Talking Horses: will European raiders halt Winx's winning run?

It was another highly satisfactory weekend for European stables in the Antipodes as runners from the northern hemisphere finished first, third and fourth in the Group One Caulfield Cup, an outcome that is likely to add to the jitters among local fans as the remarkable mare Winx, who is on a 28-race winning streak, attempts to make it 29 this weekend with an unprecedented fourth success in the Cox Plate at Moonee Valley.

Winx is top-priced at 2-5 with British bookmakers for Saturday’s race, which could prove to be the last outing of her career, and only one other likely runner is on offer at single-figure odds. That horse, though, is Benbatl, the winner of three Group One races already this year including a Group One at Caulfield nine days ago, and rated no bigger than 6-1 to inflict defeat on Winx for the first time since April 2015.

Benbatl has been a stalwart of Saeed bin Suroor’s stable over the course of a difficult couple of seasons when Charlie Appleby, Godolphin’s other principal trainer in Newmarket, has reeled off a long series of Group One wins, which included Godolphin’s long-awaited first Derby winner in their royal blue colours.

Over the last few weeks, though, Suroor’s string has been showing distinct signs of a revival, with a Group One juvenile success on Arc day, three Group One wins in Germany since late July and now two Group Ones in Australia on consecutive weekends thanks to Best Solution’s victory in the Caulfield Cup.

Best Solution managed to find his way home from a tricky draw under Pat Cosgrave and is now the 12-1 third-favourite for the Melbourne Cup, which will give Suroor a big shot at becoming the first British-based trainer to win Australia’s most famous race regardless of what happens in Winx vs Benbatl on Saturday (which is due off at 7am BST).

And as if that were not enough to be going on with, Suroor’s Thunder Snow, narrowly beaten in the Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont in September, will give him a fair each-way shout in the Breeders’ Cup Classic in Kentucky on 3 November, three days before the Melbourne Cup.

Suroor has not saddled a Group One winner in Britain since October 2013, when Farhh took the Champion Stakes at Ascot, he has spent two years in the shadows at Godolphin as Appleby raced ahead, took the last of his four British trainers’ titles in 2004 and is currently 26th in the British table. And despite all that, he is still in there punching and conceivably on the brink of the most significant fortnight of his career. Resilience is an underestimated virtue in trainers, and Suroor, now in his 25th year with Godolphin, seems to have it in abundance.

Windsor stages its final meeting of the year on Monday, and it will be six long months before the regulars at the riverside track get another chance to enjoy the boat ride from the station to the course.

Crownthorpe (4.10) and Ace Ventura (3.10) should both go well there, while Call To Order (3.50) could be the best bet on a Plumpton card that is short on numbers but more competitive than it looks.

Parnassian (8.40) is friendless at Kempton later this evening and is out to 20-1 from an overnight price of 12-1, but there was not a great deal wrong with his course-and-distance win in a decent time 12 days ago. Hurricane Alert (5.40) should also go well on the same card.

Windsor 1.40 John Joiner 2.10 Swiss Pride 2.40 Big Brave Bob 3.10 Ace Ventura 3.40 Glorious Poet 4.10 Crownthorpe 4.40 Gerry The Glover 5.10 Party Royal

Pontefract 2.00 Golden Parade 2.30 Shallow Hal 3.00 Wajaaha 3.30 Manuela De Vega 4.00 Imaginative 4.30 Lady Annalee 5.00 Royal Flag 5.30 Musharrif

Plumpton 2.20 Kapdad 2.50 King Cnut 3.20 Kristal Hart 3.50 Call To Order (nb) 4.20 Exitas 4.50 River Of Intrigue 5.20 Inspireus

Kempton Park 5.40 Hurricane Alert 6.10 Blue Mountain 6.40 Imperial Charm 7.10 Bint Soghaan 7.40 Cobweb Catcher 8.10 Silver River 8.40 Panassian (nap) 9.10 Olaudah

Tips by Greg Wood