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The countdown to the Ladbrokes Cox Plate heats up in Melbourne on Sunday with one of the key lead-ups to the Australasian weight-for-age championship, and Races.com.au have our full Ladbrokes Feehan Stakes 2026 field preview, betting odds and tips on the event right here.
One of the best support acts on Caulfield’s Manikato Stakes Day card this weekend, the Group 2 $500,000 Ladbrokes Feehan Stakes (1600m) may feature just six weight-for-age gallopers but what it lacks in size it certainly makes up for in class.
Sitting top of the Feehan Stakes odds at race sponsor Ladbrokes is Ciaron Maher‘s front-running queen and dual defending champion Pride Of Jenni who is odds-on $1.95 to post a historic three-peat.
She’s dominated this event the past two years at Moonee Valley and the now nine-year-old daughter of Pride Of Dubai remains at prohibitive odds to salute for the race fans fresh despite her age and the race’s move to Caulfield for 2026.
While the $12.5 million earner’s first-up record is only fair (11:2-2-2), Pride Of Jenni remains the punters’ pick, and she’s trialled up well ahead of her highly anticipated return.
Declan Bates sticks in the saddle of this beautiful miler who has a killer strike-rate at 1600m (19:7-3-1) and in a small field she’ll bounce out, get out to her trademark big lead and will take the power of catching.
The danger on the second line of John F. Feehan Stakes betting in 2026 at $4.60 is another veteran nine-year-old, Mr Brightside, who presents fit third-up as a genuine each way hope to get back to winning form.
Lindsay Parks’ old marvel won this race back in 2022, ran second in 2024 and after missing it last year gets his chance to post another win on Sunday.
From 13 previous Caulfield assignments he’s finished out of the top two on just one occasion which is a remarkable record at the track and one his rivals are sure to be intimidated by.
Mr B chases his first win since his own triple victory in the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes last September, but he’s been going as good as ever this campaign and has the fitness edge over his regular rival POJ.
Fresh he was strong through the line for a distant but brave second to runaway winner Beiwacht in the Group 1 Memsie Stakes (1400m) here before failing to record a fourth consecutive Makybe Diva win when five lengths seventh to the class mare Sheza Alibi at Flemington on September 12.
His latest was a bit of a disappointment considering how good he was first-up in the Memsie; he led until the turn for home before fading right out on the Good (3) track at HQ.
He’ll get a bit of give in the ground this weekend, has winning form third-up and he’s every chance to bounce back and chase down the front runner on Sunday.
It is a very tight market in one of the most wide-open editions of the Feehan in recent memory with all but one of the runners under double figures for the win including the well-supported Mick Price & Michael Kent Jnr-trained Zambardo ($5.50).
The Kiwi-bred five-year-old is a young gun compared to the best two in betting and is out to prove himself in elite company second-up off a close third to Evaporate in the So You Think Stakes (1500m) at Sandown on September 5.
He’s got the class having run second behind the mighty Via Sistina in last Melbourne Cup Carnival’s Group 1 Champions Stakes, will improve up slightly in trip from his good campaign kickoff and Jamie Melham is sure to try and keep him better in touch after he was taken a bit far back last start.
The other better fancied in the Feehan Stakes odds this season are last year’s runner-up Treasurethe Moment ($6.50) drawn the rails and stablemate to the favourite Another Wil ($7).
Unbeaten at the track and trip, Matt Laurie‘s four-time Group 1 winning mare Treasurethe Moment also comes via the Memsie (4th) and Makybe Diva (10th) and is out to atone for her dead last in the latter.
Jockey Damian Lane was let down by her performance at Flemington.
“Disappointing today, unfortunately,” he said.
“She worked a little bit more than we would have liked in the run, but once I was in front she travelled very easily, but she was beaten quickly and when she was beaten, she was beaten convincingly.
“That’s not her usual self, so we’ll have to see how she comes through the run.”
The fact Laurie has accepted her for this suggests that could be a blip on her otherwise very consistent form, and jockey Daniel Stackhouse comes aboard from the inside alley on Sunday as connections hope to see the real Treasurethe Moment show up.
Another Wil meanwhile will jump on her outside from gate two with John Allen aboard the Street Boss seven-year-old who ran out of his skin for third in the Makybe Diva Stakes to keep him in calucations here.
The field and markets are completed by the rank outside, Pounding, at 80/1 first-up for Moody & Coleman.
The 2026 Ladbrokes Feehan Stakes is set to run as Caulfield Race 5 at 3:00pm (AEST) on the nine-race card.
2026 Feehan Stakes Best Bets
Favourite: No. 5 Pride Of Jenni
| 5. Pride Of Jenni (3) J: Declan Bates 57kg 2512x T: Ciaron Maher | |||
| Mare returning from a spell and has won previously when first up. Finished off last preparation second of 7 at Doomben in the G1 Doomben Cup May 23 over 2000m, 2.75 len behind Birdman with 57kg at $3.60. First up last campaign third of 9 at Flemington in the G1 All-Star Mile March 7 over 1600m, 0.6 len behind Tom Kitten with 57kg at $2.35. Looks forward enough after a recent trial win. She’ll do her thing in front and prove very hard to catch. | |||
