Peter V’landys drops Everest-sized bombshell with call to move Melbourne Cup

Racing NSW boss Peter V’landys wants Victoria to consider moving the Melbourne Cup date.

The boss of Racing NSW, Peter V’Landys Picture: Toby Zerna

Racing NSW supremo Peter V’landys wants Victoria’s racing establishment to consider moving the Melbourne Cup to later in November.

V’landys said shifting the iconic race from its traditional first Tuesday in November race date would resolve most of the feature race programming clashes between Sydney and Melbourne during the spring carnival.

The suggestion will rock Victorian racing officials still trying to combat Sydney’s revamped spring racing carnival, which includes the $14 million The Everest, the world’s richest race on turf, run next week at Royal Randwick.

V’landys was in Melbourne on Tuesday for the Caulfield Guineas and Schillaci Stakes barrier draws when he dropped his Cup bombshell.

V’landys said horse racing should move with the times because “tradition could actually lead you to perish”.

“I’ve got no doubt the Melbourne Cup would work if it was run on the second, third or fourth Tuesday in November, it would make no difference,’’ V’landys told The Australian.

“The Melbourne Cup will always be the race that stops the nation, it doesn’t matter when it is run.’’

V’landys said innovation was at the heart of his changes to NSW racing, insisting it had rejuvenated the interest levels and the hard-core racing public.

V’landys said Victorian racing officials want more racing industry co-operation on a national level but are not prepared to change their traditional spring carnival race dates.

“Nothing stays the same forever and racing has to be prepared to change and embrace new ideas,’’ he said.

“But the Victorians can’t cherry pick national co-operation on these issues.

“They want everyone to co-operate but they are not prepared to be flexible with their race dates.’’

V’landys said the success of The Everest has shown that racing can embrace new ideas and appeal to a younger audience.

“Racing needs to do this to stay relevant, it can’t just stay the way it has always been because then the sport will go backwards,’’ V’landys said.

“All I’m saying is let’s have this debate, let’s talk about taking a national approach to the big-race calendar and see if there are things we can do better.

“They (Victorians) keep going on about national co-operation but only if and when it suits them.

“However, when they have to co-operate they move faster than Winx to get away.”

The VRC, which controls the Melbourne Cup, declined to comment.

V’landys doubts anyone other than the Melbourne Racing Club would be willing to work as closely with Racing NSW.

The winner of Saturday’s $400,000 Group II Schillaci Stakes at Caulfield is guaranteed an automatic entry into The Everest the following weekend — to be run on Caulfield Cup Day.

The MRC has done a deal with Racing NSW and the Australian Turf Club to provide an Everest slot.

“It’s a great initiative of the Melbourne Racing Club to show the foresight and to do things differently,” V’landys said.

“If you are going to be successful in life, you can’t rest on your laurels. You have got to be innovative, and if any club was going to do it, it was going to be the MRC.”

V’landys said he would barrack for the winner of the Schillaci Stakes in Saturday week’s The Everest, hoping it might foster even better relationships on a national level.

The Daily Telegraph