VRC Oaks 2026 Betting Odds & Race Preview

The 2026 VRC Crown Oaks took place on at Flemington on Day 3 of the Melbourne Cup Carnival and was won in another impressive romp home by the undefeated David Payne-trained favourite Proxima Dea ($2.10F) in her Melbourne race debut. 

The VRC Oaks 2026 is one of the most anticipated betting races of the Melbourne Cup Carnival, giving punters the chance to back the next star filly in a classic that has launched the careers of some of Australia’s finest race mares. Run over a stamina-testing 2500 metres at Flemington, the race sees the country’s most talented three-year-old fillies step beyond the sprint and mile ranks to prove themselves over a genuine staying trip. For punters, the appeal of the VRC Oaks betting 2026 markets lies in identifying which fillies have the class, toughness, and untapped improvement to thrive under pressure on one of racing’s biggest stages. With spring form lines converging from across Australia and emerging contenders continuing to develop throughout the carnival, the VRC Oaks regularly delivers a fascinating betting contest and a glimpse at the future stars of the turf. Whether you’re chasing the latest odds, tracking market movers, or searching for the filly poised to write her name into racing history, this is your complete guide to the VRC Oaks 2026.

2026 VRC Oaks Results

The season’s official VRC Oaks 2026 Results and full VRC Oaks Finishing Order for 2026 will be published below as of Thursday, November 5, 2026.

The 2026 VRC Oaks results confirmed Proxima Dea ($2.10F) as the standout staying filly of her generation, with the unbeaten favourite extending her perfect record to six wins from six starts in a dominant display at Flemington. Trained by David Payne and ridden by Zac Lloyd, the daughter of Tarzino overcame a wide run throughout before asserting her class over the 2500m journey to defeat $41 outsider Shameful Impulse by 1¾ lengths, while Wakeful Stakes winner De Armas fought on for third. The Group 1 triumph capped a remarkable first preparation that also included victory in the Spring Champion Stakes, while Payne even floated the prospect of a future Melbourne Cup campaign for the filly, who has already firmed from $26 into $17 in early futures betting on the 2027 Melbourne Cup at Ladbrokes following her Oaks heroics.

2026 VRC Oaks Race Replay

2026 VRC Oaks Odds & Finishing Order

The spring’s top VRC Oaks 2026 odds and VRC Oaks betting market links will be available below once open so you can back your early favourites in the Flemington Group 1 staying race at the best price followed by the official finishing order after the event.

VRC Oaks Tips

VRC Oaks tips can be found everywhere during the Melbourne Cup Carnival betting season, and it is usually the favourite in the markets leading the early predictions.

The best lead-up race into the VRC Oaks historically is the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes run on Victoria Derby Day the Saturday prior to the race, which has produced nine winners since 2010 including Kirramosa (2013), Aristia (2018), Miami Bound (2019), Willowy (2021), and Treasurethe Moment (2024) who all completed the double. In 2020 the VRC Oaks winner Personal improved on a lead-up second in the Wakeful Stakes to take out the staying classic.

Other good VRC Oaks tips are to back graduates out of earlier Melbourne spring races as Lasqueti Spirit (2016) was the first winner to come off a Sydney lead-up race since Tributes (1999), and to take fillies that are proven at least up to 2000m.

In 2022 the VRC Oaks winning filly She’s Extreme improved on a lead-up third against the boys in Sydney’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m).

Proxima Dea (2026) became the latest filly to do the interstate Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes – VRC Oaks double.

Ladbrokes Tip: The Wakeful Stakes is the best guide to VRC Oaks winners in the past 30 years with Treasurethe Moment (2024) the last to do the double

2026 VRC Oaks Predictions & Best Bets

Our exclusive Ladbrokes’ VRC Oaks 2026 Tips and VRC Oaks Group 1 betting predictions will be detailed below the week of the race so stay tuned for the fillies to back and sack in the Cup Carnival clash.

