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2026 VRC Champions Mile Preview
Known simply as the Champions Mile and registered as the Cantala Stakes, this Group 1 race is run on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival at Flemington as part of one of three 'Champions' races, the Saturday after the Melbourne Cup.
The race has been known under numerous names since its creation in 1881, when it was first called the Coburg Stakes. Since 1979, it has been a Group 1 race. Although the distance has dropped, it was first run over 1,800m, but has been run over roughly 1,600m since 1895.
C F Orr Stakes Rarely Follows
Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com
VRC Champions Mile Information:
- VRC Champions Mile Past Winners
- VRC Champions Mile Trainer Statistics
- VRC Champions Mile Jockey Statistics
You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Races Covered during the Melbourne Cup Carnival section for links to these.
Best Horse Racing Betting Sites 2026 (UKGC Regulated)
How competitive is the VRC Champions Mile market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 10 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2021, when the race had an over-round of 116%. The race in 2025 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 120%, whilst on average over the last 10 renewals of the VRC Champions Mile, the over-round has been 117%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £117 which is bet.
Below you will find the 2026 VRC Champions Mile Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the VRC Champions Mile Trend Analysis.
These are the top three quickest-run VRC Champions Mile races over the last 10 renewals:
- Best Of Days (1:33.65) in 2018
- Yulong Prince (1:34.57) in 2020
- Pride Of Jenni (1:34.75) in 2023
Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 10 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the VRC Champions Mile next time out, then you would have backed a total of 2 winners. Backing all 9 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -2.00. See which other runners are being backed today on the racing predictions page.
When looking over the past 10 renewals, a time of 1:33.65 was set by Best Of Days in 2018, trained by James Cummings and ridden by Craig A Williams, which is the quickest time over that period. The slowest winning time was set in 2025 when Ceolwulf won in a time of 1:38.94 for trainer Joseph Pride, who booked Chad Schofield in the saddle.
VRC Champions Mile Past Winners
Here are the VRC Champions Mile past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the race year, the winning horse, and the horse's age & weight. Also detailed are the stall from which the horse came and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the VRC Champions Mile are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.
| Year | Horse (Drawn) | Info |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 1:38.94 | Ceolwulf (NZ) 5yo 9-4 (7 of 9) 4/1 | Chad Schofield Joseph Pride (AUS) |
| 2024 1:36.02 | Mr Brightside (NZ) 7yo 9-4 (3 of 11) 4/1 | Craig A Williams Ben, Will & JD Hayes (AUS) |
| 2023 1:34.75 | Pride Of Jenni (AUS) 6yo 9-0 (3 of 7) 12/1 | Declan Bates Ciaron Maher & David Eustace (AUS) |
| 2022 1:35.63 | Alligator Blood (AUS) 6yo 9-4 (3 of 11) 9/2 | Timothy Clark Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott (AUS) |
| 2021 1:35.25 | Superstorm (AUS) 5yo 8-11 (12 of 14) 7/1 | Damien Oliver Danny O'Brien (AUS) |
| 2020 1:34.57 | Yulong Prince (SAF) 6yo 8-9 (11 of 16) 9/1 | Damian Lane Chris Waller (AUS) |
| 2019 1:38.21 | Fierce Impact (JPN) 5yo 8-11 (14 of 16) 7/1 | Craig A Williams Matthew A Smith (AUS) |
| 2018 1:33.65 | Best Of Days (GB) 4yo 8-3 (1 of 16) 11/1 | Craig A Williams James Cummings (AUS) |
| 2017 1:35.01 | Shillelagh (NZ) 6yo 8-3 (2 of 14) 11/1 | Michael Dee Chris Waller (AUS) |
| 2016 1:34.92 | Le Romain (AUS) 4yo 8-10 (8 of 16) 14/1 | Hugh Bowman Kris Lees (AUS) |
Where have the winning runners come from?
Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the VRC Champions Mile have been based:
- AUS: 10 winners with an additional 23 placings from 122 runners
- NZ: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 3 runners
- GB: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 3 runners
- SIN: 0 winners with an additional 0 placings from 2 runners
2025 VRC Champions Mile Replay
VRC Champions Mile Trainer Statistics
The leading trainer in the VRC Champions Mile over the last 10 renewals is Chris Waller, who has won the race twice, with those two winners coming from Shillelagh (2017) and Yulong Prince (2020).
Here are some of the top VRC Champions Mile trainer statistics over the last 10 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Trainer | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Waller | 23-2-5 | -1.00 | -3.59 |
| James Cummings | 9-1-4 | +3.00 | +5.01 |
| Kris Lees | 4-1-2 | +11.00 | +7.75 |
| Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | 4-1-1 | +1.50 | -0.30 |
| Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | 3-1-1 | +10.00 | +5.50 |
| Ben, Will & JD Hayes | 3-1-2 | +2.00 | +1.15 |
| Joseph Pride | 2-1-1 | +3.00 | +1.40 |
| Matthew A Smith | 1-1-1 | +7.00 | +4.38 |
| Danny O'Brien | 1-1-1 | +7.00 | +4.38 |
| Darren Weir | 9-0-2 | -9.00 | -6.10 |
VRC Champions Mile Jockey Statistics
The leading jockey in the VRC Champions Mile over the last 10 renewals is Craig A Williams, who has won the race three times, with those three winners coming from Best Of Days (2018), Fierce Impact (2019) and Mr Brightside (2024).
