Might and Power Stakes Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2025

The Might and Power Stakes, previously known as the Caulfield Stakes, is one of Victoria’s top weight-for-age events for 3YOs+ and is run at a distance of 2,000m. First run all the way back in 1886, the Might and Power Stakes is now a central part of the Victorian Spring Racing Carnival. 

Many runners see the Might and Power Stakes as the perfect lead-up to the all-important Cox Plate, which is run two weeks later under the same conditions and similar distance. The Cox Plate is worth a cool $5 million, so runners who perform well in the Might and Power Stakes would certainly be thinking about heading to Moonee Valley Racecourse.

Due to the impact of being the ideal lead-up run to the Cox Plate, we almost always see a high-quality field in the Might and Power Stakes. We’ll go into detail later on this page about some of the best-ever horses that have competed and won this race. 

Along with the Might and Power Stakes, two other Group 1 races take place at Caulfield Racecourse on the same day. Those two races are the Caulfield Guineas and the Toorak Handicap. With all this racing at Caulfield, it’s no wonder many believe it to be one of the top tracks in the country.

The team here at OnlyRacing.com.au loves Group 1 racing and we cover every single Group 1 race on the calendar. For each race, including the Might and Power Stakes, we take a deep dive into all the major aspects of the event. We cover things like tips, betting and odds, as well as general information like field, form guide and results.

When it comes to prize money, there’s a cool $1 million on the line. On top of this, there’s another bonus of $1 million in prize money if a runner wins both the Might and Power Stakes along with the Cox Plate two weeks later. Check out the table below for a breakdown of the prize money for the Might and Power Stakes specifically:

Who would like some free horse racing tips? You do, of course! Well, you’ve certainly come to the right place. We love providing horse racing tips, so much so that we tip every Group 1 race on the calendar, on top of the general Caulfield tips we provide. You’ll be drowning in horse racing tips!

For the 2025 Might and Power Stakes, our tips aren’t available just yet. We are waiting until race week to get cracking on our best bet, next best and best roughie. Race week is when the final field is confirmed and we can crunch all the important numbers.

While our 2025 Might and Power Stakes tips might not be available, you can check out what we put together for the race in 2024 here:

Might and Power Stakes Best Bet - Mr Brightside

It’s only a small field, but I’ve got a one-track mind. It’s all Mr Brightside for me and the market seems to agree, with Mr Brightside currently the heavy $1.55 favourite with our friends at PlayUp. There’s no one else really, despite it being a small yet quality field and while he is very short, I don’t think anyone can beat him.

He is yet to win over the 2,000m across five attempts, but in this small field, he does bring the class factor, so he shouldn’t have any trouble notching up his first win over this distance. Won the Makybe Diva Stakes second-up and will be tackling the Might and Power Stakes fourth-up. A win here will lock him in as the favourite for the Cox Plate I reckon.

Might and Power Stakes Next Best - Atishu 

With a short-priced roughie in the market, it means there’s a lot of value floating around for other runners. If Mr Brightside isn’t up to his best, there are one or two in the race that could swoop in for a victory. Unlikely I think, but Atishu has to be respected. The 7YO mare draws the widest barrier of them all, but in a field of just eight, that doesn’t matter too much.

She is currently on the second line of betting with PlayUp, listed with odds of $5.00 and I think a top-three finish is certainly on the cards. We always see her do her best racing during the Spring Racing Carnival but she has yet to fire so far this prep. She’s got a great turn of foot and James McDonald books the ride, so let’s see what she can do.

Might and Power Stakes Best Roughie - Vow And Declare

I do have a soft spot for Vow And Declare and while I would be pretty surprised to see him win against Mr Brightside, especially under WFA conditions, I think he can run top three and fairly big odds. The 2019 Melbourne Cup winner is paying $21 to win the Might and Power Stakes, thanks to PlayUp.

He might be a 9YO, but he still has the fire in his belly and clearly tries his heart out in every race. Vow And Declare finished second behind Alligator Blood in this race last year and I think his prep work in the lead-up to the race this year has been strong compared to last year. So, if you’re looking for some value, I think I’ve found it with Vow And Declare.

If you’re planning to bet on the Might and Power Stakes, there are a couple of things you need to be aware of, especially if you’re not a regular punter. Firstly, there are several different bookies you can bet with. Secondly, there are heaps of markets available to bet on as well!

With so many bookies and markets to choose from, how could you possibly make a choice? Well, that’s where OnlyRacing can help you! We have evaluated all the top betting sites in Australia and provided our thoughts on them, just head to our bookies reviews page.

You don’t have to stick with just one bookie either if you don’t want to. Nothing is stopping you from opening up accounts with multiple bookies, in fact, it’s something that we recommend. By opening accounts with several bookies, it becomes easier to shop around for the best odds and betting promotions.

