Coolmore Classic News

Lady Shenandoah Wins 2025 Coolmore Classic

• 2025 Coolmore Classic Field & Odds Update: Lady Shenandoah v Amelia’s Jewel
• 2025 Surround Stakes Results: Lady Shenandoah Wins Again
• 2024 Coolmore Classic Winner Zougotcha Dives Late to Salute
• Zougotcha Heads 2024 Coolmore Classic Field & Odds
• 2024 Surround Stakes Results: Tropical Squall Leads Upset Trifecta First-Up for Tulloch Lodge

The Coolmore Classic, registered as the Tad Kennedy Stakes, is a quality Group 1 race held as part of the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival in early-mid March each year.

2025 Coolmore Classic Results

• 1st: #4 Lady Shenandoah ($2.60F)
• 2nd: #9 Firestorm
• 3rd: #6 Lady Of Camelot

Chris Waller’s brilliant Surround Stakes winning filly Lady Shenandoah ($2.60F) held off her fast-finishing stablemate Firestorm ($14) to score her third career Group 1 success in a narrow win for the punters in Saturday’s 2025 Coolmore Classic results at Rosehill.

Click here for the full story.

Taking place midway through this exciting carnival as the marquee race on Coolmore Classic Day at Rosehill Gardens Racecourse, this 1500m event for fillies and mares is run under quality handicap conditions and is worth $1 million in stakes as of 2024. The Coolmore Classic is one of the richest female races held during the Sydney Autumn Carnival and is the only Group 1 race at the meeting.

Coolmore Classic Day features a host of Group 2 and 3 support races including the Group 3 Magic Night Stakes (1200m) and Group 3 Pago Pago Stakes (1200m), which are the final lead-ups for two-year-olds heading towards the iconic Group 1 $4.96 million Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m). The Group 2 Ajax Stakes (1500m) and Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes (1500m) are the other two Group 2 events on the program.

Key lead-up races into the Coolmore Classic field include the Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes (1400m) and the Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) both run in late February or early March on Verry Elleegant Stakes Day.

Lady Shenandoah (2025) was the last filly to complete the Surround Stakes / Coolmore Classic double. 

While many mares have won both the Guy Walter Stakes and Coolmore Classic, the last to do the double in the same year was Danni Martine (2005).

The best out of the Coolmore Classic may go on to run in upcoming autumn features such as the Group 1 Doncaster Mile (1600m) and Group 1 Queen Of The Turf Stakes (1600m) held at Randwick over ‘The Championships’.

The Coolmore Classic winner is in fact exempt from ballot for both the Doncaster and Queen Of The Turf races.

Con Te Partiro (2020) and Zougotcha (2024) are the latest mares to complete the Coolmore Classic – Queen Of The Turf Stakes (Coolmore Legacy Stakes) double.

The 2022 Coolmore Classic form was franked with that year’s Surround Stakes winner Hinged running third in the event before a next-up Vinery Stud Stakes second and fourth in the ATC Oaks. Hinged also returned in the spring and was third in both the George Main Stakes and Epsom Handicap.

The Coolmore Classic 2023 winner Espiona franked the form that spring winning the $2 million The Invitation race.

The 2025 Coolmore Classic took place on Saturday March 15, 2025 offering $1 million in prize money as a Queen Of The Turf Stakes lead-up and was won in a narrow thriller by Chris Waller’s outstanding filly Lady Shenandoah ($2.60F) who is now a three-time Group 1 winner. 

2025 Coolmore Classic Finishing Order

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

2025 Coolmore Classic Betting

Betting on the Coolmore Classic heats up the week of the race with the latest markets to be made available for punters here at Races.com.au once open at Ladbrokes.com.au. Coolmore Classic betting is often dominated by the best out of the Guy Walter Stakes along with any previous Group 1 winners that are in good autumn form.

Zougotcha ($3.30 in 2024) and Lady Shenandoah ($2.60 in 2025) are the latest favourites in Coolmore Classic betting to win.

2025 Coolmore Classic Form

CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL 2025 COOLMORE CLASSIC FORM GUIDE

2025 Coolmore Classic Tips

Stay tuned for our insider Coolmore Classic 2025 Tips on the autumn Group 1 this season.

• To Win: #4 Lady Shenandoah ($2.70 at time of publish) – BET NOW

No filly has won the Coolmore Classic since Typhoon Tracy in 2009 but finding it really hard to bet against Chris Waller’s flying filly Lady Shenandoah who is still at a backable price to beat home her older counterparts here after drawing wide. The brilliant daughter of Snitzel has James McDonald aboard in barrier 13, but wide gates have been okay for the class runners drawn them in this race. She won the Flight Stakes at elite level last prep by over three lengths at a mile, so the step up to 1500m third-up and fit suits. Chasing a fifth win on the trot, she has been excellent winning her two lead-up runs this campaign including saluting as the odds-on favourite in the Group 1 Surround Stakes (1400m) last time out in a narrow but decisive victory. She won the Group 3 Ming Dynasty at her only other Rosehill assignment so is proven at the track. If she gets into the right spot from that wide alley, her first time jumping wider out than barrier seven, she’ll take the power of beating back from 56kg to 54.5kg. Sticking with.

2025 Coolmore Classic Field

The Coolmore Classic field attracts the season’s best middle-distance fillies and mares and is released on the Wednesday before the race.

The official 2025 Coolmore Classic field and barriers will be released by Racing NSW on the Wednesday of race week and published in full below.

The Coolmore Classic 2025 final field has drawn a star-studded line-up of female gallopers including last start Surround Stakes winning filly Lady Shenandoah out in gate 13 and former Group 1 winning WA expat Amelia’s Jewel carrying the 58kg topweight.

Click here to read more on the key runners in the 2025 Coolmore Classic field and betting markets.

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

2025 Coolmore Classic Nominations

The 2025 Coolmore Classic nominations are set to close on the Monday of race week and will be listed below.

The Coolmore Classic 2025 nominations attracted a smart line-up of fillies and mares led in all-in betting by Chris Waller’s Surround Stakes winner Lady Shenandoah and Amelia’s Jewel coming off a first-up Group 2 win in the Guy Walter.

Nominations extended until 11:00am (AEDT) – 11/03/2025

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

Coolmore Classic History

This race has been known as many different names over its history including the Winfield Classic, Orlando Wines Classic, Rosemount Wines Classic, Marlboro Classic, NSW Thoroughbred Breeder’s Stakes and the Fillies & Mares Classic.

Miss Personality won the inaugural running in 1973 when it was a principal race. Not long after in 1980 it gained Group 2 status and was eventually installed as a Group 1 race in 1984.

The high status, stakes and handicap conditions of the Coolmore Stud Classic ensure the field is always full of classy and competitive females. Outstanding fillies and mares who have won the Coolmore Classic include Sunline (2000 & 2002) carrying 60kg, Tuesday Joy (2007), and Assertive Lass (1997).

In 2020 trainer Gai Waterhouse celebrated her record-equalling fifth Coolmore Classic victory with Con Te Partiro.

Lady Shenandoah (2025) was the last filly to win the Coolmore Classic.

See below for a full list of Coolmore Classic results going back to 2000.

Recent Coolmore Classic Winners