When Australian champion Winx (Street Cry) won the G2 Apollo Stakes at Randwick on Monday, she made it 14 wins on the bounce.
The five-year-old, whose streak tied that set by the legendary Phar Lap (Night Raid), has nine Gr1 victories to her credit and connections
Winx is not the first daughter of her sire to wrack up a notable winning streak –Street Cry’s outstanding daughter Zenyatta won 19 in a row, before narrowly losing her career finale when just touched off by Blame (Arch) in the 2010 Gr1 Breeders’ Cup Classic.
But what of other notable winning streaks in the history of racing?
Famed mare Kincesm (Cambuscan) won all of her 54 outings, with the Hungarian based champion one of racing’s first pioneers. Kincesm (who was honoured with a life sized statue in Budapest) won all ten of her outings as a two-year-old, classics in Austria and Hungary at three, and travelled to England at four, where she won the then hugely prestigious Goodwood Cup. When she died, flags were flown at half-mast for the Hungarian legend!
Another great Australian champion Black Caviar (Bel Esprit) went unbeaten in 25 career outings-one of the longest winning streaks in modern racing history. The charismatic mare’s unbeaten record included a stunning 15 Gr1 victories, including the 2012 Diamond Jubilee Stakes, where Black Caviar accounted for outstanding French filly Moonlight Cloud (Invincible Spirit).
Yet another top class Aussie to put together an impressive winning streak was the great Bernborough (Emborough), who won 15 races on the bounce in the 1940’s. Bernborough’s victories included the such current Gr1 races as the Newmarket Handicap, Doomben Cup, All Aged Stakes and Chipping Norton Stakes.
US champions Colin (Commando) and Personal Ensign (Private Account) went unbeaten in 15 and 13 outings respectively, with the former’s winning streak including the 1908 (now Gr1) Belmont Stakes and the latter’s eight Gr1 wins the 1988 Breeders’ Cup Distaff, where she accounted for Gr1 Kentucky Derby winner Winning Colors (Caro) in a thrilling finish.
Legendary champion Frankel (Galileo) was never beaten in 14 outings, with his wins including a stunning 10 Gr1 wins, while Hong Kong superstar Silent Witness (El Moxie) won 17 straight wins in Hong Kong from 2002-2005, with his wins including two scores in the Gr1 Hong Kong Sprint.
The great US champions Cigar (Palace Music) and Citation (Bull Lea) both together 16 race winning streak, while, at a considerably lower level, the US mare Peppers Pride (Desert God) never lost in 19 outings, and another mare, Hallowed Dreams (Malagra) won 16 straight.
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