Some of the bookies that we think you’ll like include; PlayUp, PuntNow and Picklebet. These three bookies all offer something a little different, but they all provide a positive betting experience. The best betting apps in Australia aren’t hard to find, you just need to know where to look!

Along with choosing a bookie, another choice you need to know is what to bet on. Each year, all the top bookies in Australia will open up heaps of markets for the Might and Power Stakes. You are truly spoilt for choice, but remember, you should only place bets on markets that you fully understand.

If you’re new to the world of horse racing betting, it’s a good idea to stick to the simpler bets, like Fixed Win or Place bets. Then, after you’ve built up your skills and knowledge, you can try some of the more exotic type bets, like Multis, Quaddies or First Fours, etc.

The field for the Might and Power Stakes in 2025 is yet to be confirmed. We have to wait until race week to know for sure which runners will be taking part in the race. While we don’t know which runners will take part, we’ve seen a rich history of high-quality runners in the field.

If you can’t wait until race week, you can check out the odds, if they are available. The current odds market will show you which runners are more favoured for the Might and Power Stakes and therefore more likely to pop up in the final field. We have more information on this in our “Odds” section later on this page.

We can’t tell you which runners will take part just yet. Instead, let’s take a look at how the final field lined up in 2024:

In 2024, we saw just eight runners confirmed for the Might and Power Stakes, with no emergencies listed either. There weren’t any pre-race scratchings, so having no emergencies didn’t matter in the end as all eight original runners took part in the race.

It’s not fun to see, but scratchings do happen fairly regularly in horse racing. There are many different reasons as to why connections choose to scratch their runner and it can happen any time from when the final field is announced to right before the race is set to jump. This is why it’s important to keep an eye on things, especially if you’ve got a bet on the race.

Something else that you should focus on is the barrier draw. Certain barriers have seen more success than compared to overs over the years. On top of this, runners have different race styles that are better suited for an inside or a wider barrier, so there are certainly a lot of things to weigh up.

Checking out the Might and Power Stakes form guide is critical if you want to use data and stats to help you find a winner. Those punters who prefer to bet with their hearts, you can keep scrolling! With a race like the Might and Power Stakes, that has been running for a long time now, there’s a lot of data to go through.

We’ve gone through all the recent data and found that some patterns have emerged. These key form indicators can help point you in the direction of a winner. While this isn’t foolproof, it is recommended to make choices based on the data. Check out the patterns and pieces of information we found below!

We see some of the best middle-distance runners hit the turf each year for the Might and Power Stakes. As previously touched on, the Might and Power Stakes is one of the best lead-up races to the Cox Plate, so it means we usually see a high-quality field with several already being Group 1 winners.

In terms of ideal lead-up races for the Might and Power Stakes, we usually see runners moving up in distance as they go through their preps, so some of the races to look into include the Memsie Stakes, the Makybe Diva Stakes, the Underwood Stakes and the Turnbull Stakes.

Since 2006, the most successful lead-up race has been the Underwood Stakes in particular, with 11 Might and Power Stakes winners competing in that race. Alligator Blood was the last runner to successfully complete the Underwood Stakes - Might and Power Stakes double in 2023.

Good news for all those favourite backers out there, it’s been a happy hunting ground in the Might and Power Stakes! Since 2009, we have seen seven favourites win the race. On top of this, since 2012, we have only seen one double-digit odds winner in the race.

If you’re looking for the most successful age group, you should stick with 4YOs and 5YOs. These two ages have completely dominated the honour roll since 2009, as there have only been four occasions where a runner not from those age groups has won the Might and Power Stakes.

Mares don’t usually have a lot of success in the Might and Power Stakes. Since 1986, we’ve only seen four mares win the race, which were; Deny Knowledge (2024), Probabeel (2021), Winx (2016) and Atlantic Jewel (2013). You should also look for runners who come into the race in some form. Since 2009, we have seen nine winners finish in the top two in their lead-up run.

Each year, we see some of the best-ever horses compete in the Might and Power Stakes. With a race that has been around for as long as this one has, there are plenty of high-quality horses that have tasted victory. This section is dedicated to the best of the best Might and Power Stakes horses.

We pick the best horses and talk more about their career, honours and achievements. While we’d love to feature all the top horses, we only have room for a handful, which has meant we’ve had to make some really difficult decisions. Keep reading below to find out the horses we have picked:

Eurythmic - 1920-1922

Eurythmic won the Might and Power Stakes three years in a row, but this is not the only race he won three years in a row, he also won the Memsie Stakes from 1920 to 1922! He finished his career with an impressive record of 47:31-6-4 and he has been inducted into the Australian Racing Hall of Fame.

