Makybe Diva, the only horse to win three Melbourne Cups (G1), has died at the age of 27.
The mare's owner/breeder Tony Santic said Feb. 28 that the multiple group 1-winning champion had succumbed to a bout of colic.
"From the day she came into our lives, she was never just a racehorse, she was family," Santic said. "She gave us moments Australia will never forget, but more than that, she gave us joy every single day. She was loved from the beginning, and she stayed loved for her whole life."
While Makybe Diva will forever be synonymous with the Melbourne Cup, her record extended well beyond the Flemington showpiece. Her CV also contains triumphs in other prestigious contests including the Cox Plate (G1), Australian Cup (G1), Sydney Cup (G1) and Tancred Stakes (G1).
Glen Boss, who partnered Makybe Diva in her three Melbourne Cup victories in 2003, 2004, and 2005, said her impact transcended racing.
He told Racing.com: "I'll be drinking out of the Cups tonight and thinking about her and what she's done for Australian racing and Australian sport. There will be champagne flowing out of the Cups for her tonight.
"When I saw her a few months ago, she was looking so good and healthy, but I couldn't help but feel as I left her that this could be the last time. I definitely had that feeling I might not ever see her again. I would have loved to have seen her one more time, but we sort of had our goodbye in a way."
Boss said he had visited the mare regularly at Santic's Gnarwarre property in Victoria where she lived out her days.
"When I saw her a few months ago, she was looking so good and healthy, but I couldn't help but feel as I left her, that this could be the last time," Boss said. "She looked healthy, but at that age, they're so close to the end.
"I definitely had that feeling I might not ever see her again. I would have loved to have seen her one more time but I had that feeling that might be it and we sort of had our goodbye in a way.
"I've been going to see her at least once or twice a year. You have time with them and I'm sure she does (remember me) but it's more about spending time with her and being mates. I had such admiration for her.
"Now she's gone, what a gift she was to Australia. Her performances went beyond our sport. You had the Kingston Town era, but I can't think of a horse before her that captured the public imagination so completely. She left such a big mark on Australian sport and not just racing. I was so lucky that she came into my life.
"After she won the Cox Plate in 2005, she was on every front page, middle page, and back page. Then she won a third Melbourne Cup 10 days later and she took over the front, middle, and back pages again. That's what the champions do. They defy logic, they defy the clock, and they defy the handicaps sometimes.
"Even younger people that weren't even born when she raced, they understand what she did. She left such a big footprint in sport in Australia that it's impossible not to know of her and what she achieved.
"Tony owns three of the most iconic trophies in Australian sport. You've got the Ashes and the Baggy Greens, but collectively, those are the most prized trophies in Australian sport because it will never be done again.
"It's mathematically and logistically almost impossible to do what she'd done. That is the gravity of that moment when she won her third Cup."
Bred in England, Makybe Diva was out of the twice-raced Riverman mare Tugela, who was purchased carrying the mare in utero by Santic's bloodstock agent John Foote for 60,000 guineas at the 1998 Tattersalls Mares Sale.
Offered as a foal in the same ring the following year, Makybe Diva failed to meet her reserve. She was retained by Santic and sent to Australia.
The daughter of Desert King did not make her racetrack debut until three days before her fourth birthday, finishing fourth in a Benalla maiden. Then came a run of six straight wins, culminating with victories in the listed 2002 Werribee Cup and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G2) at Flemington.
Makybe Diva remains the only horse to win three successive Melbourne Cups. She won her first for trainer David Hall before completing the set for Lee Freedman after Hall began training in Hong Kong. She won 15 of her 36 starts and AU$14.5 million in prize money (approx. US$10.8 million).
Named Australian Horse of the Year for her deeds in 2005, winning the Australian Cup (G1), BMW Classic (G1), Memsie Stakes (G2), Turnbull Stakes (G2), Cox Plate (G1), and Melbourne Cup, Makybe Diva entered the Australian Racing Hall of Fame the following year and was afforded Legend status in 2010.
After being immediately retired after her third Melbourne Cup win, Makybe Diva's first mating was with Coolmore's champion shuttler Galileo. The resulting colt sold for AU$1.5 million at the 2009 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale.
Despite the lofty expectations that accompanied her broodmare career, none of her progeny were able to replicate her racetrack brilliance. The best performer of her six winners was the stakes-placed mare Divanation.
