With Winx retired, Happy Clapper gets chance in Chipping Norton
Through her 33-race winning streak, the mare Winx won the Group 1 Chipping Norton at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Australia in four consecutive seasons from 2016 to 2019 for the seventh, 15th, 23rd and 31st wins of the streak.
Winx was retired last year. The new name on the Chipping Norton Stakes list of winners after Saturday’s race may be Happy Clapper, the gelding who finished behind Winx in 11 of her wins.
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Happy Clapper is part of a field of 14 in the $393,000 Chipping Norton Stakes at a mile. A 10-year-old gelding, Happy Clapper was second to Winx in the 2019 Chipping Norton. More recently, Happy Clapper was third in the Group 2 Apollo Stakes at Randwick on April 15, his first start since October.
With Winx out of the picture, the Chipping Norton has a competitive field including Te Akua Shark, who was third in the Group 1 Cox Plate at Moonee Valley Racecourse in October, Australia’s top weight-for-age race. Te Akua Shark won his only subsequent start in the Group 1 BCD Sprint at seven furlongs in New Zealand on Feb. 8.
Two other leading contenders are Avilius, who won the Group 1 George Main Stakes at Randwick last September but is winless in three subsequent starts, and Fierce Impact, who was second in the Group 1 C.F. Orr Stakes at seven furlongs at Caulfield Racecourse on Feb. 8 in his first start since consecutive wins in Group 1 races last October and November.
Post time for the Chipping Norton Stakes is 12:30 a.m. Eastern, or 9:30 p.m. Pacific on Friday.
Earlier on the program, Funstar will be favored to win her third consecutive race, and first start since October, in the Group 1 Surround Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at seven furlongs. The field of 14 includes the recent stakes winners Flit and Probabeel.
Funstar, who has won 4 of 5 races, is trained by Chris Waller, who looked after Winx.