28 HISTORY OF THE SPRINT For sprinters, the Champions Sprint, run over 1200 metres along the iconic Straight Six at Flemington, serves as the ultimate test of speed and agility. The inaugural winner of the race was Kiwi mare Karina, conquering a field of 27 runners down the grandstand rail. This prestigious race has undergone several name changes throughout its history, previously known as the Craven ‘A’ Stakes, Gadsden Stakes, Salinger Stakes, Patinack Farm Classic, Darley Sprint Classic, and the VRC Sprint Classic, among others. The race was granted Group 1 status in the inaugural Group Race Classifications for the 1979-1980 season. Throughout its history, many sprinting stars of the turf have etched their names into the Champions Sprint annals, including dual winners, River Rough and Planet Ruler, and more recently, the unbeatable Black Caviar and sprint king Nature Strip. Bart Cummings leads the way with six wins in the race from 1973 to 2008 whille modern-day star jockey James McDonald has three wins in the race, sharing the honours with Robert Heffernan, who claimed a hat-trick of wins from 1979 to 1981. The 2023 edition of the race was won by the brilliant mare, Imperatriz, capping off a brilliant spring campaign for the Te Akau mare. DARLEY CHAMPIONS SPRINT Scott Barbour/Racing Photos 2023 DARLEY CHAMPIONS SPRINT WINNER IMPERATRIZ
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODA1NTI=