Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) 2025

The Chipping Norton Stakes was renamed as the Verry Elleegant Stakes in 2024 to honour two-time champion Verry Elleegant who sadly passed away in February (2024) when in foal for the first time

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The Verry Elleegant Stakes (formerly Chipping Norton Stakes) is the opening Group 1 race of the annual Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival and takes place at Royal Randwick Racecourse on the last Saturday in February or first in March.

One of two Group 1 races on the card after the recent upgrade to the Surround Stakes (1400m), the Verry Elleegant Stakes is run under weight-for-age conditions over a mile (1600m) and offers $1 million in total prize money as of 2024.

It was run as the Chipping Norton Stakes for the final time in 2023 before being renamed by the Australian Turf Club (ATC) ahead of the 2024 edition to honour Chris Waller’s dual champion of the event and subsequent Melbourne Cup star Verry Elleegant who passed away in February 2024.

2021 Melbourne Cup champ Verry Elleegant won the Chipping Norton in both 2021 and 2022. The race is now named in her honour known as the Verry Elleegant Stakes from 2024 onwards. Photo: Steve Hart.

The race has held Group 1 status since 1986 and was cut from 2000m to 1600m in 1980.

Multiple Chipping Norton Stakes winners are not uncommon with notable champions to take out the race more than once including  2021 Melbourne Cup champion Verry Elleegant (2021-22) who is now the event’s namesake, the world’s best mare Winx (2016-19), Shoot Out (2012-13), four-time winner Tie The Knot (1999-2002), and Super Impose (1991-92).

The traditional lead-up into the Verry Elleegant Stakes is via the Group 2 Apollo Stakes (1400m) held at Randwick Racecourse a fortnight before with the latest horses to complete the Apollo – Chipping Norton Stakes double being Winx (2016 & 2017 & 2019) and Anamoe (2023) before the latter was renamed as the Verry Elleegant Stakes in 2024. Winx also saluted in her third Chipping Norton Stakes in 2018 first-up by seven lengths.

Trainer Chris Waller celebrated his ninth Chipping Norton Stakes success in 11 years with Verry Elleegant in 2021 who went on to win that year’s Melbourne Cup and his tenth in 12 years when Verry Elleegant returned to defend her title in 2022.

The ill-fated Verry Elleegant, a racing titan with 16 victories and an impressive 11 Group 1 titles across her 40-race career, retired with close to $14.9 million in prize money, placing her fourth on the all-time list, just behind stablemates Winx ($26.4m), Nature Strip ($20.7m), and the Snowden’s dual The Everest hero Redzel ($16.4m).

Her untimely death in February of 2024 when in foal makes for an emotional first edition of the race named in her honour.

Waller chased an 11th victory in 2024 but ultimately ran second with the beaten odds-on favourite Fangirl and third with Lindermann behind the Kerry Parker-trained winner Think It Over.

The next edition of the Verry Elleegant Stakes runs on Saturday March 1, 2025 at Randwick.

2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Odds

The updated Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025 odds on the race formerly known as the Chipping Norton Stakes can be found here as soon as released.

Verry Elleegant Stakes Race Info

• Former Race Name: Chipping Norton Stakes (renamed as the Verry Elleegant Stakes in 2024)
• Date: Saturday March 1, 2025
• Track: Royal Randwick Racecourse
• Distance: 1600m
• Conditions: Weight-for-age
• Status: Group 1
• Prize Money: $1,000,000
• First Run: 1925

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Betting

Verry Elleegant Stakes betting markets are usually dominated by horses coming out of the Apollo Stakes a fortnight earlier at Randwick.

Favourites in the Chipping Norton Stakes odds have a strong recent record with 10 wins in the 11 years from 2013 – 2023 boosted by the four straight victories by the Chris Waller-trained superstar mare Winx (2016-19), and most recently the also Waller-trained Verry Elleegant ($2.30 in 2021 and $2.50 in 2022) followed by the Godolphin-raced Anamoe ($1.60 in 2023).

The Verry Elleegant Stakes odds are always affected by the barrier draw with gates 1 – 8 the most successful in the past two decades.

In 2024 Fangirl started odds-on at Verry Elleegant Stakes odds of $1.30 but could only manage to run second to Think It Over ($8.50).

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Field

Winx won a record four straight editions of the Chipping Norton Stakes. Photo: Steve Hart.

The Verry Elleegant Stakes race field (formerly the Chipping Norton Stakes field) is made up of the season’s best weight-for-age hopefuls and milers and usually attracts graduates of the Apollo Stakes run two weeks prior.

Verry Elleegant Stakes nominations are taken in early February, about three weeks out from the race before final acceptances the Wednesday of race week.

While the field features a mix of male and female gallopers, four-time champion Winx (2016-19) became the first mare since Tuesday Joy (2009) to salute, while the event’s now namesake Verry Elleegant saluted in 2021 and 2022.

Trainer Gai Waterhouse always has a strong hand in the Chipping Norton Stakes field and has won the race six times most recently with Theseo (2010).

Waller however is the master trainer with preparing nine of the 13 winners from 2011-2024 most recently in 2021 and 2022 with his Melbourne Cup hero Verry Elleegant who the event was renamed to honour in 2024.