Ajax - 1938

Ajax won a whole stack of Group One races throughout his career, including the 1928 Might and Power Stakes. The Frank Musgrave-trained stallion had a career record of 46:36-7-2, which included victories in the Cox Plate, the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, the Newmarket Handicap and the Underwood Stakes.

Kingston Town - 1981 & 1982

The 1980 Australian Champion Racehorse of the Year, Kingston Town won the Might and Power Stakes in both 1981 and 1982. The Australian Racing Hall of Famer has a Group 1 race named after him, the Kingston Town Classic, which is raced each year at Ascot Racecourse.

Might And Power - 1998

Of course, we’re going to talk about Might And Power, the horse the race is now named after! Might And Power was named the Australian Horse of the Year in both 1998 and 1999. The gelding won key Group 1 races like the Melbourne Cup, the Caulfield Cup, the Cox Plate and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Winx - 2016

If Winx won the race, you can almost guarantee that she will make the list of best-ever horses. With over $26 million in prize money, Winx was named the Australian Horse of the Year for four seasons in a row, from 2015/6 to 2018/9. She even has a Group 1 race named after her, the Winx Stakes.

The Might and Power Stakes odds will tell you which runners are more favoured to win the race. But remember, even though a runner has short odds, it doesn’t automatically guarantee that they will win the race. Anything can happen in horse racing and longshot roughies win all the time.

As we get closer to race day, all the top Aussie bookies will open up more horse racing markets. There are always heaps of markets to bet on, so no matter what you fancy, you’ll probably find a market to bet on! It’s important to stick with markets that you understand though, you can always build up your knowledge base.

Our top bookie for Might and Power Stakes odds, PlayUp, is yet to release their odds. As we get closer to race day, PlayUp will continue to open more markets, so there is something for every type of bettor to get on board with.

Something else we recommend is looking into what stage the market is in. If the market is listed as “Before Noms” we think this is a great time to place your bets because if your runner doesn’t make the final field, you’ll get your stake back. You’ll also potentially get better odds for your chosen runner than compared to if you bet on the day of the race.

The 2025 Might and Power odds aren’t available just yet. In the meantime, we can take a look at the odds for the race in 2024, taken just a couple of days before the race:

*Odds correct as of 10/10/2024.

The Might and Power Stakes has a long and rich history. First run in 1886 when won by Isonomy, the race has grown into a massive powerhouse and key event in the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival, which is one of the biggest horse racing carnivals of the year and watched by millions around Australia and the world.

With a race that has been around since 1886, there are bound to be some changes. Over the years, we’ve seen multiple changes to the race name, as well as the race distance. Since inception, there have been five changes to the race name, which include:

• 1886-1996: Caulfield Stakes
• 1997-2010: Yalumba Stakes
• 2011-2015: Caulfield Stakes
• 2016-2020: Neds Caulfield Stakes
• 2021-Now: Might And Power Stakes

Along with the changes to the race name, we’ve seen four changes over the years to the event’s distance. Check out all the changes below:

• 1886-1887: 1,800 metres
• 1888: 2,000 metres
• 1889-1967: 1,800 metres
• 1968-Now: 2,000 metres

From 1886 until 1978, the Might and Power Stakes was known as a Principal Race. From 1979, the race was then classified as a Group 1 and has been ever since! The Might and Power Stakes has almost always been run at Caulfield Racecourse, but it was briefly moved to Flemington Racecourse during World War II.

In 2016, we saw the smallest ever Group 1 field in the history of Australian racing when just three, yes three, runners took part in the Might and Power Stakes. Why? Because Winx was in that field and she certainly did a good job scaring off any rivals, not that it would have mattered anyway!

Straight after the Might and Power Stakes has been run, those not lucky enough to watch the race live will be searching online for the results. If that’s you, or if you’ve just come to relive all the action, our Might and Power Stakes results section is for you! We have the finishing order of all runners, plus a full race replay.

For the Might and Power Stakes in 2024, we saw 7YO mare, Deny Knowledge, beat out the heavy favourite, Mr Brightside, to claim Group 1 victory. Deny Knowledge was 0.8L ahead of Mr Brightside and 1.6L ahead of Atishu, who filled in the final minor placing.

Deny Knowledge was ahead for the majority of the race and none of her competitors were able to run over the top of her in the closing stages of the race. The 2024 Might and Power Stakes was run in a time of 2:01.40 and there was a total of 44L that split the first and last runners.

Check out the full Might and Power Stakes results below:

You know where each runner finished in the Might and Power Stakes, now check out how the race unfolded below:

Each year, only one can win the Might and Power Stakes (unless we see an epic dead heat!). Take a look at the table below which shows all the latest Might and Power Stakes winners:

Before we let you go, we’ve got one final section for you to feast your eyes on. Our Might and Power Stakes FAQs section aims to answer all the common questions people have about the race. Check out all the details below: