Godolphin star Kementari rerouted for clash with Winx

James Cummings, Godolphin's head trainer in Australia, has switched plans for his star Kementari so as to take on superstar mare Winx this Saturday, and the gravity of his decision is not lost on him.

"It is a perfect case of the up-and-comer taking on the champion," Cummings told racing.com.

"We all like to see that.

"He is still a horse on the rise and it will be great for our sport."

The switch to Saturday's $500,000 Winx Stakes for Kementari has provided the Australian Turf Club with yet another platform to promote the race.

Kementari's addition to the 13 original nominations is almost a straight subsitution for Godolphin, with stablemate Alizee ruled out with an automatic three-month ban following a post-trackwork bleed on Tuesday.

Already, victory in the event would take Winx's winning run to a record 26 victories and it would be the ideal way to begin a campaign that is scheduled to culminate in a shot at a record fourth Cox Plate victory.

Cummings explained that the initial plan to send Kementari south to Melbourne had to be tinkered with after the four-year-old continued to perform so strongly in his work.

"He worked too well this morning and it would have been too long to wait another month for him to run in the Memsie," Cummings said. "He was our best horse to gallop."

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