Champions Sprint Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2024

The Champions Sprint, previously known as the Darley Sprint Classic, is one of the biggest races on the calendar and takes place the week after the biggest race of them all, the Melbourne Cup. The race always attracts some of the best sprinters to Flemington Racecourse, one of the top tracks in the country.

The race was first run back in 1960, when won by Karina and it was previously run on Victoria Derby Day. Racing Victoria switched things around in 2006 and the race was pushed back a week, meaning the race was run two weeks after the Manikato Stakes, one of the other premier sprint races during Melbourne’s Spring Racing Carnival.

The Champions Sprint now forms one-third of the Group 1 races to take place on what is known as Champions Day. The other two Group 1 races at Flemington Racecourse include; the Champions Mile and the Champions Stakes.

It is a great day for racing enthusiasts because, on top of those three Group 1 races, there are two key races on the same day at Rosehill Racecourse, the Golden Gift and The Five Diamond. It truly is the best time of the year for racing fans, with the Melbourne Cup taking place just a handful of days before Champions Day.

With a race like the Champions Sprint attracting so much attention, the team at OnlyRacing.com.au have made sure we have every aspect covered. We’ve got your horse racing tips for the race, plus betting and odds information. On top of this, we got details on the field, form guide, the latest results and more.

With $3 million in prize money on offer, we always see the best sprinters take on the Champions Sprint. The prize money is split between the top runners and the breakdown is as follows:

Free racing tips are our bread and butter here at OnlyRacing. It’s the thing we love to do (and not to toot our own horn too much), but we do it well! Our experts take great pride in the tips they provide to our loyal readers and we would never tip a horse we wouldn’t back ourselves. If you're looking for more than just Champions Sprint tips, you should check out our Flemington tips page.

We provide horse racing tips for every Group 1 on the calendar, including the Champions Sprint. Our Champions Sprint tips for 2024, however, aren’t available just yet. We are waiting until the final field is confirmed (which happens during race week), so we have all the important information on the recent form of all the runners.

While you are waiting, we’ve left up our Champions Sprint tips from the race in 2023, so you can judge how our experts performed. All the 2023 Champions Sprint tips are below:

Champions Sprint Best Bet - Imperatriz

Imperatriz is the favourite and deservedly so. The mare has been pretty much perfect so far this Spring and I don’t think she’ll slow down here, even though this is the toughest race of her prep. Imperatriz is currently paying $2.15, so she is short enough, but I don’t think any other runner has the class to beat her.

She does come up against In Secret, who has put in an eye-catching performance at Randwick recently, but I still think Imperatriz has the edge. I’m not worried that Imperatriz doesn’t have a lot of experience at Flemington, she’s got the class and versatility to get it done. She’ll stay out of trouble early as well, thanks to the wide barrier. 

Champions Sprint Next Best - In Secret

I mentioned In Secret above and while I’m not convinced she can get the job done against Imperatriz, I do think she’ll give her a real run for her money. She’s got some more attention on her now, thanks to an awesome run in this prep in The Everest. She was last at the turn but stormed home to finish fourth and this is despite dealing with traffic along the way.

Her final 200m in The Everest was the second-fastest of the entire meeting, behind Bella Nipotina, so that reads really well for this one. Has proven experience on the Flemington straight, which will hold her in high esteem, after wins in the Coolmore Stud Stakes and Newmarket Handicap. Gets a good gate, she’ll be right in this I reckon.

Champions Sprint Best Roughie - Airman

I think the favourite and second-favourite will finish first and second respectively, but that leaves third place wide open for several of the other runners in the field. After checking them all out, I’ve landed on Airman, who is currently paying $26 to win the race. 

Now, this is certainly a step up and he doesn’t have the class of Imperatriz or In Secret, but he has put together a nice little record so far. Airman won his first and only start so far at Flemington in May and I do think he belongs at this level, so let’s see what he can produce on Saturday.

Our 2024 Champions Sprint tips will be available soon, don’t forget to check back with us again during race week.

With a race that garners as much attention as the Champions Sprint does, it’s only natural that people want to know everything they can about betting on the race. When it comes to Champions Sprint betting, there are two areas you must be clear on:

1. Where are you going to bet?
2. Who are you going to bet with?

Once you’ve got these two aspects nailed down, all the other pieces should fall into place. In Australia, the betting industry is completely saturated, meaning you’ve got so many different options to place your bets. 

With so many horse racing betting sites at your disposal, how can you choose the best one for you? Well, a great place to start is our bookie reviews section. We’ve got in-depth reviews on all of the best bookies in the market, so if you’re looking for a new option for your Champions Sprint betting, you can see all the features and more of all the best bookies.

Even if you’ve already got your favourite bookie, we think it’s a good idea to shop around, because having accounts with multiple bookies means it is easier for you to take advantage of different racing promotions and odds. 

Picking up a little bit more value here and there can really add up in the long run. If you aren’t sure where to look in terms of choosing a new bookie, check out PlayUp, Bet365 or Unibet to start with. Those three are well-established bookies with a huge offering. 

