Early Australian Oaks favourite La Bella Diosa has her next lead-up into ‘The Championships’ leading the Coolmore Classic 2017 nominations for this Saturday at Rosehill Gardens.

Australian Oaks favourite La Bella Diosa is nominated for a 2017 Coolmore Classic run against the mares this Saturday at Rosehill. Photo: Steve Hart.

Continuing the elite level action of the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival this weekend is the $600,000 Group 1 Coolmore Classic (1500m) for fillies and mares.

The Coolmore Classic nominations on Monday attracted twenty-five hopefuls including six three-year-old fillies out to take on the older mares in the quality handicap.

Fillies enjoyed a strong record in the Coolmore Classic Results from 1985 – 2009 with eleven victories, but none have won since the great Typhoon Tracy (2009).

Of those out to break the drought this weekend the headliner is the Mandy & Matt Brown-trained Kiwi visitor La Bella Diosa.

The talented daughter of So You Think won the Group 1 NZ 1000 Guineas (1600m) at home last November before a first-up run down under on February 25 at Randwick.

There on a Heavy (9) track she beat the gun Chris Waller-trained Doncaster Mile-bound Omei Sword in the Group 2 Surround Stakes (1400m) and she’ll be right in the mix again if there’s rain around in Sydney on Saturday.

La Bella Diosa will only improve the further she gets and she is already the $6 pre-field favourite at Ladbrokes.com.au for the $1 million Group 1 Australian Oaks (2400m) on April 8 during ‘The Championships’ at Randwick.

The filly La Bella Diosa beat home first-up, Omei Sword is another key Coolmore Classic nomination for the weekend.

Sydney’s best, Waller chases his first win in the race with his progressive daughter of High Chaparral who caught the eye with her fast-finishing second in the Surround Stakes after her return was delayed.

She looked to have lost none of her shine despite the setback and will be fitter second-up tracking towards an April 1 run in the $3 million Group 1 Doncaster Mile (1600m).

Waller has also nominated for Foxwedge filly Foxplay who ran a luckless fourth in the Surround Stakes, five-year-old French Emotion who was runner-up in the spring’s Myer Classic and Shillelagh.

Last year’s Coolmore Classic winner was the ill-fated Ron Quinton-trained Peeping (2016) and Quinton is back chasing successive wins this season with his four-year-olds Daysee Doom and Dixie Blossoms.

Daysee Doom has a stellar record of five wins and a third from eight starts to date and comes off a first-up third in the Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes (1300m) at Rosehill on February 18.

Stablemate Dixie Blossoms will be third-up off a blistering six and a half-length win on a bog Randwick track in the Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes (1400m).

Newcastle’s Benjamin Smith has nominated for his flying four-year-old In Her Time, the daughter of Time Thief chasing her fifth win on the trot.

In Her Time has won the Group 2 Breeders Classic – Millie Fox double this campaign, the second leg won by over two lengths, and could be the one to beat again on the weekend.

Other key entries include Andrew Noblet’s Victorian raider Silent Sedition coming off the Mannerism Stakes win on Ladbrokes Blue Diamond Stakes Day, Wenona Girl Handicap winner in the mud last Saturday Rocket Commander and runner-up in the same race Hieroglyphics would could be on the quick back-up.

Check out the full Coolmore Classic 2017 nominations below, the field out on Wednesday followed by updated markets at Ladbrokes.com.au – home of Odds Boost (T&Cs apply).

2017 Coolmore Classic Nominations

Rosehill Gardens Racecourse – 11/04/2017