2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Results

Stay tuned for the official 2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes results and finishing order at Randwick on Saturday February 28, 2026.

• 1st: No. 8 Autumn Glow ($1.26F)
• 2nd: No. 9 Aeliana
• 3rd: No. 2 Sir Delius

Winning Margin: 0.4 lengths

Winning Time: 1:35.55

Chris Waller’s four-year-old star, Autumn Glow ($1.26F), continued her flawless record posting her 10th win on the trot with another quality victory for the punters as the odds-on favourite in Saturday’s 2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes results. Rated to perfection by James McDonald, the brilliant daughter of The Autumn Sun came from fourth on the turn for home to charge down the outside and deny her brave stablemate Aeliana in a repeat of the Apollo Stakes quinella and shoot to the top of futures markets for all of her possible upcoming autumn targets including the George Ryder Stakes on March 21.

Click here for the full story.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Tips

Stay tuned for our insider Verry Elleegant Stakes 2026 Tips on the Sydney autumn Group 1 renamed this season from the Chipping Norton Stakes.

To Win: No. 8 Autumn Glow

It could be a huge day for the short-priced favourites in Sydney, and AUTUMN GLOW (3) looks set to keep the trend rolling as she chases an extraordinary 10th straight win. Chris Waller’s superstar four-year-old has done absolutely nothing wrong, continuing to rise with every run and drawing comparisons to some of the stable’s past greats. She’s five-from-five at Randwick, including her brilliant Epsom – Golden Eagle double in the spring, and she returned in the Group 2 Apollo looking every bit as dominant, putting a quality field away with ease. The rise to a mile only enhances her claims after putting more than 2.5 lengths on them fresh, and she meets many of the same rivals again under ideal conditions. Fit, flying, perfectly drawn in gate three and with James McDonald sticking, she brings a turn of foot that simply breaks hearts. Hard to imagine anything running her down.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) News

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes Field & Betting: Autumn Glow Odds-On to Remain Undefeated

• Undefeated Autumn Glow Wins 2026 Apollo Stakes, Odds-On for Verry Elleegant
• 2025 Queen Elizabeth Stakes Field & Betting Update: Via Sistina Odds-On Favourite
• Via Sistina Wins 2025 Ranvet Stakes
• Via Sistina Wins 2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes, Beats Fangirl and Lindermann
• 2025 Verry Elleegant Betting Update: Ceolwulf Scratched; Waller Mares Firm in Markets

The Chipping Norton Stakes – renamed in 2024 as the Verry Elleegant Stakes – is a Group 1 weight-for-age race held at Royal Randwick Racecourse during the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival. It is one of Sydney’s first Group 1 races of the year and offers $1 million in prize money as of 2024.

The Verry Elleegant Stakes is run over 1600m and is open to all horses aged 3 years and older.

It was renamed ahead of the 2024 as the Verry Elleegant Stakes in honour of Chris Waller’s brilliant mare and two-time winner of the race (2021-22), Verry Elleegant.

Sadly, Verry Elleegant passed away soon after when in foal for the first time but forever remembered for the champion racehorse she was.

Run on Chipping Norton Stakes Day / Verry Elleegant Stakes Day in late February or early March, the best lead up race is the Group 2 Apollo Stakes (1400m) which is held two weeks earlier at Royal Randwick.

Winx completed the Apollo Stakes – Chipping Norton Stakes double twice in 2016 and 2017. Winx returned in the 2018 Chipping Norton Stakes first-up and recorded an incredible seven length win to become a three-time champion of the race. In her final preparation before retirement, Winx also completed the Apollo Stakes – Chipping Norton Stakes double in 2019.

Anamoe (2023) was the last horse to complete the Apollo Stakes – Chipping Norton Stakes double before the latter was renamed in 2024.

In 2025 trainer Chris Waller trained the same three horses to run the trifecta in both the Apollo Stakes (Fangirl, Lindermann, Via Sistina) and the Verry Elleegant Stakes (Via Sistina, Fangirl, Lindermann).

There are five other Group status support acts on Chipping Norton Stakes Day / Verry Elleegant Stakes Day with the Surround Stakes (1400m) elevated to Group 1 status for the 2018 edition, Group 2 Skyline Stakes (1200m), Group 2 Sweet Embrace Stakes (1200m), Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes (1400m), and the Group 3 Liverpool City Cup (1300m) all hosted by the Australian Turf Club (ATC).

The 2021 Chipping Norton Stakes was won by Chris Waller’s ill-fated Verry Elleegant, subsequent winner of that year’s Melbourne Cup and this race’s now namesake.

Verry Elleegant retired from racing a 16-time race winner and 11-time Group 1 champion from her 40 career starts for total prizemoney of nearly $14.9m. She ranks her fourth on the all-time list of prize money earners behind former stablemates Winx ($26.4m) and Nature Strip ($20.7m), and dual The Everest winner Redzel ($16.4m).

Waller won his 10th Chipping Norton Stakes with Verry Elleegant going back-to-back in 2022.

