The best horses that didn’t win the G1 Golden Slipper

Cover image courtesy of the Australian Turf Club

Last year’s G1 Golden Slipper winner Marhoona (Snitzel) is a Listed winning 3-year-old who most recently ran second in the G2 Challenge Stakes behind Generosity (Divine Prophet). The previous year’s winner, Lady Of Camelot (Written Tycoon) has four Group 1 placings at three and is on the way to Royal Ascot this winter.

And then there’s a horse like Pierro who won 11 races, including his first eight in succession, only beaten by All Too Hard in the G1 Caulfield Guineas. Pierro has five Group 1 wins to his credit. That’s without looking at the long list of successful sires to have come out of the race over it’s history, going back to Todman winning the inaugural Slipper in 1957.

Simply making the G1 Golden Slipper field is an accomplishment with 1927 horses in the first round of nominations back in July 2025. This will be cut to a field of sixteen on Saturday.

But what about those horses in the past twenty or so years who didn't win the G1 Golden Slipper but went on to have a long term influence on Australian racing? Either by being a Champion racehorse, or becoming a Champion stallion, or founding a broodmare dynasty...

And who will emerge from last year's Golden Slipper to take up the mantle?

Outright champion racehorses

Horse Of The Year in 2022/23 Anamoe is the latest Champion to have come through the G1 Golden Slipper. Winner of the Listed Merson Cooper Stakes as a pre-Christmas juvenile, he ran third in the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes and was second in the G1 Golden Slipper to Stay Inside.

Anamoe won the G1 Sires’ Produce Stakes at his start after the Slipper, then won the G1 Caulfield Guineas and G1 Rosehill Guineas at three. At four, he added five more Group 1 victories including the G1 Cox Plate, revenge on his second placing at three, to be awarded Horse Of The Year.

His oldest crop are yearlings and have been well-received so far this sales season.

Sunlight (Zoustar), Champion 3-Year-Old of 2018/19, ran third to Estijaab (Snitzel) in 2018. At three, she won the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes, G1 Newmarket Handicap, and G1 William Reid Stakes. As a broodmare, she’s already produced Listed winner Dawn Service (Justify {USA}) whose full sister is Lot 128 at the upcoming Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.

Sunlight was also an outstanding juvenile, having won five in succession leading into the G1 Golden Slipper including the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic, the G2 Silver Slipper and the G3 Magic Night Stakes. At four, she trained on to win at Group 2 level, as well as place behind Horse Of The Year Nature Strip (Nicconi) in the G1 AJ Moir Stakes and also place in a Golden Eagle.

Another Champion 3-Year-Old who stands clear as an outstanding race filly is the brilliant Alinghi (Encosta De Lago). An unbeaten winner of four races including the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes heading into the G1 Golden Slipper, she was beaten by that year’s juvenile Triple Crown victor Dance Hero (Danzero) and future Group 1 winner and sire Charge Forward.

Dance Hero trained on from his super 2-year-old season to win the G1 Salinger Stakes as an older horse, to make it four Group 1 wins in his career, while Charge Forward won the G1 Galaxy Handicap.

But of the trifecta that year, Alinghi was the arguably the best of the trio. At three she won the G1 MRC Thousand Guineas, G1 Newmarket Handicap and the G1 Swettenham Stud Stakes (now the Robert Sangster Stakes), then went to America where she added a Grade 3 victory at four.

Yankee Rose (All American) won her first two starts at two, then was second to Capitalist in the G1 Golden Slipper at her third start. She won the G1 Sires’ Produce Stakes at the fourth start, then returned at three to win the G1 Spring Champion Stakes and place in the G1 Cox Plate. She was crowned Champion 2YO Filly and Champion 3YO Filly in Australia in 2015/16 and 2016/17.

At stud, she’s excelled. Sold privately to Japan, Yankee Rose is the dam of Japan’s darling filly Liberty Island (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}) who was crowned Champion 2YO Filly & 3YO Filly in Japan in 2022 & 2023 and won four Group 1 races as well as placing in the G1 Japan Cup. Liberty Island was controversially euthanised after a fetlock injury in the G1 QEII Cup. Hong Kong officials completed a full review of their veterinary procedures following the incident.

Recent Champion stallions

With so many stallions coming through the G1 Golden Slipper, it’s tough to narrow them down and we’ve had to cut the list off to only recent years, therefore excluding the Flying Spur / Octagonal (NZ) quinella in 1995.

The hottest stallion in Australia, and one without a Champion sire title due to lack of numbers is Extreme Choice, who currently has six Group 1 winners from only 148 runners. Extreme Choice is the sire of G1 Golden Slipper winner and young sire Stay Inside. Extreme Choice won his first three starts including the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes before heading to Sydney for the Golden Slipper.

He finished only eighth behind his now-barn-mate at Newgate Farm Capitalist, but returned at three to win the G1 AJ Moir Stakes on resumption and place in the G1 Oakleigh Plate.

The form from Capitalist’s Golden Slipper is impressive with Yankee Rose running second and Flying Artie in third. Flying Artie had been second to Extreme Choice in the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes and trained on at three to win the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes. He’s now the sire of Champion European Sprinter Asfoora and dual Group 1 winner and young sire Artorius.

Champion Sire Redoute’s Choice was sensationally scratched from the 1999 G1 Golden Slipper on the morning of the race, and he went to sire the winners Miss Finland and Stratum. In Stratum’s Golden Slipper was another Redoute’s Choice colt named Snitzel, who finished 12th that year.

