Horse racing fans in Australia have been blessed in recent times with champion mares in the sport.
Recent hall of fame inductee Peter Moody of course trained champion sprinting mare Black Caviar to win all 25 of her race starts which of course, including Group 1 success in England.
Winx won the racing public’s adoration like few before have when she won a world record 25 Group 1s during her illustrious career.
At the start of this century, there was another mare, this time of the staying variety, that won a record three Melbourne Cups among nine Group 1s in total that represented the female horses in Australia.
There are many races in this country named after our greatest ever racehorses and they don’t always fit the profile of the horse they represent.
The Phar Lap Stakes is a Group 2 for three-year-olds, the Kingston Town Classic (now Northerly Stakes) was run in Perth, and now the Kingston Town Stakes is a Group 3.
And for whatever reason, the Makybe Diva Stakes is run over 1600m at Flemington. A track and distance she never won at.
Regardless, the 2025 edition of the race is set to be another cracking affair and in honour of the great mare we have ranked all nine of her Group 1 wins.
9. 2005 Turnbull Stakes
Makybe Diva’s 2005 spring campaign will go down as one of the best we have ever seen and her win in the Turnbull Stakes showcased her electric turn of foot at the end of her races.
She absolutely loved the big, open space at Flemington and she proved it yet again by defeating Lad Of The Manor by almost a length.
8. 2005 The BMW (Tancred Stakes)
The best thing about Makybe Diva, which can’t be said as confidently as the other two champion mares mentioned above, is that she faced quality opposition right throughout her career despite her dominance.
The main reason for this is the fact she was a stayer and, at the pointy end of the autumn and spring, it’s harder to avoid the better horses as there just aren’t as many options!
The 2005 The BMW (now Tancred Stakes) was set up as a bit of a match race between Makybe Diva and Grand Armee and that’s pretty much how it played out.
7. 2003 Melbourne Cup
In hindsight she was a weighted certainty in the 2003 Melbourne Cup carrying just 51kg and it wasn’t the strongest edition of the race.
Godolphin’s Mamool was sent out favourite and failed to handle the rock hard track finishing last.
Glen Boss gave her one of the best steers you will ever see as well!
6. 2004 Sydney Cup
It’s hard to understand for younger racing fans but the Sydney Cup was once a prestigious and competitive Group 1 race in this country.
Makybe Diva added the staying feature to her growing resume in 2004 when beating Mummify and County Tyrone as well as seven others over 3200m at Royal Randwick.
Making the win even more impressive, she gave 5kg to six of her nine opponents that day.
Boss got her into a horrendous spot at the 250m, but she was such a professional that she picked herself back up and found the line strong enough to salute.
5. 2004 Melbourne Cup
Her second win in the race that stops the nation was impressive considering a few factors.
First of all she was asked to carry 55.5kg, 4.5kg more than the year previous, and there had been plenty of rain around that week.
She also ran into a pretty handy field which included Dermot Weld’s Vinnie Roe who had just won his fourth St Leger at Curragh before heading to Australia.
She created history that day when going back-to-back thanks in big part to another absolute peach of a ride from G.Boss.
4. 2005 Australian Cup
The Australian Cup was once the pinnacle of racing for staying horses during the autumn, and like the Sydney Cup, it has lost its prestige in recent times.
Makybe Diva was not sent out favourite at Flemington that day, in part because she wasn’t a true mile and a quarter horse but also, she had an in form and exciting young horse that enticed the punters cash.
Elvstroem ran third in the Australian Cup as a three-year-old a year previous and then during the spring had won the Turnbull Stakes, Underwood Stakes and Caulfield Cup.
He was sent out an even money chance but could only manage fourth behind the great mare.
3. 2005 Memsie Stakes
It wasn’t the strongest Memsie Stakes field nor was there many to beat, but the fact that could win a race like this over 1400m first up is a true testament to just how great she was.
She beat Regal Roller and Le Zagaletta who had already won Memsies and Super Elegant who was a multiple group winner over 1100m.
2. 2005 Cox Plate
Unlike Winx, Makybe Diva had varying campaigns throughout her campaign which is why she only won one race on multiple occasions.
During what would be her final prep, Lee Freedman decided to take her to The Valley for the weight-for-age championship to really cap off what was an impressive CV.
By this stage the punters were aware of the form she was in and she was sent around as an even money favourite in Cox Plate betting.
1. 2005 Melbourne Cup
A champion became a legend on the first Tuesday in November in 2005 as Makybe Diva carried a weight record for a mare in the race to solidify her place in the history books.
It’s almost impossible to win such a difficult race on one occasion, let alone three, but a huge amount of credit has to go to her jockey for three of the best rides you’re likely to witness.
Boss knew his mare so well and the race was over once she was clear and he timed his ride to perfection, and didn’t waste any of her sprint, yet again.