Caulfield Cup an Australian Horse Racing Institution
February 3, 2012 Races No CommentsThe Caulfield Cup is among the richest thoroughbred horse racing events not only in Australia, but also the world. An annual event organized by Melbourne Racing Club, it is a 2400m handicap race—the winners qualify for the melbourne cup, a $6 million horse racing event. Any thoroughbred above the age of three can participate in this event, which is held on the last day of the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival.
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Participating Horses
Several horses are nominated for the Caulfield Cup, undoubtedly because of its cash prize of over $2.5 million. The Caulfield Cup is the doorway to the Melbourne Cup for the participating horses. A horse’s performance in the Caulfield Cup is, therefore, taken into consideration while predicting its performance in events such as Melbourne Cup and the Cox Plate. The horses that win both the Melbourne Cup and the Caulfield Cup during a given year are said to have achieved Cups Double.
The Caulfield Cup field comprises 18 participants from both home and abroad. Foreign horses, which travel all the way to Australia to participate in the Caulfield Cup, also aim to participate in the Melbourne Cup, which is held on the first Tuesday of every November. Foreign horses have been permitted to participate in this event right from 1998.
A system of balloting is used to determine the final field of the event. The horses are given a number on the basis of several factors such as prizes won during the past two years, previous wins, and others. A horse can gain direct entry into the event if he/she wins horse racing events such as the Listed Mornington Cup and others.
Since the Caulfield Cup is a thoroughbred handicap race, each horse is assigned a weight based on factors such as total amount of prize money won, previous win record, and so on. The objective of assigning weights is to make the race fair and give winning opportunities to newer horses.
Caulfield Cup Achievers
Eleven horses—Poseidon, Rivette, The Trump, Rising East, Galilee, Even Stevens, Gurner’s Lane, Doriemus, Let’s Elope, Might and Power, and Ethereal—have won the Cups Double so far.
Scobie Breasley was the jockey who rode the horse that won the Caulfield Cup from 1942 to 1945. Bart Cummings, the horse trainer, has trained six Caulfield Cup winners—Big Philou, Galilee, Ming Dynasty, Leilani, Viewed, and Let’s Elope. Ming Dynasty won the Caulfield Cup twice.
Of the foreign horses who have participated in this event, Taufan’s Melody, trained by Lady Herries of England won the event in 1998, and All the Good, trained by Saeed bin Suroor won in 2008.
Caulfield Cup 2012
The Caulfield Cup 2012 will be held on Oct 15 Sunday, as part of the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. Nominations will be released early in August 2012 and the final field will be determined early in October.
Horse racing enthusiasts who enjoy betting on lucrative horse racing events are already looking out for the best odds. The Caulfield Cup results will be out on the same day as the race.
