Unbeaten Proxima Dea claims VRC Oaks at Flemington

The VRC Oaks saw class prevail on Thursday as Sydney filly Proxima Dea extended her perfect racing record with a commanding victory in the $1 million Group 1 event held at Flemington.

Trained by David Payne, the filly notched her sixth career success, with the win providing rising star jockey Zac Lloyd with his maiden Group 1 triumph in Melbourne over the 2500-metre distance.

This significant Oaks win occurred merely 12 days after Proxima Dea had triumphed against male competitors in the Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m). Her seasoned trainer hinted that she might be the horse he has been waiting for across his 54-year training tenure.

"I want to win the Melbourne Cup, so maybe I'll have to hang in there," Payne commented. "She's such a good mover and she doesn't spend an ounce of energy. She'd bred to stay and from day one I said the Oaks and I stuck to it. Maybe I should have gone for the Derby, I don't know, but she'll go for a holiday now and she deserves it. This is her first prep and she's won six in a row and two Group Ones."

Proxima Dea, a daughter of Tarzino and Invisible Coin, making her a sister to the Queensland Oaks winner Gypsy Goddess, achieved her Oaks victory 117 days after her initial winning appearance in a 1400-metre 2YO Handicap at Randwick on July 11. Subsequent victories included a Class 1 race over 1600m at Gosford, followed by an 1800m Midway win at Rosehill, prior to her first Stakes race engagement where she claimed the Group 3 Gloaming Stakes (1800m) on October 10.

Throughout these earlier races, she had not experienced the same challenging racing conditions as her Victorian debut.

Lloyd expertly extracted Proxima Dea from the second-widest barrier out of the 16 runners, but was compelled to race three-wide for a substantial part of the journey due to rivals who were acutely aware of the $2.10 favourite's presence.

Despite the taxing run, Proxima Dea took command early in the long Flemington straight, establishing a lead exceeding a length which she maintained and increased throughout the final furlong.

At the finish, she held a 1-3/4 length advantage over the fast-closing Shameful Impulse ($41), who narrowly secured second place from De Armas, the winner of Saturday's Wakeful Stakes and the $3.50 second favourite, right on the line.

Lloyd, who had previously won this year's Golden Slipper with Guest House in conjunction with Victorian trainers Mick Pride and Michael Kent Jr, expressed his immense satisfaction in partnering with fellow South African Payne for his breakthrough Group 1 win in Melbourne.

"To get a Group 1 in Melbourne (is great), hopefully I can keep on coming back for these carnivals and take a bit of money," the 23-year-old, who now boasts eight Group 1 victories, commented. "We said all along, as long as David was confident, I had nothing to worry about it. She's bred to do it but she might be the best one on the page. That was some performance."

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