The latest edition of the Danehill Stakes took place on Saturday, October 3, 2026 as part of Flemington’s Turnbull Stakes Day card for Coolmore Stud Stakes-bound three-year-olds and was won in a tight but impressive victory by the progressive Ciaron Maher-trained The Next Episode ($3.30).
The Danehill Stakes 2026 is one of the key early season sprint races for three-year-olds during the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival, attracting some of Australia’s most exciting young speedsters to Flemington Racecourse each October. Run over a testing 1100 metres down the famous straight course, the Group 2 feature has a proven history of showcasing future stars and serving as a launchpad for bigger spring targets. For punters chasing the latest Danehill Stakes odds 2026 and following Danehill Stakes betting 2026 markets, the race offers an excellent opportunity to back emerging talent before they progress to elite-level company. With leading stables regularly targeting the feature with their best three-year-old sprinters, the Danehill Stakes is a race that demands close attention from bettors looking for value, form clues, and future Group 1 prospects. Stay up to date with the latest Danehill Stakes 2026 betting odds, market movers, field information, and expert betting insights right here at Ladbrokes.
2026 Danehill Stakes Results
The official Danehill Stakes 2026 results and full race finishing order will be provided below once the race is run and won on Saturday, October 3, 2026.
- #3 The Next Episode
- #10 Natural Fling
- #7 Mbube
The 2026 Danehill Stakes results saw exciting three-year-old colt The Next Episode ($3.30) announce himself as a leading Coolmore Stud Stakes contender with a tough first-up victory in the Group 2 sprint over 1100m at Flemington. Trained by Ciaron Maher and ridden by Mark Zahra, the son of Snitzel overcame a determined challenge from race favourite Natural Fling to score by a short neck, with Mbube finishing a length away in third. The win improved his record to four victories from six starts and showcased the powerful turn of foot that has quickly established him among the season’s top sprinting colts. Following the performance, The Next Episode firmed dramatically into favouritism for the 2026 Coolmore Stud Stakes in from $9 to $3 at Ladbrokes with connections confident there is further improvement to come as he heads towards the Group 1 feature on Derby Day.
2026 Danehill Stakes Race Replay
2026 Danehill Stakes Odds & Finishing Order
The latest Danehill Stakes 2026 betting odds and links to our Flemington racing markets will be provided below the week of the race followed by the official finishing order after the event.
| 3. The Next Episode (6) 58kg1211x | ||
| 10. Natural Fling (10) 56.5kg12×13 | ||
| 7. Mbube (8) 57kg1×2 | ||
| 4. Alibaba (9) 58kg1389x | ||
| 8. Doubt Time (11) 57kg1x | ||
| 6. Buggsy (2) 57kg13×14 | ||
| 11. Over Excited (4) 55kg12 | ||
| 2. Big Sky (7) 58.5kg11×3 | ||
| 9. Pocketfullofcash (3) 57kg1x | ||
| 5. Zambales (5) 57kg54×21 | ||
| 1. Stretan Ruler (1) 58.5kg4125x |
Danehill Stakes Tips
Danehill Stakes tips include looking for three-year-olds coming off a top three run in similar class last start, proven Group performers, those with winning Flemington form down the straight and runners backing up from a race like the McNeil Stakes or Quezette Stakes.
Ladbrokes Tip: Danehill Stakes runners often head into the Coolmore Stud Stakes later in the spring
2026 Danehill Stakes Predictions & Best Bets
Our Ladbrokes’ insider Danehill Stakes 2026 betting tips and Group 2 Flemington selections will be detailed below the week of the race so you can get behind our tips online.
| 10. Natural Fling (10) 56.5kg12×13 |
| 3. The Next Episode (6) 58kg1211x |
| 6. Buggsy (2) 57kg13×14 |
The Danehill Stakes is a Group 2 race for three-year-olds run down the famous straight track at Flemington Racecourse on Turnbull Stakes Day during the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. The day’s racing at the meeting is headlined by the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes (2000m) for potential Cox Plate horses.
Previously held on Makybe Diva Stakes Day a fortnight earlier, the Danehill Stakes was moved to the later time slot ahead of the 2021 edition and is scheduled for the same date as Sydney’s Epsom Handicap Day.
There are a host of Group 2 support acts on the Melbourne card including the Group 2 Edward Manifold Stakes, Group 2 Gilgai Stakes the Group 2 Rose Of Kingston Stakes and the Danehill Stakes. A 1100m sprint, having been reduced from 1200m in 2021, the Danehill Stakes is run at set weights plus penalties and offers $300,000 in total prize money.
It is a key lead-up into the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) over the same track and distance during the Melbourne Cup Carnival, a double recently completed by Sepoy (2011).
