The 2023 edition has attracted a moderate field, but it is a race with plenty of betting intrigue.
The Hong Kong champion was something of a letdown in the Turnbull Stakes. Despite having every chance he was a well beaten fourth. He is better placed at weight for age than under the set weights and penalties scheme there, but it is hard to have faith in him making enough improvement from there to here in order to win.
One fact to note about him is that he will be extremely short on the tote owing to the World Pool (Hong Kong punters bet into it) and that will likely keep his price shorter than it ought to be, and commensurately, other horses will be overs.
Started $6.50 in this last year and ran a close fourth. Both of his runs this time in have been decent and he is over the odds relative to some horses he beat home last year. Not the worst albeit suspect he will find one or two better on the day.
The horse of the spring until Fangirl gave him windburn last start in the King Charles. 2000m+ seems a genuine query with him and he could only manage seventh last year. Looks short enough.
Massive unders. Yes, he comes off a win in the Group 1 Might and Power which is traditionally good form for this, but it was Vow and Declare finishing second. Still think a genuinely run 2000m is a risk for him, will be avoiding.
Comes into this off the same prep as last year, and with a bit more luck he could have been right in the finish in the 2022 edition. We all know what he has done since. The problem is around this track it is easy to envisage him being a hard luck story once again.
Great to see Jamie Mott with a ride in the race but he is making up the numbers.
Expect him to get out the back and stay there.
Comes into this race off a dominant Randwick mile win and if this race was run over a mile at Randwick I’d be all over her. As it is over 2040m at Moonee Valley, she’s one I’ll be avoiding.
Damien Oliver’s final ever Cox Plate ride and unless he can work some magic like he did with Dane Ripper in 1997, he won’t be going close.
Aidan O’Brien and son Joseph have won this race twice in the last decade with horses that had similar profiles, i.e Northern Hemisphere four year olds. In what looks to be a thin edition of the race, you’d be silly not to have him on your side, even if the form is difficult to line up.
This looks a ripe year for a three year old and he is my top pick. He never got into the race in the Caulfield Guineas but over this longer trip the plan is to be right on speed and with the light weight, he should take plenty of catching.
I think he is a rung below Militarize but a lot of the factors that apply to Militarize also apply to him, so at the big odds he is worth a saver at least.
Best Bet
Militarize is the best bet in the 2023 Cox Plate and I will also be having savers on Victoria Road and King Colorado.