A four-time Australian Champion Sire Snitzel has made Golden Slipper his own with three winners of the race among his progeny, being Marhoona, Shinzo and Estijaab. A dual Listed winner and winner of the G3 Skyline Stakes heading into the G1 Golden Slipper, Snitzel added the G1 Oakleigh Plate at three and three other Group 1 placings, but it is at stud that he stands clear among his peers.

Fellow Champion Sire Written Tycoon finished one place ahead of him that year in 11th, while the winner Stratum would sire a Golden Slipper winner with Crystal Lily.

Dance Hero took all before him in his juvenile year, winning the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic, and all three Sydney Group 1 races. We’ve already mentioned second-placed Charge Forward and third-placed Alinghi, but it was in fourth that a Champion Sire completed the course that year.

Fastnet Rock, a dual Australian Champion Sire, had a non-traditional race record for a Champion stallion, having placed four times at two from seven starts. He won his maiden in the G2 Up & Coming Stakes at three, going on to win the G1 Lightning Stakes and G1 Oakleigh Plate in the autumn as well as finishing second to Alinghi in the G1 Newmarket Handicap.

Choisir, who died in 2021, is another super stallion who placed in a Golden Slipper and is well worth a mention here. Sire of 104 stakes winners, 12 at Group 1 level, Choisir was the first Australian-trained horse to win at Royal Ascot, claiming both the G2 King's Stand Stakes and G1 Golden Jubilee Stakes for trainer Paul Perry in the space of four days in 2003.

Everyone said winning on the back up like that couldn’t be done, and it had never been done until Choisir. He began his racing career with victory on debut in the Listed Breeders’ Plate before adding two more wins then running third in Calaway Gal (Clang)’s G1 Golden Slipper.

He knocked around in stakes company as a spring 3-year-old without winning, then won the G1 Lightning Stakes in the autumn. He would’ve gone to Singapore but for the SARS outbreak, so a trailblazing ambitious trip to Royal Ascot was set. From there, it was history, and his son Starspangledbanner followed in his footsteps.

The mares who trained on

With so many brilliant fillies to run in the Golden Slipper, it’s almost impossible to pick a few to highlight without missing others. There’s bound to be plenty of readers who look at this list and email TTR to remind us of their favourite race filly who should’ve been included.

Second to Calaway Gal was Victory Vein (Mr Henrysee {USA}) who won the G1 Sires’ Produce Stakes and G1 Champagne Stakes at her next two starts. Winner of eight races at two, she added another four as an older mare to finish her career with 12 wins from 27 starts.

Another tough mare was Gold Edition (Lion Hunter) and one with a record reminiscent of this year’s runner Pembrey (Prague). Gold Edition was a dual winner in Brisbane at two, before she headed to Sydney winning the G2 Magic Night Stakes before running 10th behind the brilliant Miss Finland in the G1 Golden Slipper. Of note, successful stallion and recently retired Casino Prince was 14th that year.

Gold Edition won twice more at the Queensland Winter Carnival that year including the G2 Champagne Stakes (now the Spirit Of Boom Classic). Her first Group 1 win came in the G1 Ascot Vale Stakes (now the Coolmore Stud Stakes) and her second in the G1 Manikato Stakes. All up she won 17 races, most at Group level, with 12 placings and earnings over $3.1 million, a massive figure for 2005 to 2008. At stud, her 4-year-old mare Heavy Metal (Blue Point {Ire}) placed in the Listed Supremacy Stakes on debut.

One family with plenty of Golden Slipper form is that of the winner Shinzo. His dam, Samaready (More Than Ready {USA}) won her first four starts including the G1 Blue Diamond Stakes and G2 Reisling Stakes, before running third to Pierro and Snitzerland in 2012. She trained on to win the G1 AJ Moir Stakes at three.

At stud, she produced Shinzo to win the Slipper as well as his full sister Exhilarates (Snitzel) who won the R. Listed Magic Millions 2YO Classic and was 14th in the G1 Golden Slipper behind Kiamichi (Sidestep). Exhilarates trained on to win four more black type races and her first foal is the 3-year-old gelding Dubai Adventure (Street Bos {USA}) who won on debut this spring.

The current 3-year-olds

Last year’s G1 Golden Slipper, won by Marhoona, has already seen three Group 1 winners in the field. Devil Night (Extreme Choice) won the G1 Blue Diamond coming into the Slipper, finishing fifth. Since then, he’s run second in the G3 Zeditave Stakes at his most recent outing this autumn.

Third placed Tempted (Street Boss {USA}) won Group 2 races either side of her Slipper third, and this season was third to Beiwacht (Bivouac) in the G1 Golden Rose, second to the world’s best sprinter Ka Ying Rising (NZ) (Shamexpress {NZ}) in the G1 The Everest and most recently was victorious in the G1 Surround Stakes. She has earnings over $5.1 million already in the bank.

Beiwacht, who won the G1 Golden Rose, could only manage 11th behind Marhoona and was most recently second in the G1 Canterbury Stakes behind four-time Group 1 winner Joliestar (Zoustar). Beiwacht is a son of Bivouac, whose Champion Sire Exceed And Excel was ninth behind Polar Success (Success Express {USA}) in 2003.

From the same crop is Tentyris (Street Boss {USA}) who didn’t run in Marhoona’s Golden Slipper, having pulled up slightly sore after winning the G2 Todman Stakes. This season at three, he’s won the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes and G1 Lightning Stakes.

And that's without looking at the geldings who galloped on and on and on...