In 2023 I Am Unstoppable was runner-up in the Danehill Stakes and Coolmore Stud Stakes results.
The 2021 Danehill Stakes form was franked with the winning three-year-old Giga Kick going on to win the world’s richest turf race – the then $15 million (now $20 million) The Everest (1200m) – at his next start in Sydney.
Tentyris (3rd in 2025) was the last Danehill Stakes graduate to go on and win the Coolmore Stud Stakes.
Danehill Stakes Race Info
- Date: Saturday, October 3, 2026
- Track: Flemington Racecourse
- Distance: 1100m
- Conditions: 3YOs – Set Weights + Penalties
- Status: Group 2
- Prize Money: $300,000
- First Run: 1982
Danehill Stakes Betting
Danehill Stakes betting is led by in-form three-year-olds with proven form over the shorter sprinter distances that were likely tested in tougher company during their last campaign.
Horses that ran well in lead-up races in Melbourne like the Vain Stakes and McKenzie Stakes and that have previous experience down the testing Flemington straight also sit high up the Danehill Stakes odds each year.
Giga Kick in 2022 was the last horse to complete the Vain Stakes – Danehill Stakes double.
Double figure hopes in Danehill Stakes markets have recent winning form in the Group 2 including Charlie Boy ($21 in 2013) and Kallos ($12 in 2021).
Dalasan ($2.60 in 2019), Giga Kick ($1.95 in 2022), and First Settler ($4 in 2024) are the latest favourites in Danehill Stakes betting to get the job done for the punters.
Danehill Stakes Field
The Danehill Stakes race field attracts a quality line-up of three-year-olds many heading towards longer distance runs for their age during the spring. A key lead-up race into the Danehill Stakes is the Group 3 HDF McNeil Stakes (1200m) at Caulfield the previous month.
In 2015 Ready For Victory ran second in the McNeil and third in the Danehill Stakes behind Kinglike. Ready For Victory also went on to run third to Press Statement in that year’s Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m), which is a target for many horses coming out of the Danehill Stakes field each spring.
Another possible lead-up run is Moonee Valley’s Listed McKenzie Stakes (1200m), a race Rich Enuff won on way to his Danehill Stakes success in 2014. Rich Enuff also won the Group 3 Caulfield Guineas Prelude (1400m) next start before his Caulfield Guineas second to Shooting To Win.
Éclair Big Bang come off a Danehill Stakes third to Charlie Boy in 2013 before backing up to win the Caulfield Guineas.
Fillies meanwhile may come off an August run in the Group 3 Quezette Stakes (1100m) at Caulfield before taking on the boys. In 2013 Kiss A Rose won the Quezette before a second to Charlie Boy in the Danehill Stakes. In 2017 the previous season’s Blue Diamond Stakes winning filly Catchy improved on a lead-up second in the Quezette Stakes to beat home the boys in the Danehill Stakes.
Danehill Stakes nominations are taken the Monday before the race runs on the Saturday with the final field and barriers released on the Wednesday.
2026 Danehill Stakes Field
The official Danehill Stakes 2026 race field and barriers are announced the Wednesday of race week and will be published in full below, so stay tuned to see what three-year-olds make the starting line-up this spring.
The Danehill Stakes 2026 field features a quality line-up of young sprinters led in betting by the Tony & Calvin McEvoy-trained Group 3 winning Home Affairs filly Natural Fling back in grade after her brave Group 1 Moir Stakes third behind the older horses.
| Entrant | Last 6 | Sex | Barrier | Weight | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1. Stretan Ruler
J: Lachlan Neindorf
T: Phillip & Tommy Stokes |
x4125x | C | 1 | 58.5kg | |
|
2. Big Sky
J: Jordan Childs
T: Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr |
11×3 | C | 7 | 58.5kg | |
|
3. The Next Episode
J: Mark Zahra
T: Ciaron Maher |
x1211x | C | 6 | 58kg | |
|
4. Alibaba
J: Craig Newitt
T: Ken & Kasey Keys |
31389x | C | 9 | 58kg | |
|
5. Zambales
J: Jamie Mott
T: Anthony & Sam Freedman |
954×21 | C | 5 | 57kg | |
|
6. Buggsy
J: Craig Williams
T: Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr |
13×14 | C | 2 | 57kg | |
|
7. Mbube
J: Billy Egan
T: Lloyd Kennewell |
1×2 | C | 8 | 57kg | |
|
8. Doubt Time
J: Michael Dee
T: Nick Ryan |
1x | G | 11 | 57kg | |
|
9. Pocketfullofcash
J: Blake Shinn
T: Reece Goodwin |
1x | G | 3 | 57kg | |
|
10. Natural Fling
J: Damian Lane
T: Tony & Calvin Mcevoy |
12×13 | F | 10 | 56.5kg | |
|
11. Over Excited
J: Ethan Brown
T: Anthony & Sam Freedman |
12 | F | 4 | 55kg |
2026 Danehill Stakes Nominations
The Danehill Stakes 2026 nominations are taken by Racing Victoria on the Monday of race week and will be published in full below.