In 2023 Waller missed out on yet another success with his mare Fangirl running second to the James Cummings-trained champion Anamoe.

Fangirl also finished second in the 2024 Verry Elleegant Stakes results as the beaten odds-on favourite.

2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Field & Barrier Draw

The 2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Field & Barrier Draw is set for release on the Wednesday of race week and will be published right here so stay tuned to see what WFA horses make the starting line-up.

2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Nominations

Nominations for the Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025 – renamed from the Chipping Norton Stakes in 2024 – are open until the Monday of race week. 

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Tips

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) tips favour the best performers in the Apollo Stakes, a race that has produced more Chipping Norton Stakes winners than any other event in the past 30 years including Contributer (2015), Winx (2016 & 2017 & 2019) and Anamoe (2023) who all completed the double.

Winx also won the Chipping Norton Stakes in 2018 and dominated tipping and betting on the weight-for-age autumn feature but did so first-up.

Think It Over (3rd in 2024) was the last Verry Elleegant Stakes winner to come off an Apollo Stakes lead-up when turning the tables on the Apollo winner Fangirl who ran second in the Group 1 as the beaten $1.30 favourite.

A top Verry Elleegant Stakes tip is to look at the horse drawn in barrier four as that gate has produced 11 champions of the race from 1983 – 2024, most recently Winx (4 of 10 in 2017 and 4 of 7 in 2019) and Verry Elleegant (4 of 9 in 2021). The ill-fated Verry Elleegant returned to win from barrier three in 2022. Barrier three also produced the 2023 Chipping Norton Stakes winner Anamoe.

2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes Tips

Our Ladbrokes’ insider Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025 tips (formerly Chipping Norton Stakes tips) will be provided below the week of the race each autumn so stay tuned for the runners to back and sack in the mile Group 1 this season.

• To Win: TBD

Anamoe was too good for his rivals saluting as the odds-on favourite in the 2023 Chipping Norton Stakes. Photo: Steve Hart.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Form Guide

The Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) form guide is essential viewing by all smart punters as it shows the saddlecloth numbers, lead-up form, trainers, jockeys and barriers for all the runners in the field.

Based on the form placing a well-informed Verry Elleegant Stakes bet becomes easier and it is crucial to look at horses drawn inside the first eight barriers that come off solid lead-up form especially out of the Apollo Stakes.

Anamoe franked the Chipping Norton Stakes form with a next-up victory in the Group 1 George Ryder Stakes and third in that year’s Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes results over ‘The Championships’.

The Chipping Norton form was further franked by the second placed mare Fangirl who was also runner-up in the George Ryder Stakes ahead of her big spring that included Group 1 wins in the Winx Stakes and $5 million King Charles III Stakes.

The 2024 Verry Elleegant Stakes form was franked with the runner-up Fangirl winning that year’s $1 million 7 Stakes in the spring.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Form Facts

• Trainer Chris Waller prepared 10 of the 14 Chipping Norton Stakes winners from 2011 – 2024. including four-time hero Winx (2016-19) and dual champion Verry Elleegant (2021-22).
• Te Akau Shark (12 of 13 in 2020) became the first winner since Kingston Bay (10 of 12 in 1993) to jump from wider than barrier eight.
• Favourites have dominated the Chipping Norton Stakes results in the past 30 years with Anamoe ($1.60 in 2023) the latest.
• The Apollo Stakes is the key Chipping Norton Stakes form race to follow producing 11 of the 14 winners from 2011 – 2024 most recently Anamoe (1st in 2023) who did the double and Think It Over (3rd in 2024).

2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes Form Guide

A link to our comprehensive Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025 Form Guide will be provided below the week of the race.

Chipping Norton / Verry Elleegant Stakes Results

The Chipping Norton / Verry Elleegant Stakes race results and finishing order of the field is known when the race runs at Royal Randwick in late February or early March.

Punters can view that autumn’s Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) winner, see the winning exotics and pay-outs and check the winning time and margins. The Chipping Norton Stakes / Verry Elleegant Stakes results from the past decade have been dominated by the favourites and graduates out of the Apollo Stakes.

The most notable upset Chipping Norton Stakes result in recent history was the 80/1 shock win by three-year-old He’s No Pie Eater in 2007. No other three-year-old has led the Chipping Norton Stakes results since.

Key Chipping Norton Stakes winners before the event was renamed as the Verry Elleegant Stakes in 2024 include the four-time champions Tie The Knot (1999-2002), Winx (2016-19), and Anamoe (2023) who won the previous year’s Cox Plate.

Verry Elleegant (2022) was the last Chipping Norton Stakes winning mare.

Winx holds the current Chipping Norton Stakes race record winning in 2019 in a time of 1 minute 33:27 seconds.

Recent Chipping Norton / Verry Elleegant Stakes Winners

Past Chipping Norton Stakes / Verry Elleegant Stakes winners and placegetters dating back to the year 2000 are detailed in the below table.

FAQ

When is the Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025?

What is the prize money for the Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025?

$1,000,000

Where is the Verry Elleegant Stakes 2025?

Randwick Racecourse, Alison Rd, Randwick NSW 2031.