Newmarket Handicap 2025 - Barrier Draw & Final Field

Bets.com.au Staff

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Last updated: 05 Mar 2025

Bets.com.au Staff 05 Mar 2025

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The barrier draw has been completed for the 2025 Newmarket Handicap
This Group 1 headlines Saturday's Flemington meeting
Final field is included below

Benedetta has drawn barrier two in the Newmarket Handicap. (Getty)

Joliestar (barrier 8) had excuses first-up as a beaten favourite in the Expressway Stakes, where the Chris Waller-trained mare covered ground and she won a Flemington jump-on on February 28 ahead of her straight-track debut.

While her Group 1 triumph was recorded over 1600m via the 2023 Thousand Guineas, she has won twice over 1200m subsequently, while the four-year-old was also unlucky in The Everest.

Stretan Angel (barrier 7) doesn't have a great strike-rate, with two wins from 14 starts and the last of her victories came in October 2023 when successful in an 1100m Listed race up the Flemington straight.

She was still competitive throughout 2024 and the daughter of Harry Angel opened her 2025 account with a second-place finish in the Black Caviar Lightning.

Benedetta (barrier 2) also placed first-up in the Black Caviar Lightning (third) and she'll be suited by the rise in distance second-up.

The five-year-old defeated Stretan Angel over 1200m when taking out last year's Goodwood, while she's also a two-time Flemington winner (both up the straight course).

The consistent Rey Magnerio (barrier 4) hasn't finished out of the money in five attempts up the Flemington straight and he was a third-up winner over this track/trip last campaign.

He arrives to the Newmarket Handicap off a third-place finish in the Oakleigh Plate, where he was second-up following a return victory at Caulfield.

Three-year-old's have a good record in the Newmarket Handicap, with the youngsters accounting for 13 of the last 27 winners (48 from 151 overall) and that includes the last two victors (In Secret and Cylinder).

Growing Empire (barrier 5), Gatsby's (barrier 15) and Espionage (barrier 11) are the three-year-old acceptors for the 2025 Newmarket Handicap.

15 runners make up the final field for the 2025 Newmarket Handicap.

Newmarket Handicap 2025 Barriers & Final Field

No	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Barrier	Weight	Odds
1	Benedetta	Jason Warren	Ben Melham	2	57kg	$10
2	Maharba	Grahame Begg	Billy Egan	1	56.5kg	$21
3	Arkansaw Kid	Ben, Will & JD Hayes	Craig Newitt	14	56kg	$16
4	Buenos Noches	Ciaron Maher	John Allen	9	56kg	$19
5	Joliestar	Chris Waller	Damian Lane	8	56kg	$4.80
6	Rey Magnerio	Robbie Griffiths	Jye McNeil	4	56kg	$9
7	Growing Empire	Ciaron Maher	Mark Zahra	5	55.5kg	$6.50
8	Ostraka	Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald	Jamie Mott	13	55.5kg	$21
9	Stretan Angel	Phillip Stokes	Lachlan Neindorf	7	55.5kg	$7.50
10	It'sourtime	Danny O'Brien	Craig Williams	6	54kg	$31
11	Sghirripa	Shane & Cassie Oxlade	Luke Currie	10	53kg	$19
12	Headwall	Matthew Smith	Harry Coffey	3	52.5kg	$15
13	Suparazi	Ben Brisbourne	Declan Bates	12	52kg	$51
14	Espionage	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott	Dean Yendall	11	50kg	$13
15	Gatsby's	Chris Waller	Karis Teetan	15	50kg	$14

Odds courtesy of Picklebet & correct on 05/03/2025.

Newmarket Handicap Winners

Run under handicap conditions and contested up the Flemington straight over 1200m, the Newmarket Handicap is arguably Melbourne's most prestigious sprinting race.

While champions in Alinghi, Miss Andretti, Weekend Hussler and Black Caviar have saluted at short prices, this feature often lends itself to a long-priced winner, with Wanted ($13), Shamexpress ($15), The Quarterback ($21), Redkirk Warrior ($31), Sunlight ($13), Zoutori ($20) and Roch 'N' Horse ($101) among the recent winners of this event.

With eight wins, the legendary Bart Cummings is the most successful trainer in Newmarket Handicap history, while Damien Oliver leads the jockey tally with three victories.

Roch 'N' Horse (2022), In Secret (2023) and Cylinder (2024) have won the last three editions of the Newmarket Handicap.