Danehill Stakes Form Guide
The Danehill Stakes form guide features all the information for punters from barriers, jockeys and trainers to the lead-up runs of the horses in the field. Looking at the form for three-year-olds coming off a top three run and jumping at single-figures in betting is key.
The form out of the Danehill Stakes has gone on to hold in tougher grade races many times over the years including in 2011 when the third-placed Bruckner ran a next-up second in the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes.
In 2022 the Danehill Stakes winner Giga Kick won Sydney’s The Everest next start in an upset, and he further franked the form in 2023 returning to win the Group 1 All Aged Stakes and Doomben 10,000.
The 2024 Danehill Stakes runner-up Reserve Bank franked the form heading to Morphettville in the autumn of 2025 to claim a Group 1 sprint win in The Goodwood.
The strength of the 2025 Danehill Stakes form was highlighted throughout the following season, with runner-up My Gladiola progressing to finish second in the Coolmore Stud Stakes before developing into a Group 1-winning sprinter thanks to victories and placings at the elite level. The race also produced the 2025 Coolmore Stud Stakes winner, with third-place finisher Tentyris going on to capture the Group 1 feature during the Melbourne Cup Carnival before adding further top-level success in the autumn. The subsequent achievements of both horses reinforced the Danehill Stakes as a key form reference for punters tracking the emergence of Australia’s next generation of sprint stars.
2026 Danehill Stakes Form Guide
A link to our comprehensive Danehill Stakes 2026 Form Guide will be provided for punters below the week of the race.
Past Danehill Stakes Results
The Danehill Stakes race results have been dominated by class three-year-olds in the past decade jumping at under $10 in betting.
Notable recent Danehill Stakes winners include Giga Kick (2022), Catchy (2017), Rich Enuff (2014), Snitzerland (2012), Sepoy (2011), Black Caviar (2009), and Fastnet Rock (2004).
Stretan Angel (2023) was the last Danehill Stakes winning filly.
Recent Danehill Stakes Winners
Recent Danehill Stakes winners and placegetters dating back to the year 2000 are detailed in the below table.
| Year | Winner | Runner-Up | Third | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | The Next Episode | Natural Fling | Mbube | 1:04.77 |
| 2025 | McGaw | My Gladiola | Tentyris | 1:02.63 |
| 2024 | First Settler | Reserve Bank | Enriched | 1:04.5 |
| 2023 | Stretan Angel | I Am Unstoppable | Don Corleone | 1:04.1 |
| 2022 | Giga Kick | Buenos Noches | Cannonball | 1:02.6 |
| 2021 | Kallos | General Beau | Bruckner | 1:04.3 |
| 2020 | Doubtland | Amish Boy | Ranting | 1:09.5 |
| 2019 | Dalasan | Dubious | Express Pass | 1:09.4 |
| 2018 | Encryption | Thorondor | Tavisan | 1:10.6 |
| 2017 | Catchy | Jukebox | Booker | 1:10.3 |
| 2016 | Saracino | Archives | Samara Dancer | 1:09.8 |
| 2015 | Kinglike | Raphael’s Cat | Ready For Victory | 1:09.0 |
| 2014 | Rich Enuff | Looks Like The Cat | Ghibellines | 1:08.1 |
| 2013 | Charlie Boy | Kiss A Rose | Eclair Big Bang | 1:10.0 |
| 2012 | Snitzerland | Stralia | Rusambo | 1.10.5 |
| 2011 | Sepoy | Hallowell Belle | Unique Quality | 1:08.7 |
| 2010 | Soul | Buffering | General Truce | 1:11.6 |
| 2009 | Black Caviar | Wanted | Rarefied | 1:09.9 |
| 2008 | Aichi | Time Chief | Niccconi | 1:10.4 |
| 2007 | Tan Tat de Lago | Scenic Blast | Purrealist | 1:10.9 |
| 2006 | The One | Anamato | Sharkbite | 1:10.4 |
| 2005 | Jet Spur | Queen of the Hill | Stratum | 1:09.5 |
| 2004 | Fastnet Rock | Brannigan | Assafa | 1:09.2 |
| 2003 | Abdullah | Critical List | Bronc | 1:12.0 |
| 2002 | Planchet | Blur | Choisir | 1:08.7 |
| 2001 | Chongtong | North Boy | Spectatorial | 1:09.0 |
| 2000 | St Petersburg | Cosset | Ceffyl | 1:10.4 |