Philpot produced the ride of her life to secure a bold front-running win aboard Highly Decorated for South Australian trainer Nicole Bruggemann in a race and track record time of 2:03.89.

She became the first female jockey to win the iconic feature race.

A fairytale path to Darwin Cup success for Highly Decorated has featured seven-straight wins, the last six with Philpot in the saddle.

The five-year-old had won just one race before his transfer to Bruggemann in March this year.

The Epaulette/Lovalie gelding, with Philpot on board, debuted for his new stable with a third in a benchmark 54 in mid-April.

He won his next race a week later with Alice Lindsay in the saddle, before Philpot took the reins for his 1600m win on May 8.

The partnership of Philpot and Highly Decorated has since strung together five more wins, culminating in an emphatic Darwin Cup victory on Monday.

For Philpot, who has been based in Alice Springs with trainer Greg Connor since late-March, it was easily the biggest win of her career.

The 26-year-old was formerly apprenticed to Kyneton and former Bendigo trainer Mick Sell and began her career in 2015 in Queensland.

She has since ridden in every state and territory in Australia for 86 career wins.

Notably, she has ridden at least one winner in each of those states and territories.

Sell and his family were in Darwin to watch Philpot take out the Cup, in addition to watching their own galloper Carlingford finish second in an earlier race.

Bruggemann, who will permanently relocate from Murray Bridge to Darwin in a few weeks' time, could not contain her delight following a fairytale win.

"I thought he got the lead coming past the post (the first time) a little easier than he was going to and I thought there might have been a little bit more take him on," she told Sky Racing.

"They were three-wide down the back and you just keep doubting yourself; have I got him fit enough.

"Even halfway down the straight, I couldn't watch.

"Look at the size of him, he's just tiny, but he just plays with them, it's insane.

"He just loves her (Philpot), I don't know why but he loves her."

A query at the 2050m distance in the lead up, Highly Decorated had never raced beyond 1600m until Monday.

Any doubts on his ability to stay the trip were dispelled when the gelding kicked clear at the top of the straight and was able to hold out the fast-finishing Danon Roman to win by 2.6 lengths.

Meanwhile, Kyneton trainer Neil Dyer's chase for a third Darwin Cup win ended with a fourth-placing for Kaonic.

The seven-year-old gelding, who was formerly-trained by Chris Waller, produced his best run in five Darwin starts for Dyer and finished five-lengths from the winner.

Kaonic was ridden by Adam Nicholls, a late replacement for Jason Maskiell, who was hospitalised following a fall in race one.

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