Three-year-olds favourites for RQ awards

Queensland Oaks winner Winning Ways is one of the favourites to win the state’s Horse of the Year.

Voting has begun in the annual Racing Queensland Horse Of The Year awards with star three-year-olds Winning Ways and Zoustyle the favourites for the top award.

Winning Ways was Queensland’s only Group One winner of the season in the Queensland Oaks and also won the Group Three Gold Coast Bracelet.

Zoustyle was unbeaten in four starts during the season and won in stakes company before having a spell.

The main challenger to the pair is Group One Stradbroke runner-up Tyzone who beat Winning Ways for the recent Gold Coast Horse of The Year award.

There are also awards for two, three and four-year-old divisions.

The awards also cover jockeys and trainers with overall performances rather than premierships the criteria for the judging.

The now-retired Jeff Lloyd won his third metropolitan jockeys title but will face stiff opposition for the riders’ award from Michael Cahill who had a super winter carnival including two Group One wins.

Tony Gollan won his sixth metropolitan trainers premiership and will be favourite for the title but faces strong opposition from Toby Edmonds, Chris Waller and David Vandyke.

The apprentices title is wide open with Baylee Nothdurft, Jag Guthmann-Chester and Jackson Murphy among the top contenders.

The awards are judged by a panel of media and industry figures and will be announced on September 22.