Waller became an 11-time winning Chipping Norton / Verry Elleegant Stakes winning trainer with Via Sistina in 2025.

Anamoe franked the 2023 Chipping Norton Stakes form going on to win the Group 1 George Ryder Stakes at his next start before a third in that year’s Queen Elizabeth Stakes results. The form was further franked with the runner-up Fangirl also finishing second in the George Ryder ahead of her spring return that included wins in the Group 1 Winx Stakes and $5 million King Charles III Stakes.

Waller was denied an emotional 11th victory in the Verry Elleegant Stakes in 2024 with his odds-on favourite, Fangirl, running second to impressive upset champ Think It Over.

The 2024 Verry Elleegant Stakes form was franked with the runner-up Fangirl winning that year’s $1 million 7 Stakes in the spring.

Fangirl returned to run second in the Verry Elleegant Stakes results for the third straight year in 2025.

The 2025 Verry Elleegant Stakes winner, Via Sistina, went on to win the Ranvet Stakes and Queen Elizabeth Stakes later that autumn before returning in the spring for a trio more Group 1 wins including the 2025 Cox Plate before her retirement.

2026 saw Waller win the event for a 12th time with Autumn Glow posting her 10th win from as many career starts to become the latest to do the Apollo Stakes / Verry Elleegant Stakes double.  

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Betting

The latest Verry Elleegant Stakes 2026 betting odds on the weight-for-age autumn hopefuls in the race formerly known as the Chipping Norton Stakes will be available at Ladbrokes.com.au and also published here at Races.com.au.

Te Akau Shark ($2.80 in 2020), the ill-fated Verry Elleegant ($2.30 in 2021 and $2.50 in 2022), Anamoe ($1.60 in 2023), Waller’s 11th winner Via Sistina ($1.60 in 2025) and the stable’s 12th champion Autumn Glow ($1.26 in 2206) are the latest favourites in Chipping Norton Stakes / Verry Elleegant Stakes betting to win.

In 2024 Fangirl went around as the odds-on favourite in Verry Elleegant Stakes betting at $1.30 but only managed to run second to $8.50 pop Think It Over.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Field

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Form

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL 2026 VERRY ELLEEGANT STAKES FORM GUIDE

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Nominations

Nominations for Verry Elleegant Stakes are taken the Monday of race week and will be updated in full below.

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes nominations extended until 11:00am (AEDT) – 24/02/2026

The Verry Elleegant Stakes 2026 nominations attracted a quality line-up of autumn WFA stars led in all-in betting by Chris Waller’s undefeated mare Autumn Glow chasing her 10th win from as many starts.

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Field

The Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) field features a host of smart autumn milers and is released on the Wednesday before the race.

The official 2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes field and barriers are released on the Wednesday of race week and will be published below on the race previously known as the Chipping Norton Stakes.

The Verry Elleegant Stakes 2026 final field features nine weight-for-age stars with seven hailing from the Chris Waller stable including the undefeated favourite Autumn Glow.

Click here to read more on the key runners in the 2026 Verry Elleegant Stakes field and betting markets.

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Barrier & Speedmap

1

Aeliana Midfield

2

Ceolwulf Midfield

3

Autumn Glow Pace

4

Trinity College Leader

5

Soul Of Spain Backmarker

6

Sir Delius Midfield

7

Wootton Verni Midfield

8

Lindermann Leader

9

Valiant King Backmarker

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) History

The Chipping Norton Stakes (now the Verry Elleegant Stakes) was a Group 2 race between 1980 and 1985 and was also occasionally run at Randwick where it will take place in 2017. Originally hosted at Warwick Farm Racecourse, the Stakes was won by Tie The Knot over four consecutive years from 1999 to 2002. Even the legendary Phar Lap won the Chipping Norton Stakes in 1930.

Other notable Chipping Norton Stakes winners before the race was renamed in 2024 include Danleigh (2011), Shoot Out (2012-13), and of course the world’s best mare Winx (2016-19) who posted four straight wins in the race including a seven-length romp home in 2018.

Chris Waller prepared his tenth Chipping Norton Stakes winner in 12 years with Verry Elleegant going back-to-back in 2021 and 2022.

Verry Elleegant, who was Horse of the Year in 2021-22, became the event’s namesake in 2024 when the Chipping Norton Stakes was officially renamed as the Verry Elleegant Stakes by the Australian Turf Club (ATC).

She would later pass away in February of 2024 in foal making for an emotional first running of the race now named in her honour.

In 2023 the previous spring’s Cox Plate hero Anamoe won the Chipping Norton Stakes as the $1.60 odds-on favourite.

Waller won the Verry Elleegant Stakes for the 11th time in 2025 with Via Sistina defeating stablemates Fangirl and Lindermann.

Waller continued his outstanding record in the event saluting for a 12th time in 2026 with his undefeated mare Autumn Glow defeating her stablemate Aeliana. 

Verry Elleegant Stakes (Chipping Norton Stakes) Previous Race Winners