Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Football
Netball
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
Why Via Sistina will no longer be Australia's best horse in 2026
RSN • December 28th, 2025 6:34 pm
Via Sistina has been ranked Australia’s No.1 weight-for-age horse in 2025 by RSN’s expert form analysts Nick and Trav Noonan, based off ratings.
However, Nick Noonan is adamant that the 12-time Group 1 winning legend will be overtaken during 2026's Autumn Racing Carnival.
Nick: “I would say there is a huge chance that someone could come and get her this autumn and eclipse (her) level.”
“Because it’s not that high.
Trav: “It’s still pretty high when you look at what everyone else is achieving, but I understand what you’re saying.
“Do you think in 2026 that she’s gonna regress again?
Nick: “I don’t know if she will regress, but I would be shocked to say she would be getting back to her absolute best ratings.
“I think she’s just holding what we’ve seen in her last few runs and that’s probably a truer reflection of the Via Sistina we have at the moment.
“Yeah, that win in the Champions Stakes was good, but she beat Zambardo – that’s not the strongest form race.
“I do think in the autumn that there is a real chance that someone could overtake her.”
The Noonan brothers later completed a list, ranking who will be the top five horses in 2026.
The racing Queen Via Sistina came in at fourth on Nick’s list, while the seven-year-old didn’t even make Trav’s top five, with Trav admitting that he believes “Via could lose her spot at the top.”
See who Nick and Trav Noonan believe will be the top five horses throughout 2026 below:
Nick Noonan
1 – Sir Delius2 – Autumn Glow3 – Ceolwulf4 – Via Sistina5 – Treasurethe Moment
Trav Noonan
1 – Autumn Glow2 – Ceolwulf3 – Sir Delius4 – Evaporate5 – Treasurethe Moment
