The weight-for-age L.K.S. Mackinnon Stakes has traditionally been one of the most highly regarded races on the Australian racing calendar.
The Victoria Racing Club introduced the event, as the Melbourne Stakes, over a mile-and-a-quarter, in 1869 when the winner was Glencoe, who had won the previous year’s Melbourne Cup carrying 9.1 (57kg).
It was continued as the Melbourne Stakes until 1936 when the V.R.C. elected to memorialise the name of a former club chairman Lachlan Kenneth Scobie Mackinnon and the race was registered as the L.K.S. Mackinnon Stakes.
Almost from its inception as the Melbourne Stakes – this year it is the Seppelts Mackinnon Stakes – the race has become a directory of Australia’s greatest racehorses.
The first of these was 1877 Melbourne Cup winner Chester, who won in
1878 and 1880.
Four years later came the truly remarkable Malua, who also won the Newmarket Handicap and Melbourne Cup in 1884 and then a Grand National Hurdle in 1888.
The immortal Carbine was the winner in 1890 and the exceptional mare Wakeful was triumphant in 1901, 1902 and 1903 while Posiedon, who had completed the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups double the previous year, won in 1907.
High class winners Magpie (1918), Eurythmic (1920-21), Gloaming (1924), Manfred (1926) and Gothic (1928) followed through to another immortal in Phar Lap in 1930 and 1931.
Peter Pan was successful in 1932 and 1934, Hall of Fame mare Tranquil Star scored in 1942, 1944 and 1945 and the gutsy Flight was the winner in 1946.
This led into a number of incredibly classy winners in Comic Court (1949-50), Delta (1951), Dalray (1952), Hydrogen (1953), Rising Fast (1954-55), Sailor’s Guide (1957), another immortal in Tulloch (1960), Sky High (1961) and Aquanita (1962).
And, it continued into Tobin Bronze (1966), Winfreux (1967), Rain Lover (1968), Leilani (1974), Family Of Man (1978), Dulcify (1979) and a dual winner in Belmura Lad in 1980 and 1981.
Since then there have been At Talaq (1986), Rubiton (1987), Empire Rose (1988), Horlicks (1989), Better Loosen Up (1990), Let’s Elope (1991), All Our Mob (1996), Lonhro (2002), Grand Armee (2004), Desert War (2006), for his gallantry, and So You Think (2010).
It is reasonable to say the last seven winners of the event have not been super stars.
Even though an Irish Derby winner heads the field for this year’s $2 million edition of the race – transferred from the opening to the closing day of the V.R.C. Carnival in 2016 – it has not attracted a vintage field.
The Joseph O’Brien-trained Latrobe, which missed the Melbourne Cup because of an interruption to his preparation, won the Irish Derby at The Curragh on June 30.
He then went on to finish second in the Irish St. Leger on September 16 so he obviously has ability and, being relatively fresh, should not be troubled by dropping back in distance.
Three other runners – Blair House, Shillelagh and Extra Brut – do add some depth to the field.
Blair House, in the care of Melbourne Cup winning trainer Charlie Appleby and to be ridden by William Buick, has impressed in two Australian outings.
After having a chequered passage in the Underwood Stakes he wound up fourth to Homesman and then just failed to overhaul Benbati in the Caulfield Stakes on October 13.
Winner of the Gr.1 Emirates Stakes last spring Shillelagh was given an, almost, unbelievable ride by James McDonald to come from near last to win the Gr.1 Empire Rose Stakes last Saturday.
Judging on that performance she will not be bothered by the additional 400m.
However, it is difficult to assess how Darren Weir’s Victoria Derby winner Extra Brut will handle dropping from 2500m to 2000m in just seven days.
He had a gut-buster in the blue riband event but has only 51kg and has Craig Williams in the saddle so those are factors in his favour.
