WITH the wattle and almond trees revealing blossoms this past week, the racetrack return of Winx heralded the imminent arrival of spring racing. The five-year-old Street Cry mare went to Randwick on Saturday to contest the Group 2 Warwick Stakes over 1,400 metres. With two trials under her belt trainer Chris Waller declared Winx “ready to go”, despite it being revealed she had undergone arthroscopic surgery on her near-fore fetlock in April.

Any doubt was quickly erased as Winx sat outside of Rebel Dane near the front of the race before motoring away to run her final 600 metres in 32.89 seconds, landing a three and a half-length margin over the British-bred Authorized gelding Hartnell, with the California Dane entire Rebel Dane third. The result prompted the latter’s trainer Gary Portelli to quip to Chris Waller: “I don’t think even you know how good she is.”