Via Sistina Headlines Champions Stakes

The Melbourne Cup Carnival concludes Nov. 8 with a trio of group 1 races at Flemington Racecourse: the 1,200-meter (about 6-furlong) Champions Sprint (G1), Champions Mile (G1), and Champions Stakes (G1) at 2,000 meters (1 1/4 miles). After finishing first and third when clashing in the Cox Plate (G1), Yulong have decided to split their star mares Via Sistina (IRE) and Treasurethe Moment (AUS) for their respective next starts. The Chris Waller-trained Via Sistina will aim for a second successive Champions Stakes victory following a similar path as last season. In 2024, the Fastnet Rock mare won the Champions Stakes after taking the Cox Plate and Turnbull Stakes (G1) in October. This season, Via Sistina finished third in the Turnbull before taking her second Cox Plate. Trainer Matt Laurie will drop Treasurethe Moment back in trip for the Champions Mile after her Cox Plate third. "We'll run her in the 1,600 (meters)," Laurie told Racing.com. "I'm very happy with her. She bounced out of the Cox Plate. I think the team (Yulong) are keen to separate them and I just think the mile, she can sit just off the speed and come into it. My initial thought is the mile might be the better race for her. Her Cox Plate run was outstanding and it was just great to see her back to her best. I've just got the feeling that we've got her back to where she was before the setback, so she's still a bit on the up." Mr Brightside Seeks back-to-Back Champions Miles Trainer Ben Hayes believes that Lindsay Park star Mr Brightside (NZ) can add another Champions Mile to his glittering record at Flemington Saturday. The evergreen 8-year-old heads into the AU$3 million group 1 off a brave second in the King Charles III Stakes (G1) at Randwick Racecourse Oct. 18, and returns to the same track and distance as the Makybe Diva Stakes (G1), a race he has won three times including this season's renewal. "I think, arguably, you could say he's going as well as ever," Hayes said. "He's come back and his three runs to date have been fantastic, he's showing no signs of training off. He's an 8-year-old that every trainer would love. He's won 10 group 1s, he's placed in 10, and he's also won an All-Star Mile, so he's a very special horse to Lindsay Park." Winner of the Champions Mile last year when beating Antino (NZ), Mr Brightside also finished fourth in 2021, third in 2022, and second in 2023. On Saturday, regular partner Craig Williams will guide him from barrier 9 in a field of 10, which features familiar rivals including Ceolwulf (NZ), Pride Of Jenni (AUS), Treasurethe Moment, and Stefi Magnetica (AUS). "He's got some stiff competition," Hayes said. "There are horses that have beaten him before, and he's beaten them, so it's going to be really interesting. He's good enough, I know that." Weatherley proud as Pier takes on Australia's best Co-trainer Darryn Weatherley will experience one of his proudest moments when Pier (NZ) lines up in Saturday's Champions Stakes. The gelding, who Weatherley co-bred, co-owns, and trains with daughter Briar, has enjoyed a rewarding Australian campaign since resuming earlier this year. A group 1 winner at 3, Pier followed a New Zealand listed placing in April with strong Queensland and Sydney form, including victory in the Wayne Wilson and a third in the King Charles III Stakes (G1) on Everest day. "It was a huge run last start," Weatherley said. "There were some pretty good horses behind him and he fought like a tiger. His trip to Melbourne has been good and I think he has improved further from Sydney." Regarding Saturday's race, Weatherley said: "You've got a dual Cox Plate winner in Via Sistina, but I really believe he deserves his spot, and she will know he is there. He is racing against the best of the best. I am proud of the horse who has put me in this position and it's good to be here." Pier is set to be ridden by Ethan Brown from barrier 6, and is rated a AU$12 chance, with Via Sistina heading the market at AU$1.70. Giga Kick eyes third Group 1 Trainer Clayton Douglas said Giga Kick (AUS) is right where he needs to be ahead of Saturday's Champions Sprint (G1) at Flemington. The Mornington-based horseman was full of praise for his stable star after the 6-year-old finished third in a 1,000-meter trial at Caulfield Oct. 30. "I couldn't be happier with him," Douglas told Racing.com after the trial. "It's nine days out from the Champions Sprint and we're in really good shape. He's come through his first-up run in really good order and this morning was just a bit of a tick-over trial." The 2022 Everest and 2023 Doomben Ten Thousand (G1) winner returned to the track in style Oct. 11, producing a barnstorming performance to take out the Schillaci Stakes (G2)—his first win in more than two years. "This has been a really good approach into the Champions Sprint," Douglas said. "He's definitely fitter, he's moving really well and he's improved off his first-up run. It's pretty exciting to think, given what he did first-up, what he might deliver in nine days' time." Co-trainer Sam Freedman said the stable would assess conditions at Flemington before confirming whether Tentyris (AUS) will bid to become the first 3-year-old to complete the Coolmore Stud Stakes (G1)/Champions Sprint double. "He should have a good race in him on Saturday," Freedman told Racing.com. "If it got too heavy, we would have a good chat about it. If it's a Good 4 we will be fronting up. Rain would be the only deterrent." Tentyris, who produced an explosive performance to win the Nov. 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, has enjoyed a quiet week at home. "He's fit; he's not going to get any fitter. He's in good order," Freedman said of the Street Boss colt. "We've just trotted and cantered and kept his routine simple. Three-year-old colts who are very fit and firing bounce out of their runs very well." The colt faces a different race shape in open company, with limited early speed expected. "It's a different style of race—he'd like something in front of him, and our other horse Tropicus looks the only leader," Freedman said. Tropicus (AUS) lines up after a runner-up finish to Giga Kick in the Schillaci Stakes at Caulfield last start. "He's going super," Freedman said. "He wouldn't mind a bit of rain—if that came, he'd give a good sight."