Spring racing facing major shake-up to avoid AFL finals clash and trainer Danny O’Brien is a big fan
Melbourne’s Spring Racing Carnival is facing a major revamp of the likes never before seen in its long history - and trainer Danny O’Brien, for one, believes it’s about time.
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Trainer Danny O’Brien would like to see the whole spring carnival shifted and the Melbourne Cup run in the first week of December.
A major overhaul could be on the agenda with the Melbourne Racing Club (MRC) exploring the option of moving its Caulfield carnival, including the Caulfield Cup, from mid-October to the end of November.
The report says the Caulfield Cup would move to November 28 with the Caulfield Guineas run a week earlier.
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The AFL grand final is usually held on the last Saturday of September but has been pushed back after the coronavirus crisis suspended the season. The AFL season resumes on June 11, with the grand final scheduled for October 24, which is Cox Plate day.
The Victoria Racing Club remains steadfast in keeping the Melbourne Cup in its traditional date of the first Tuesday in November.
Chairman Peter Le Grand said the MRC was exploring options of moving its carnival but was yet to be discussed at committee level.
Racing Victoria said no decisions have been made about programming of the spring carnival.
“As we have consistently stated, nothing is off the table at this time given the unprecedented circumstances of 2020,” RV said in a statement.
“Equally, we have said that we do not need to make any decisions prior to June.”
O’Brien, who won last year’s Melbourne Cup with Vow And Declare, said shifting the spring carnival back a month would be beneficial.
“The problem we have is we are stuck with dates that aren’t really the best for the racehorse,” O’Brien told RSN.
“The horses go dormant over winter. They are a seasonal animal, they grow a winter coat and their bodies shut down until the spring starts.
“Our season is way too close to winter.”
O’Brien said Melbourne’s best races were rushed through in early spring when horses are nowhere near their peak before shutting down for autumn.
He said a later spring carnival would be especially beneficial for three-year-olds who could actually be racing in the Caulfield Guineas as two-year-olds.
“I think if Caulfield do this, it won’t be a one-off, there will be so many positives... they’ll get these dates and keep them going forward,” O’Brien said.
Spring racing facing major shake-up to avoid AFL finals clash
Racing is set to break with 140 years of tradition by moving the Caulfield Cup to late November, writes Russell Gould.
The 2400m Group 1 handicap, first held in 1879, is a key lead-up race to the Melbourne Cup.
But Racing Victoria is expected to announce an overhaul of its spring dates next week, pushing the Caulfield Cup back to November 28 and staging the Caulfield Guineas on November 21.
The Melbourne Cup would still be run on the first Tuesday in November, while the Cox Plate and Derby Day retain their usual places on the calendar under the proposed changes.
A draft schedule has been presented to Victoria’s key racing clubs.
The shift, brought on to avoid a clash between the Caulfield fixtures and an October AFL finals series, could have wide-ranging implications for the spring carnival.
The Caulfield Cup would become the last major race of the carnival.
One big plus of a later running of the Caulfield Cup could be bigger crowds being permitted to attend due to the expected easing of pandemic restrictions.
Melbourne Racing Club, which governs Caulfield racecourse, has been keen to explore moving the entire carnival back four weeks, but changing the running order of the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cups seemed unlikely until now.
Hall of Fame trainer David Hayes told the Herald Sun last week he thought the spring carnival should be pushed back three weeks.
“In normal circumstances we are competing with the AFL in September and it completely overshadows racing,” Mr Hayes said.
“This year we will be going head to head with the finals series in October where we’ve got feature races.
“There are so many reasons (for moving the carnival). The weather’s better and it would also give us an extra three weeks for the crowds to come and enjoy racing.”
International trainers have routinely used a Caulfield Cup run to springboard into the Melbourne Cup.
Eleven greats of the turf, including champion Might and Power, have won both races in the same year.
Last year Vow And Declare ran second in the Caulfield Cup before winning the Melbourne Cup 17 days later.
The revised spring carnival calendar would put the AFL Grand Final and the 100th running of the Cox Plate on an October 24 collision course. Under that scenario, it is believed one of the events — both part of Channel 7’s sporting coverage — would be held at night this year for the first time.
Moonee Valley chief executive Michael Browell met Channel 7 boss Lewis Martin last week and discussed the possibility of the Cox Plate being run on Grand Final day.
“I told Lewis of my personal preference that if the AFL Grand Final was held at night we would run the meeting from midday to 6pm with the Cox Plate at 5pm,” Mr Browell said.
The revised racing dates are expected to be confirmed by June 1.
Legendary trainer Bart Cummings holds the record for the most Caulfield Cups, winning seven.
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