That doesn’t mean you should steer clear of new betting sites though. There are plenty of new bookies just entering the market that are already making waves. Bookies like Betfocus are among the newest going around and have a great offering already.

Once you’ve decided who you are going to bet with for the Champions Sprint, the next thing you need to decide is which market and runner/s in the race you are going to bet on. There are plenty of markets that will be available to bet on for the race and some of the main markets include:

• Quaddie
• Quinella/ Trifecta/ First Four
• Fixed Win/ Place bets
• Multi bet

Even if you are on the go, you can still get your bets sorted, thanks to horse racing betting apps. Pretty much every single bookie will have a betting app, so you can bet no matter where you are, as long as you have internet.

Each year we see the Champions Sprint field confirmed during race week. Even though we don’t know which runners will take part in the Champions Sprint for 2024, if history is anything to go by, we will see some of the best Aussie sprinters test themselves and fight for Group 1 glory. 

If waiting really isn’t your thing, then you can always check to see if the Champions Sprint odds have been released. The odds will almost always be released well before the final field is and it gives you a little sneaky peek into the type of runners that might make an appearance (i.e. the ones that are currently more favoured in the market).

As we wait patiently for race week to come around, you can check out the final field that lined up for the Champions Sprint in 2023:

For the Champions Sprint in 2023, we saw just 11 runners announced. There weren't any emergencies listed either, but in the end, that didn’t matter as there weren’t any pre-race scratchings. This meant that all 11 original runners took their place in the starting barriers.

Something important to note when looking into the final field is the scratchings, especially if you’ve decided to have a bet on the race. Scratchings can happen at any time, from when the final field is first announced up until just seconds out from the jump. If you have placed a bet on a runner that ends up being scratched, you will get your stake back.

On top of scratchings, it’s a good idea to check out the barrier draw. The bigger the field, the more influence the barrier draw will have. Along with this, if a track has tighter turns, the barrier draw usually plays a bigger role. Some runners’ racing style also may be more suited for an inside or wider barrier, so that is important to note as well.

The Champions Sprint has been around since the 1960s, which means there are a lot of statistics that are attached to the race. It’s a good idea to go through all the relevant data in the Champions Sprint form guide as patterns may present themselves and this could help point you in the direction of the next winner.

If you can think of nothing worse than sifting through pages upon pages of data, then you’re in luck. The team at OnlyRacing have done all the heavy lifting for you. We’ve gone through all the key pieces of information and put together the Champions Sprint form guide with all the key form indicators.

The Champions Sprint is one of the most ideal races for sprinters during the Spring, but all this changed with The Everest in 2017, now sprinters are more likely to target this race with the crazy amount of prize money attached to it. This ended up working in favour of the Champions Sprint because the race takes place three weeks after The Everest.

So, look for runners coming through The Everest as this is the ideal time between runs for the top-tier level of sprinters. We now see many horses come through The Everest, but before the creation of this race, the last Champions Sprint winner to win a non-Melbourne lead-up race was all the way back in 2004 with Takeover Target.

Before The Everest, most Champions Sprint winners came through the Manikato Stakes, in the last 16 years, seven winners have come through that race. When it comes to gender, mares don’t usually have a good record in this race. Since 2011, we have seen only two mares win the Champions Sprint, which was Black Caviar (2011) and Imperatriz (2023).

This doesn’t seem to be a race for the younger horses either. Pharein is the last 3YO to win the Champions Sprint, which was all the way back in 1999. For 2YOs, we’ve only seen two winners since 2008, which were Swick (2008) and Nature Strip (2021).

The barrier draw plays a major role in the outcome of the race as well. Since 2006, there have only been two runners who have won from a double-digit barrier, which were Mental (2012) and Malaguerra (2016), who jumped from barrier 10 and 11, respectively. 

Favourites don’t have a crash-hot record in the Champions Sprint either.  Since 2000, we have seen six favourites win the race, which include; Black Caviar (2010 & 2011), Redzel (2017), Bivouac (2020), Nature Strip (2021) and Imperatriz (2023).

Over the years, we’ve seen some of the best sprinters compete in the Champions Sprint. These Champions Sprint horses make up the elite in sprinting in Australia. We’ve gone through and found five Champions Sprint horses in particular to feature in this section.

While you may think five is not enough, we can’t talk about all of the best winners of the Champions Sprint! So, some tough decisions had to be made about which runners got a spot in this section. The five horses we’ve chosen are showcased below, see if you agree with us.

Vain - 1969

Vain won the Champions Sprint in 1969, along with several other Group One races throughout his career. Some of the other races included; the Golden Slipper, the Cantala Stakes, the Caulfield Guineas and the Champagne Stakes. He was named the Australian Champion Racehorse of the Year in 1969/70.

Takeover Target - 2004

Takeover Target may have won the Champions Sprint in 2004, but it was in 2006 when he was named Australian Champion Sprinter. With over $6 million in prize money, Takeover Target had a career record of 41:21-6-4 and won key races like the TJ Smith Stakes, The Goodwood, the Newmarket Handicap and the Black Caviar Lightning Stakes.

