Located in the Sydney suburb of Rosehill, the Rosehill Gardens Racecourse is a turf track and owned and operated by the Australian Jockey Club since 2011. The track was first opened in 1885 and has a total circumference of 2048 meters. There are 9 Group 1 races held there throughout the year and here is some information about some of the track’s most prominent races.
Rosehill Guineas
Going all the way back to the turn of the 20th century in 1910, when Electric Wire won the inaugural race, the Rosehill Guineas are brimming with history. With an enticing prize purse of more than half a million ($600k), this Group 1, 2000 m (since ’73) thoroughbred race is set up for 3-year-olds onset weight to compete out on the track.
The champions that have crossed the line over the years are like a “who’s who” of racehorses. Think of iconic names such as Phar lap, whose heart famously weighed in at 6.35 kg, 1.5 times that of a normal thoroughbred. Throw a few others into the mix, such as Tulloch back in the ’50s, Kingston Town in the 80’s, and Octagonal just over 25 years ago in 1996. Just recently, Mo’unga rode to glory in the latest race in 2021.
The Golden Slipper
Another Group 1 thoroughbred extravaganza, the 1200 m Golden Slipper Stakes is another iconic race on the punting calendar. Since Todman rode to victory in 1957, the race has attracted huge prize pools, being the first to crack the $1 million mark for any race in NSW. Currently, the pot at the end of the rainbow sits at $3.5 million, making it the fattest wallet of any 2-year-old race on the planet. Stay Inside took recent honours in March 2021, with jockey Tommy Berry putting in a very strong race.
If you’ve never even watched a race, and live in Australia, then you would have still heard of Champion trainer Gai Waterhouse. Gai has popped open the champagne seven times in its history. Notable jockeys include Shane Dye and Rob Quinton, who have brought home the extravagantly named slipper four times apiece.
The Golden Rose Stakes
Inaugurated in 1978 and won by Kapalaran, this 1400 meter race has a current total prize purse of $1,000,000AUD. It was originally known as the Peter Pan Stakes, named after a famous racehorse, but was changed in 2003 to its current name. The latest racehorse to win the race was In The Congo in 2021.
H.E Tancred Stakes
Named after Henry Eugene Tancred who was Chairman of the Sydney Turf Club, this race was inaugurated in 1963, two years after his death. The maiden winner being the aptly named Maidenhead. It is a turf Group 1 weight for age race for horses that are three years old or over and runs at a distance of 2400 meters. Tancred Stakes betting tips are a must to take heed of as the race has a total prize purse of $1.5 million and has been won by some famous champion racehorses including all the way back in the 70’s with Apollo 11, Kingston Town and Bonecrusher in the ’80s, twice by Octagonal in 1996/97 and most recently by champion jockey Glen Boss riding Sir Dragonet last year.
Golden Eagle
The newest race on this list was first won in 2019 and was won by Gelding Kolding and trained by well-known trainer Chris Waller and ridden by champion jockey Glen Boss. It is one of the richest turf horse races in the world with a total prize purse of $7,500,000AUD. It is a right-handed race with a distance of 1500 meters and is run in late October. The 2020 race was won by mare Colette and the latest race was won by New Zealand-bred thoroughbred ‘I’m Thunderstruck’, ridden by successful jockey Hugh Bowman in 2021. The next Golden Eagle race is scheduled for 29th October 2022.
