Melbourne Racing Club pushing ahead with plans for big Caulfield crowds
A bumper crowd could watch the Caulfield Cup trackside under an ambitious plan to welcome back punters, with a new sponsor set to shake things up.
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The Melbourne Racing Club is hopeful it will be able to host crowds of up to 30,000 people each day of the Caulfield Cup Carnival as it announces a new naming rights sponsor.
Carlton Draught will replace Stella Artois, 21 years after the first partnership and running of the Carlton Draught Caulfield Cup in 2000.
Melbourne Racing Club chief executive Josh Blanksby said an application had been made for 30,000 people in four zones of 7500 across the different areas of the racecourse.
“That was met pretty promisingly when we put that in and we’ve been able to prove that we’ve been able to do that pretty safely over the last six months,” Mr Blanksby said.
“Obviously we’re not naive enough to realise now that with this latest change (the recent lockdown), that they’re looking at big events. So they’ll probably pull us back a little bit there, but we’re still pushing for that, whether it’s 20,000 or closer to 30,000.”
Mr Blanksby said racegoers could expect some exciting and innovative activations trackside as key sponsors were set to splash some cash to entertain customers.
“A bit of silver lining with no crowds last year, all of our partners have got a little bit to spend on the activations and are already keen to get back out there,” he says.
Among the plans is an alfresco gastropub on the front lawn, providing live entertainment, cold pours and tasty bites to satiate between precincts and between races.
The Style Stakes will be back for racegoers to reignite their sartorial side after months spent indoors.
“After the last 18 months, Melburnians in particular are ready to re-embrace the things they love about this great city, get back out into the world and celebrate with friends,” Mr Blanksby said.
Trainer Gemma Rielly said the racing industry was grateful to have been able to continue uninterrupted throughout the lockdowns but would dearly like to see crowds back trackside for the spring racing carnival.
“It’s just not the same when you can’t turn around (after a race) and have the owners and crowd behind you,” she says.
Tickets for the 2021 Carlton Draught Caulfield Cup Carnival go on sale to MRC Members on August 2, and to the public on August 10.
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