Simon Miller’s star Perth raider Amelia’s Jewel enjoyed the perfect pipe opener to the 2023 Cox Plate with an easy win in Friday night’s Group 2 $300,000 Ladbrokes Stocks Stakes (1600m) at The Valley.

2023 Stocks Stakes winner Amelia’s Jewel is likely to head to the $5 million Ladbrokes Cox Plate on October 28. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

The Group 1 winner from WA backed-up from her successful interstate debut in the Let’s Elope Stakes to salute in her first run around the Moonee Valley circuit with a dominant display in the Stocks Stakes 2023.

The four-year-old daughter of Siyouni has now amassed over $2.74 million in earnings with more to come as she heads towards the Group 1 $5 million Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m) back at The Valley track on October 28.

Her previous elite level success came at home in Perth’s Group 1 Northerly Stakes (1800m) over her older rivals as a three-year-old filly last December.

Jockey Damian Lane continued associations on Friday night having also ridden Amelia’s Jewel for her first-up success at Flemington from barrier 14 of 14 in the Group 2 Let’s Elope Stakes (1400m) on September 14.

She was equally as impressive up to a mile second-up in the Stocks Stakes where Lane stoked her up at the top of the straight before cruising past the front-running Pride Of Jenni, taking up the lead and racing through the line after sitting up on speed second throughout in a surprise move.

“I had to ask her for a bit of an effort,” Lane told the media post-win.

“Pride Of Jenni made a real race of it, and I was just glad I was able to put her in a position because if I was off the pace, I might not have caught her.”

Amelia’s Jewel was well-backed as the $1.35 odds-on favourite and her winning time of 1 minute 34.37 seconds set a new track record eclipsing the previous 1600m record of 1:34.42 set by Lubiton in 2017.

She had three-quarters of a length to spare over the Ciaron Maher & David Eustace-trained Pride Of Jenni ($15) who held for second, while the Michael Kent-trained Deny Knowledge ($10) finished a distant third.

“She just looks like she’s doing it so easily. When we were outside the leader, I thought oh well, she’s never been here before, but I didn’t give Frosty (Lane) any instructions. I just said ‘”you do you, and I’ll do me,” Miller said.

“We’ve still got heaps of room; she’s not wound up yet, and her coat’s improving, but from a fitness point of view, we’ve got heaps of wiggle room, she’s not screwed down yet.

“I’m tipping another four hundred plus metres… it’s on the cards.

“Frosty will help play a major part in that, I think the great thing is, if it was a track record, then clearly, she can absorb pressure.

“Deano (Lester) used to always say to me, “she’s better when there’s high pressure because she can absorb it then go.”

Miller may be yet to confirm the mare’s next-up target, but Lane said he would be pushing for her to step-up in distance for the Cox Plate at weight-for-age.

“She’s doing things really well. I think she still has a bit more to come, so it’s exciting time,” the jockey said.

“The way she handled The Valley, I’d recommend staying in Melbourne, but we’ll see what the ownership group thinks and work on a plan from there.”

Updated all-in Cox Plate 2023 odds online at race sponsor Ladbrokes.com.au have Amelia’s Jewel into $5 sitting second only to international visitor Romantic Warrior ($4) and are available in full by clicking here.

2023 Stocks Stakes Results & Finishing Order

Table Credit: Racing Australia.