Racing Confidential: Stand-alone days warrant big money races
The Hunter and Gong meetings have been runaway successes, and other stand-alone days merit a big-money race, write Ray Thomas.
Horse Racing
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The Hawkesbury and Scone Saturday stand-alone metropolitan meetings deserve a big-money race as the concept continues to grow in popularity each season.
Kembla Grange hosts the sixth running of The Gong on Saturday after last week’s successful The Hunter meeting at Newcastle. Both feature races are worth $1m.
The stand-alone circuit sweeps by Wyong on January 11 for the inaugural running of the $500,000 The Lakes and then Gosford in May features the $500,000 The Coast.
Hawkesbury, the pioneer of the stand-alone meetings held at the end of the Sydney autumn carnival, still has arguably the strongest program with three Group 3 races that are worth $250,000 each – Hawkesbury Gold Cup, Guineas and Crown.
Scone has its annual stand-alone meeting in May featuring the Group 3 $250,000 Dark Jewel Classic.
Perhaps the Hawkesbury Gold Cup and/or Guineas and the Dark Jewel Classic could be given stakes boosts to at least $500,000 and provide the Hawkesbury and Scone autumn carnival stand-alone meetings with a deserved principal race.
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The Seven Network’s live and free coverage of the 2024 Sydney and Melbourne spring carnivals reached 4.2 million Australians so far on Seven and 7plus Sport.
Figures released by Seven this week showed the network’s carnival coverage attracted an average national TV audience of 178,000 viewers.
Everest day at Royal Randwick and the Caulfield Cup reached 1.39 million people and had an average audience of 557,000.
The Big Dance day at Royal Randwick, Cox Plate day at Moonee Valley and Rosehill’s Golden Eagle meetings also reached over 1 million with an average audience in excess of 115,000.
Seven Network head of horse racing Andrew Hore-Lacy said “this spring, Seven’s live and free thoroughbred racing coverage has once again been the go-to for fans of many of Australia’s most recognised race days.’’
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Trainer Adrian Bott concedes he has never previously saddled up a runner with a massive 75kg impost.
This is the handicap topweight Rocketeer Girl will shoulder when she competes in the Bong Bong Picnic Cup (1560m) at Bong Bong on Friday.
But Rocketeer Girl’s handicap isn’t the heaviest at the iconic picnic race meeting with Who But Roo asked to carry 78kg in the 1100m sprint
By way of comparison, the legendary Bernborough holds the Group 1 weight-carrying record when he won the 1946 Doomben Cup under 68.5kg (10st 11lbs).
Carbine, an inaugural Hall of Fame inductee, had a race record 65.5kg (10st 5lbs) when he won the 1890 Melbourne Cup.
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Castelvecchio, the boom Arrowfield Stud second season sire, will miss the remainder of the breeding season after he underwent colon surgery earlier this week.
Although the stallion will be unable to do any late season covers this spring, he is expected to make a full recovery.
The former talented racehorse has had an outstanding start to the season siring his first Group 1 winner with El Castello (Spring Champion Stakes), and stakes winners Aeliana and Double Market.
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Elvstroem, the globetrotting five-time Group 1 winners, passed away this week at a stud in France. He was 24.
The Tony Vasil-trained Elvstroem won the 2004 Caulfield Cup, holding off the great Makybe Diva, and then won the 2005 Dubai Duty Free Stakes.
At stud, Elvstroem sired 11 stakes winners including Group 1 winner Hucklebuck before he was exported to France nearly a decade ago.
Originally published as Racing Confidential: Stand-alone days warrant big money races