Blake Shinn’s memories of Moonee Valley go back to when he was in shorts rather than jodhpurs and when the nights were saved for the pacers.
This history will creak into a rumble through the stands for the final charge in the Cox Plate.
Shinn remembers the champions of his childhood. But the first he remembers is Franco Tiger, a Miracle Mile winner in the early 1990s when Shinn was at The Valley with his uncle, Glen Tippet, a brilliant harness trainer.
“I went there [to the Valley] with uncle Glen during the school holidays and loved it,” Shinn recalled to Betsy.
“A lot of my early memories are at the Valley, running around at the trots, and the Cox Plate is a race you remember.”
“Franco Tiger is the first horse I remember because he was uncle Glen’s. But it was the Cox Plate with likes of Saintly, Sunline and Northerly that got me excited about racing as a kid.”
Shinn would sit on the end of the old lounges at the Valley riding home the winners, pretending he was a famous jockey, as his uncle Glen cheered them home on the harness track.
It makes the final day of the Valley, and a chance to win the Cox Plate on Antino, extra special.
“It’s in the back of your mind, this is the last time with those grandstands that I have been in since I was a kid,” Shinn said.
“It doesn’t change anything about the race, and how hard it’s to win, but it will make it more special if I do.”
“I feel I have the right horse.”
Shinn hasn’t got a Cox Plate on the mantle as yet, but he loves the challenge of the Valley, which makes the Cox Plate so unique.
A distance of less than 200m for the straight means the race develops from the furthest point from the stands at the 900m mark.
Adding to the challenge for horse and rider, aggression and patience are needed in equal terms to be successful.
“I’ll miss the Valley, I’ve had some incredible wins there,” Shinn said. “You really have to think and adjust in the races quickly because on the track, and when you get it right, it is amazing.”
“The pressure can sometimes come on too early, and you have to wait and be patient, and if it’s too late, you need to be up on-speed to take advantage of that.”
“I have a horse that can do that in Antino.”
Shinn believes even as a second pick in betting behind defending champion Via Sistina, Antino remains a little under the radar.
His biggest win down south was the Toorak Handicap last year, where Shinn took off before the turn, leaving his rivals standing. While his Doomben Cup rout, which is the highest rated win in Australia of 2025, showed he can be equally as dynamic at 2000m.
Antino has had the perfect build-up to the Cox Plate, beating all but Sir Delius in the Turnbull Stakes, and arrives at his fourth run of the preparation.
“I like the fact that he is under-appreciated in some ways for what he has done. He is a really good horse and this is his time,” Shinn said.
“I feel like I’m riding for a whole state because he is a Queenslander and they get behind their horses.”
“He is up against the best, but he’s showed he’s up to the challenge in the Turnbull and he has improvement in him.”
“I think the Valley will suit him because he enjoys having pressure in his races.”
Shinn’s belief in Antino is only matched by his confidence from a spring where he has won three Group 1s already, as many as he has won in the past two seasons.
He outpointed his rivals in the Might And Power Stakes on Globe and timed his run perfectly to win the Manikato Stakes on Charm Stone before winning the Thousand Guineas with Ole Dancer last week.
“I’ve had three Group 1 seconds as well and feel like I’m at the top of my game,” Shinn said. “I’m just in a good space with my life and that shows on the track.”