Here are some of the top VRC Champions Mile jockey statistics over the last 10 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):
| Jockey | R-W-P | Win | EW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Craig A Williams | 10-3-6 | +15.00 | +14.41 |
| Damian Lane | 6-1-2 | +4.00 | +1.53 |
| Michael Dee | 5-1-1 | +7.00 | +2.88 |
| Damien Oliver | 5-1-2 | +3.00 | +2.63 |
| Timothy Clark | 4-1-1 | +1.50 | -0.30 |
| Hugh Bowman | 3-1-1 | +12.00 | +6.75 |
| Declan Bates | 3-1-1 | +10.00 | +5.50 |
| Chad Schofield | 3-1-1 | +2.00 | +0.40 |
| James McDonald | 6-0-3 | -6.00 | -1.10 |
| Ben Melham | 4-0-1 | -4.00 | -1.70 |
2026 VRC Champions Mile Trends
Favourites' finishing positions (oldest to latest): (4, 5), 8, 4, (6, 9), 13, 4, 7, 4, 11, 5
The percentage shown is the proportion of runners who fell under that factor. High percentages are less appealing than lower ones, as you would expect them to do well. The trend information is based on the available information on the Racing Post in terms of previous runs, etc.
- 10 / 10 (52%) - No bigger than 14/1
- 10 / 10 (55%) - Within the first 7 of the market
- 10 / 10 (66%) - Had 1 - 3 wins (1 Year)
- 10 / 10 (74%) - In a field of 9 - 15 (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (74%) - Carried 120 - 130lbs (Last Win)
- 10 / 10 (75%) - Carried 119 - 130lbs (LTO)
- 10 / 10 (75%) - Ran in 9 - 33 races (Career)
- 10 / 10 (76%) - Dam is not FR/IRE/SAF/USA bred
- 10 / 10 (76%) - Achieved an RPR of 99+ (LTO)
- 10 / 10 (79%) - Highest Won is not LST/Cl2-5
- 10 / 10 (79%) - Ran over 6f - 1m (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (79%) - Break of 7 - 56 days (Last Place)
- 10 / 10 (82%) - Not in FRA/IRL/JPN/NZL (Debut)
- 10 / 10 (83%) - Is not FR/IRE/USA bred
- 10 / 10 (84%) - Not in a G1/Cl3 (Debut)
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101 Ways to find Winners in Horse Racing
2026 VRC Champions Mile Runners & Shortlist
The runners and the final trends shortlist for the 2026 renewal of the VRC Champions Mile will be added once the final declarations are confirmed, which are usually made 48 hours before the race.
VRC Champions Mile Trend Analysis
✅ The trend factor, which has produced 5+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +45.00, is when runners had 1 career win on the going.
❌ The worst-performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners had a furthest trip run of 1m; when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-42.
Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:
- 2025: Winner in 7 (4,1) [9 Runners]
- 2024: Winner in 3 (10,8) [11 Runners]
- 2023: Winner in 3 (2) [7 Runners]
- 2022: Winner in 3 (8,4) [11 Runners]
- 2021: Winner in 12 (14,13) [14 Runners]
The course which has produced the most winners of the VRC Champions Mile is Caulfield; there have been a total of 4 winners of this race who ran at Caulfield last time out. The next best course, which has produced the second most winners, is Randwick; there have been a total of 3 winners of this race who ran at Randwick last time out.
The race is open to both sexes, with male runners having produced a total of 8 winners from a total of 113 runners, while female runners have produced 2 winners from a total of 17 runners.
Looking over the past renewals, there is only one stallion whose offspring have been disappointed with multiple attempts but no wins in the VRC Champions Mile; that stallion is Magnus, who has failed to produce a winner from 5 runners.
Looking at the winning odds over the last 10 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was Le Romain in 2016, winning for Kris Lees at odds of 14/1 under the guidance of Hugh Bowman. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 10 renewals, there have been 0 winning favourites in the race. All figures and trends above, such as the horse's previous runs, are based on the information that is available on the Racing Post.
Races Covered during the Melbourne Cup Carnival
Here are the other races that take place at the Flemington Racetrack during the Melbourne Cup Carnival that we also cover in our blogs.
| Race | Last Winner | Info |
|---|---|---|
| Coolmore Stud Stakes | Tentyris (AUS) 3yo - 19/10 | Anthony & Sam Freedman Mark Zahra |
| Empire Rose Stakes | Pride Of Jenni (AUS) 8yo - 19/5 | Ciaron Maher Declan Bates |
| Victoria Derby | Observer (AUS) 3yo - 29/20 | Ciaron Maher Mark Zahra |
| Melbourne Cup | Half Yours (AUS) 5yo - 8/1 | Tony McEvoy & Calvin McEvoy Jamie Melham |
| Crown Oaks | Strictly Business (AUS) 3yo - 13/2 | Thomas D Carberry John Allen |
| VRC Champions Mile | Ceolwulf (NZ) 5yo - 4/1 | Joseph Pride Chad Schofield |
| VRC Champions Sprint | Giga Kick (AUS) 6yo - 4/1 | Clayton Douglas Mark Zahra |
| VRC Champions Stakes | Via Sistina (IRE) 7yo - 4/5 | Chris Waller James McDonald |
Article Contributor Information
We are fortunate to have an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to the creation and maintenance of this VRC Champions Mile Preview are Andy and James. They both work on the Horse Racing Tips team, overseeing the tipsters and managing the tip settlement, while also creating and managing all the horse racing event previews for International racing.
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