Miss Andretti - 2007

The 2007 Australian Horse of the Year, Miss Andretti, had a very successful career, which ended with a record of 31:19-3-2 and almost $3 million in prize money. Some of the biggest races she won throughout her career included the Manikato Stakes, the Newmarket Handicap and the Black Caviar Lightning Stakes.

Black Caviar - 2010 & 2011

If Black Caviar won the race, she would be included on any list of the best-ever horses, that’s for sure! The wonder mare finished her career with a famous record of 25:25-0-0 and almost $8 million in prize money. She was named the Australian Racehorse of the Year from 2011 until 2013 and has a Group 1 race named in her honour.

Nature Strip - 2019 & 2021

With over $20 million in prize money, it’s easy to see why Nature Strip has a spot in this list of the best Champions Sprint horses. The sprinter won half the races he contested, with a career record of 44:22-8-1. He won races like The Everest, the Moir Stakes, the TJ Smith Stakes and The Galaxy.

When you go to place your bets on the Champions Sprint, the odds will tell you which outcomes are more likely to eventuate. For example, if you are looking to place a bet on a runner to win the race with odds of $26, the bookie you are betting with doesn’t think that runner has a good chance of winning the race.

It is important to remember though, that just because a runner has roughie odds, it doesn’t mean the runner can’t win. We see roughies win all the time and sometimes we even see runners listed with odds of $100 or more win. Anything can and usually does happen in horse racing.

As we get closer to Champions Sprint race day, more horse racing markets will open up. This includes the more obscure bet types like Quinellas and more, so if that’s the market that tickles your fancy, you'll likely have to wait until race week to get your bets sorted.

If you’re more of the Fixed Win or Place type of bettor, then you’ll be pleased to know that markets open up much sooner. The Futures Market provides an insight into the type of runners who could be targeting the upcoming race. You’ll usually find higher odds for runners compared to if you bet on the day of the race.

See which runners are currently more favoured in the market, thanks to PlayUp:

*Odds correct as of early August.

The Champions Sprint has been running since 1960, so it doesn’t have as long of a history as some of the other races on the calendar. While the race has moved around in recent times, it has always taken place during Melbourne’s Spring Racing Carnival, which is undoubtedly one of the biggest horse racing carnivals in Australia.

Since 1960, we have seen multiple name changes to the race. Usually, we see the majority of the major races in Australia named after an individual or horse who has had a significant impact on the horse racing industry, but this has never been the case for the Champions Sprint. 

Instead, the race has been named for sponsorship reasons, which is why there have been multiple name changes over the years. Since its inception, the Champions Sprint has seen the following changes to its name:

• 1960-1979: Craven ‘A' Stakes
• 1980-1984: Pure-Pak Stakes
• 1985-1993: Gadsden Stakes
• 1994-1995: Southcorp Packaging Stakes
• 1996-2006: Salinger Stakes
• 2007: The Age Classic
• 2008-2012: Patinack Farm Classic
• 2013: VRC Sprint Classic
• 2014-2017: Darley Classic
• 2018: VRC Sprint Classic
• 2019-2021: Darley Sprint Classic
• 2022-Present: Darley Champions Sprint

The Champions Sprint has long been one of the biggest sprint races on the calendar and it first became an official Group 1 race in 1979. Many Australian (and even international) sprinters will target this race and it is one of the last major sprint races of the year in the country.

The race has almost always been run at a distance of 1,200m. Between 1960 and 1971, the Champions Sprint was raced over six furlongs, which is the equivalent of 1,200m. The Champions Sprint is currently run under weight-for-age conditions, but this wasn’t always the case, in fact, it took until 2007 for the race conditions to be changed.

Each year, people search for the Champions Sprint results to see where the runner they had their eye on finished in the race. We are pleased to bring you all the results details you’ve been looking for, including the finishing order of the entire field along with a full race replay. 

For the 2023 Champions Sprint, we saw the pre-race favourite, Imperatriz, get the chocolates. The mare finished just 0.5L in front of Buenos Noches, who, ridden by Blake Shinn, jumped from the widest barrier of them all, 11.

Filling in the final minor placing was the second favourite in the race, In Secret, who was 1.25L off the pace. In the end, there was a total of 11.05L that split the entire field and the Champions Sprint was run in a time of 1:09.08.

See where each runner in the Champions Sprint finished:

Ready to relive all the action as it unfolded? Of course, you are! Here’s the full race replay of the Champions Sprint:

Malaguerra

There can only be one Champions Sprint winner each year, but over the history of the race, we’ve seen some of the best horses compete and win the race. We’ve got all the recent winners of the Champions Sprint in the table:

Before we let you go, we’ve got one last section for you! Our Champions Sprint FAQs section goes through all the most common questions people have about the race. So, if you have any last-minute questions about the race, you may find the answer in this section.