The star has lose five races in Australia.

Via Sistina remains the best horse in Australia, according to SEN’s Gerard Whateley.

The eight-year-old champion made history on Saturday, completing the Cox Plate, Champions Stakes double for the second year in a row, after achieving that feat in 2024.

Additionally, her Champions Stakes victory marked the mare’s 12th Group 1 win.

But she wasn’t flawless this preparation, losing the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes and Group 1 Turnbull Stakes.

In fact, throughout her 16 races in Australia, she has lost five of them.

Prominent owner John O’Neill has claimed that is exactly why she is such a huge fan favourite – because she is actually imperfect.

“I think the thing people love about her is we’ve gone through the Winx era, we’ve gone through the Black Caviar era – they were perfect – but in this instance, she’s a little imperfect, which is what we like,” O’Neill said on SENTrack & RSN’s Giddy Up.

“She’s like the champions of the old days that can get beaten but then come back and rise again when it really counts.

“I just thought it was a wonderful race (the Champion Stakes) and she is a champion!”

Trainer Wayne Hawkes also echoed that sentiment, stating that it gets boring if a horse wins every single race it runs in.

“Going on what you said Johnny, that’s the Black Caviar and the Winx problem, if there is a problem – win, win, win, win, win,” Hawkes added to O’Neill’s statement.

“I think it’s a good thing that they get beat, not as a connection, but as a racing person.

“Because if Pride Of Jenni jumps, goes to the front and just leads and wins, leads and wins, leads and wins, leads and wins, it gets boring!

“When you doubt the champions, they’re the once that bounce back on the big day.”

Gareth Hall chimed into the conversation, imagining what we, as racing fans, will say about the heroics of Via Sistina in five years’ time.

“In five years’ time when we talk about Via Sistina I think we’ll say that she is one hell of a Grand Final horse, that on the biggest stage when it mattered most, she never let you down,” Hall exclaimed.

“She was trained by an amazing trainer (Chris Waller), especially with his mare’s, to keep them going each preparation and make sure that they are peaking when it matters most.

“She’s a champion, she goes down as a modern day great, there’s no doubt about that.”

“The best horse in the country remains Via Sistina,” Whateley added.

“She has graduated to modern day great.”