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Ad Treasurethe Moment became the 39th filly to complete the Wakeful Stakes-VRC Oaks double. (George Sal/Racing Photos)

The 2024-25 season's Flemington stars

30 July 2025 • Written by Brad Bishop – Racing And Sports

Marble Nine will go in search of another Flemington win in this Saturday’s $200,000 Group 3 Aurie’s Star Handicap (1200m), which is the first feature of the new Australian racing season.

The Malua Racing gelding finished the 2024/25 season with a flourish, winning his past three starts at his home track, which saw him join three others as the most successful horses at Flemington for the racing year. 

With the curtain drawn this week on the 2024/25 season, we look at the horses, stables and riders who shone brightest at Headquarters in the past 12 months. 

Most Successful Horses 

Marble Nine’s late-season hattrick saw him join Treasurethe Moment, Shining Smile and Is It Me as horses to win three races at Flemington for the season. 

All four won their three races in successive starts at Flemington and all included at least one Black Type victory. 

All three of Treasurethe Moment’s came at Group level, winning the Group 2 G.H. Mumm Wakeful Stakes and Group 1 Crown Oaks in spring before Group 2 TAB Kewney Stakes success in autumn. 

Seventeen other horses won two races for the season, including Via Sistina and Mr Brightside, who were the only multiple Group 1 winners at Flemington in 2024/25. 

Highest-Rated Winners (Racing And Sports rating) 

126 – Via Sistina: Claimed RAS ratings honours by going 126 in her 2-3/4-length win in the TAB Champions Stakes, the highest number posted in that race since So You Think went 130 in 2010, when the race was run on Derby Day. Via Sistina also won Flemington’s other 2000m Group 1 of spring, the TAB Turnbull Stakes, in 124. 

Via Sistina was dominant in the TAB Champions Stakes. (George Sal/Racing Photos)

125 – Mr Brightside: On the same day that Via Sistina won the TAB Champions Stakes, Mr Brightside ran 125 to win the VRC Champions Mile. That was his second 125 win in a 1600m Group 1 at Flemington last spring, having also run that number when he completed back-to-back Crown Makybe Diva Stakes wins. 

124 – Tom Kitten: Mr Brightside narrowly missed out on a third Flemington feature ‘mile’ when edged out by Godolphin gelding Tom Kitten, who elevated his career peak to 124 in the All-Star Mile. 

123 – Switzerland: The high-priced colt became the second Chris Waller-trained, Coolmore-owned speedster to win the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) in the past three seasons when he earned a rating of 123 for his 2-3/4-length win in 1:08.3. 

122 – Light Infantry Man: The Ciaron Maher-trained import relished the strong tempo of the Group 1 TAB Australian Cup (2000m), romping home by two lengths in a time of 2:00.41, which earned him a new Aussie peak figure of 122. 

Joliestar burst through the pack late to claim the 2025 Yulong Newmarket Handicap. (Brett Holburt/Racing Photos)

122 – Joliestar: The Waller-trained mare spotted weight to a host of rivals, but coasted to a 1-1/4-length win in 1:08.75, which earned her a rating of 122 in the Yulong Newmarket Handicap – the highest by a female Newmarket winner since Black Caviar posted a race-record 135 in 2011.

Craig Williams was jumping for joy after Mr Brightside won his second Flemington Group 1 for the season in the VRC Champions Mile. (Scott Barbour/Racing Photos)

Most Successful Jockeys

Craig Williams came up short in his quest for the Victorian Metropolitan Jockeys’ Premiership, but he enjoyed a stellar 12 months at Flemington.

He had 103 rides at headquarters for the season – the second-most behind Jye McNeil (116) – and won 16 of them, headlined by Crown Makybe Diva Stakes and VRC Champions Mile wins on Mr Brightside.

Billy Egan and James McDonald were next best with 11 wins.

McDonald, who only had 39 rides at Flemington for the season, had the best winning strike-rate at 28 percent, followed by Liam Riordan (three wins from 12 rides – 25%) and Luke Nolen (five wins from 21 rides – 24%).

Egan had the best return on investment of all riders with his 11 wins from 59 rides generating a ROI of $2.16.

Ciaron Maher with Light Infantry Man, one of nineteen winners at Headquarters for the 2024-25 season. (George Sal/Racing Photos)

Most Successful Trainers

It is no surprise that Ciaron Maher trained more winners than any other stable.

He had 74 more starters than any other stable and bagged 19 wins, the biggest of which was Light Infantry Man’s TAB Australian Cup win.

Maher was one of 10 stables to win Group 1 races at Flemington with Chris Waller (five) and Ben, Will and JD Hayes (two) those to win multiple races at the highest level.

The Hayes family had the second-most winners with 15 with Anthony and Sam Freedman (12) and Patrick and Michelle Payne (10) the others to crack double-figures.

The Payne’s came in third on the strike-rate table, behind Robert Hickmott, who only had six starters for two winners and Henry Dwyer, who was four from 12.

John Symons and Sheila Laxon only had one winner at Flemington for the season, but it was a big one – Knight’s Choice in the Lexus Melbourne Cup - and they had the best return on investment at $15.17.

Clayton Douglas was next best at $7.62, while Dwyer was best of those with multiple winners with his winners coming at an ROI of $4.56.

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