Twelve months ago Winx won the Cox Plate on the back of an Epsom Handicap win in Sydney and this weekend the John O’Shea-trained Hauraki is out to attempt the same feat.

There’s plenty stacking-up against the in-form Godolphin galloper however as he needs to beat a star-studded field in the $3 million Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) at Moonee Valley led by the reigning champ Winx.

Winx has firmed into the odds-on $1.95 favourite in Cox Plate betting at Ladbrokes.com.au to post her 13^th win on the trot and continue her historic run of form.

Godolphin’s other Cox Plate runner, last start Turnbull Stakes winner over the distance at Flemington Hartnell, is the only other chance under double-figures paying $3.80 and getting juicer by the minute.

One of the forgotten Cox Plate horses in a battle being spruiked as Winx vs Hartnell is the fellow O’Shea-trained Hauraki.

He is at $21 in the Cox Plate odds to score at the longest price since Shamus Award ($20 in 2013).

While Winx is all the rage to go back-to-back in the Australasian weight-for-age championship, history shows that seven of the past 13 Cox Plate winners jumped at double-figures.

Reset stallion Hauraki fits that bill this weekend and comes off a string of top runs having run top two in his five latest starts going back to early May.

He posted his first elite level win in the Group 1 Epsom Handicap (1600m) at Randwick on October 1 and is now up to 2000m for the first time since his second behind Our Ivanhowe in the Group 1 Doomben Cup during the winter.

Hauraki has faced off against Chris Waller’s superstar Winx four times previously and all four times he finished in the money.

During the autumn of 2015 he ran second to her in the Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes (1500m) before back-to-back thirds at Randwick in the Group 2 Apollo Stakes (1400m) and Group 1 Chipping Norton Stakes (1600m) this February.

Last time he faced off with the world’s No. 4 was second-up in this year’s Group 1 George Main Stakes (1600m) on September 17 where he was brave in defeat running 1.3 lengths back for second.

Some would suggest that this form around Winx is stronger than that of his better-fancied stablemate Hartnell, which opens up the possible Cox Plate trifecta result on Saturday.

So can Hauraki run better than his price suggests and beat home either Winx or Hartnell in the Cox Plate result?

2016 Cox Plate Horse Form #4 Hauraki

Barrier: 8

Weight: 59kg

Jockey: Dwayne Dunn

Trainer: John O’Shea

Owner/s: Godolphin

Age: 5YO

Gender: Stallions

Breeding: by Reset from Youthful Presence

Career: 20-5-7-2

Win: 25%

Place: 70%

Last 6: 22×121

Prize Money: $2,006,660

Track: 0-0-0-0

Distance: 5-1-3-0

Current 2016 Cox Plate Odds: $21

Why Hauraki is Worth Backing in the Cox Plate 2016

• He won the Epsom Handicap in Sydney last start, the same race Winx won on way to her Cox Plate victory last season
• He is a genuine Group 1 racehorse having had nine elite level runs for a win and five other placings
• He is proven at weight-for-age including the Doomben Cup and Ranvet Stakes seconds this year both over the Cox Plate distance
• He has strong 2000m form (5-1-3-0) and can handle the step up in distance having come from near last to win the Epsom last time out
• While no five-year-old has won the race since 2001, stallions have won three times in the past six years
• Looks over the odds and seven of the past 13 Cox Plate winners jumped at double figures
• Last run against Winx two back saw him beaten only 1.3 lengths at WFA in the George Main Stakes in Sydney

Why Hauraki Won’t Win the Cox Plate this Weekend

• He is drawn awkwardly in barrier eight, which hasn’t produced a Cox Plate winner in over 30 years
• #3 Hartnell $3.80 is peaking and if you’re backing a Godolphin galloper he is the one to lock-in
• He has faced Winx four times and is yet to get the better of her
• He makes a far better Place chance with all four of his Winx encounters producing a top three finish
• He goes up from 56kg in the Epsom Handicap to 59kg in the Cox Plate weights
• Jockey Dwayne Dunn has never ridden a Cox Plate winner or been aboard Hauraki before
• His regular rider James McDonald comes off in favour of the run on stablemate Hartnell
• John O’Shea has never trained a Cox Plate winner and rates Hartnell a better chance
• Has the fourth worst Win Rate (25%) of the field

If you like the Cox Plate form on Hauraki and think he can add value to the race on Saturday then lock him in at the right price online at Ladbrokes.com.au – home of Enhanced Odds (T&Cs apply).