Makybe’s legend finds another chapter

IN ONE of the most amazing individual performances of recent times, equine megastar Makybe Diva claimed the $3million Cox Plate with a stirring victory over a class field at Moonee Valley yesterday.

“She's the greatest mare. She's the best horse I have ever trained," said trainer Lee Freedman after the race, declaring her better than the likes of Super Impose, Doriemus, Naturalism and Alinghi.

“I don't think this country has seen a better horse in the last 30 or 40 years. No horse will ever repeat that - two Melbourne Cups, a Sydney Cup, a BMW, Australian Cup and a Cox Plate.”

A crowd of 33,153 braved the dreadful conditions, in which rain buffeted the course throughout the day, leaving patrons scrambling for the limited cover that was available. Fortunately, the rain played into the hands of the champion stayer as she handled the sodden StrathAyr turf with ease.

However, she didn’t have it all her own way as she was given no luck from her fellow competitors, jockey Glen Boss to go extremely wide as they rounded the Valley’s infamous sharp turn into the home straight.

Punters gasped as the $2 favourite took the long way home, but it was soon clear that none of her rival was going to keep up as she chased down and then overcame Lotteria and Fields Of Omagh, who finished second and third respectively.

The win boosted the horse’s prize money to over $11 million, overtaking Sunline to become the greatest stakes winner in Australian turf history.

She now joins an elite group of horses to have won both the Cox Plate and the Melbourne Cup and would rank alongside Might and Power, Northerly and Sunline as the best horse of the modern era.

Gai Waterhouse’s Sydney star Lotteria ($17) showed tremendous stamina to keep up with the front-runners for so long, while Fields Of Omagh ($21) claimed his third placing from the past three Cox Plates, adding to a fifth placing in 2002. Trainer David Hayes hasn’t ruled out sending the gallant stayer on for a fifth Plate attempt.

The question on everybody’s lips is now whether the mighty mare will chase history to claim her third successive Melbourne Cup.

While the general public is desperate to see her chase a spot in the record books, the Diva’s connections are still to make up their mind.

"Nothing's really changed, we may make a decision today, we might make a decision in the next two or three days," Freedman said.

"At the end of the day we'll just take her home, see how she is in two or three days' time and then make a decision."

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