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Daily Racing Tips – Crown Oaks Day 2026

4 Nov • Jared Timms

Scroll down for our Daily Racing Tips on Thursday, October 5th, including Flemington best bets and 2026 Crown Oaks tips! YOURE NOT THE KING (2) returned to action with a strong effort to salute in BM64 company at Hawkesbury last month, and he franked that performance when hitting the line to win well again at Warwick Farm most recently. This is another rise in class, but he’s down in the weights, Rachel King retains the ride, and it does look the next logical step for him to take. PERISHER (8) was a model of consistency over in Ireland and the UK…

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2026 Crown Oaks Day Preview

4 Nov • Jared Timms

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2026 VRC Oaks Field, Barrier Draw & Form

4 Nov • Darren Cole

The VRC Oaks is a Group 1 race at Flemington on Thursday, where the staying fillies take centre stage on Ladies Day. VRC Oaks odds have Proxima Dea and De Armas favoured to win, and they could battle it out over the final 200m. VRC Oaks Final Field & Barrier Draw Most runners have time to find a good spot in running over 2500m, but VRC Oaks barrier draws are still important. Race favourite Proxima Dea received barrier 19, so it’s not ideal. Zac Lloyd will need to slot in from out wide to get into a good spot. Securing…

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VRC Crown Oaks Tips & Predictions 2026: Best Bets

3 Nov • Lucy Henderson

With the Melbourne Cup Carnival rolling on after Tuesday’s headline race, attention quickly turns to Flemington on Thursday for the Group 1 VRC Crown Oaks, where a talented crop of three-year-old fillies step up to test their stamina in the famous 2500m classic. Featuring a cracking line-up of emerging staying prospects and last-start winners, this year’s edition shapes as a beauty, and the Ladbrokes form team has done the hard work with our complete VRC Oaks 2026 betting tips, predictions and best bets. The latest VRC Oaks betting at Ladbrokes is headed by undefeated Spring Champion Stakes heroine Proxima Dea,…

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The VRC Oaks, currently run as the Crown Oaks due to sponsorship, is one of the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival’s marquee races with a whole meeting known as Ladies’ Day devoted to the three-year-old fillies’ feature every year. Held on the third day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival on the Thursday after the Melbourne Cup on the first Tuesday of November, the 2500m classic runs at Flemington Racecourse and is worth $1 million in prize money.

Held since 1861 the race registered as the VRC Oaks was upgraded to a Group 1 event in 1979 and has been won by many notable mares during their three-year-old season including Mosheen (2011), Samantha Miss (2008), Miss Finland (2006), Research (1988), Rose Of Kingston (1981), and Light Fingers (1964).

VRC Oaks Day is also host to a Group 3 support acts with the Red Roses Stakes also taking place at the meeting.

VRC Oaks Race Facts

• Date: Thursday, November 5, 2026
• 2026 Race Name: Crown Oaks
• Track: Flemington Racecourse
• Distance: 2500m
• Conditions: 3YO Fillies – Set Weights
• Status: Group 1
• Prize Money: $1 million
• First Run: 1861

VRC Oaks Day 2026 Race Schedule

There are nine races scheduled on VRC Crown Oaks Day 2026 at Flemington, headlined by the Group 1 Crown Oaks (VRC Oaks) for the staying three-year-old fillies. The official VRC Oaks Day 2026 race schedule below includes all supporting races, start times, prize money, race conditions, and distances.

Key feature races on the card:

• Race 7 – Crown Red Roses Stakes (G3): 1100m for three-year-old fillies, $300,000.
• Race 8 – Crown Oaks (G1): 2500m for three-year-old fillies, $1 million.
• Race 6 – Melbourne Cup Carnival Country Final: $500,000 Benchmark 80 Final.

VRC Crown Oaks Betting

VRC Oaks betting markets really heat up after the field is released with punters selecting from the capacity 16 fillies in the mix each year. While futures markets are open earlier, waiting for the official line-up is a safer bet.

The season’s best staying fillies typically lead the markets and are proven performers in the classic with favourites boasting a strong record with nine saluting from 2008 – 2026 most recently Proxima Dea ($2.10 in 2026), Treasurethemoment (2024), Willowy ($3.70 in 2021), She’s Extreme ($2.30 in 2022), and Zardozi ($2.70 in 2023).

In 2017 the VRC Oaks winner Pinot came off a lead-up win in the Ethereal Stakes, while in 2018 Aristia completed the Wakeful Stakes – VRC Oaks double.

