Memsie is Cox class

If the Moonee Valley Racing Club could take the field for Saturday’s Group 2 Memsie Stakes (WFA, 1400m, Caulfield) and cut and paste it into this year’s Group 1 Cox Plate, run on October 23, it would grab the chance.

History shows that the attrition of weight-for-age stars can, as it did last year when the 3YOs dominated, leave the 2040m Cox Plate a bit thin on class representation.

This year’s Memsie Stakes line-up befits any Cox Plate of recent years, and features four worthy Cox Plate contenders – Typhoon Tracy (pictured), Shoot Out, So You Think (last year’s Cox Plate winner) and Whobegotyou.

Throw in the brilliant 4YO mares Faint Perfume and Valdemoro, the extremely talented young stayer Zabrasive, the old-stagers Sirmione, Red Ruler, Littorio and Master O’Reilly and the interesting import Buccelatti and we have a race of immense diversity and interest.

The Memsie Stakes is a far better guide to the spring than the similar Group 2 Liston Stakes (WFA, 1400m, Caulfield), run two weeks ago. Six Memsie winners have gone on to win the Cox Plate – the most recent was the great Makybe Diva in 2005.

Silver Bounty (1981) is the most recent of four Memsie winners to win a Caulfield Cup, while Makybe Diva (2005), Comic Court (1950) and Artilleryman (1919) have won the Memsie on their way to winning a Melbourne Cup.

Last year’s Memsie was won by the sprinter Mic Mac, beating Whobegotyou. Mic Mac was second up after winning the Listed Aurie’s Star Stakes (1200m) at Flemington in July. Following the Memsie, he ran second behind Whobegotyou in the Group 2 Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes (WFA, 1600m, Moonee Valley).

Most of the attention on the Memsie will be around the return of the likely 2009-10 Australian Horse of the Year, Typhoon Tracy, who resumes from a spell with the Cox Plate as her mission.

Trainer Peter Moody has said he would train the mare more conservatively this spring in an effort to get her to her best at the 2040m of the Cox Plate – a distance that has so far thought to be beyond her reach. Last year, Moody abandoned Cox Plate plans for the mare mid-spring and freshened her for the 1600m Group 1 Myer Classic on Derby day at Flemington.

He again has that option if Typhoon Tracy shows signs that she is too brilliant for a pressure-packed 2000 metres.

In Typhoon Tracy’s favour is the fact that mares have a good record in the Memsie Stakes. Since 1997, five mares have won the race, one twice  – Miss Finland (2007), Makybe Diva (2005), Magical Miss (2002), Sunline (2000, 2001) and Dane Ripper (1998) – and two of those, Makybe Diva and Sunline (2000) went on to win the Cox Plate that spring.

View the field for Saturday’s Group 2 Memsie Stakes.