The double was repeated a year later with Miami Bound (2019) also taking out the Oaks on the back of a Wakeful Stakes success, and again in 2021 with the James Cummings-trained Willowy.

Treasurethe Moment (2024) became the latest filly to complete the Wakeful Stakes – VRC Oaks double on the quick back-up. 

VRC Oaks Field

The VRC Oaks race field has a capacity of 16 starters and four emergencies and is released on the Monday three days out from the race. Before the VRC Oaks final field of acceptances is out the week of the event, the early nominations are taken by Racing Victoria in late September and typically feature around 70 to 80 three-year-old fillies.

Fillies may come into the VRC Oaks field off a lead-up run in the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes (2000m) held the Saturday before on Derby Day, the double last completed by Treasurethe Moment (2024), Willowy (2021), Miami Bound (2019), Aristia (2018) and Kirramosa (2013).

Another good lead-up into the VRC Oaks field is the classic Group 1 Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m) in late October with the last Oaks winner to come off the weight-for-age feature against the older horses being Samantha Miss (3rd in 2008).

2026 VRC Oaks Field

The official VRC Oaks 2026 Final Field and VRC Oaks Barrier Draw will be published below once its been officially released.

The VRC Crown Oaks 2026 final field is now out featuring a cracking line-up of staying fillies including the undefeated favourite Proxima Dea chasing a sixth straight win after beating the boys in Sydney’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes at her latest, the rails-drawn Wakeful Stakes champ De Armas for the powerhouse Waller/J-Mac combo, and Quick Finish who ran out of her skin for third in last Saturday’s VRC Derby over the track and trip. 

2026 VRC Oaks Nominations

The early VRC Oaks 2026 Nominations are taken on the Friday prior to the race and will be published below in full once confirmed.

The 2026 VRC Oaks nominations are now out featuring a bumper crop of 31 staying fillies led in all-in betting by David Payne’s undefeated daughter of Tarzino, Proxima Dea, coming off back-to-back Sydney wins over the boys in the Group 3 Gloaming Stakes and Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes.

VRC Oaks Form Guide

The VRC Oaks form guide details all the basic information and statistics you need to place a well-informed wager on the classic including the jockeys and trainers of each filly, their starting barrier and lead-up form.

Last start winners are always a good way to go with 12 VRC Oaks winners from 2009 – 2026 having won their lead-up race, most recently Proxima Dea (2026) who came off a lead-up win in Sydney’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes over the boys.

Previous form at Flemington is also crucial with all but 10 VRC Oaks champs since 1983 having had their final start at the track.

The 2024 VRC Oaks form was franked with the winner Treasurethe Moment returning in the autumn of 2025 to win her next four starts on the trot including the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes and Group 1 Australian Oaks.

VRC Oaks Form Facts

• Last start winners have dominated the recent VRC Oaks results.
• The Wakeful Stakes is the key VRC Oaks form race producing more winners in the past 30 years than any other event.
• Fillies that contested a Flemington race before the VRC Oaks have the best strike rate.
• Damien Oliver boasts a record-equaling seven VRC Oaks victories including the past three on Miami Bound (2019), Personal (2020), and Willowy (2021).

2026 VRC Oaks Form Guide

A link to the comprehensive VRC Oaks 2026 Form Guide will be provided below the week of the race.

Past VRC Oaks Results

The VRC Oaks race results and finishing order of all the starters are known after the event runs as one of the last on the Flemington card on the Thursday meeting in early November. The results reveal not only the winner but also the winning quinella, trifecta and first four and the margins that are all crucial when checking your exotic bets.

There have been a number of notable upset VRC Oaks results in the past decade including the shock all-the-way win by Lasqueti Spirit ($101) in 2016.

Some of the standout VRC Oaks winners include the David Payne-trained Proxima Dea (2026) who was undefeated at the time of her win, the following year’s Australian Oaks champ Treasurethe Moment (2024), subsequent Caulfield Cup winner Jameka (2016), Samantha Miss (2008), Miss Finland (2006), and Research (1988).

Tributes holds the current VRC Oaks race record winning in 2001 in a time of 2 minutes 34:39 seconds.

Recent VRC Oaks Winners

Recent VRC Oaks / Kennedy Oaks / Crown Oaks winners and placegetters dating back to the year 2000 are detailed in the below table.