The Randwick Guineas serves as the first leg of the Australian Triple Crown series which is completed by the Rosehill Guineas and the AJC (Australian Jockey Club) Australian Derby. It is the shortest of the three extending a mile long.
The Randwick Guineas is held annually at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney Australia in mid-March. It is run over a distance of 1600m (1 mile) on a right-handed, turf track and awards a purse of AU$1,000,000. This event is open to qualifying Group 1 thoroughbreds aged three. A weight requirement of 8st-13lbs applies to males and 8st-8lbs applies to females.
Australian-bred Inference, ridden by Tommy Berry, crossed the finish by a head in front of Invincible Gem for a narrow victory. While it was a first-time win for Berry, this made for trainer John Hawkes' fifth Randwick Guineas victory since Octogonal in 1996.
Location: Randwick Racecourse
Grade: Group 1 Colts and Fillies
Race Type: Flat
The race itself was introduced to the Australian Racing calendar in 1935. Before the Randwick Guineas took its place in the Australian Triple Crown, the Canterbury Guineas (which was discontinued after its running in 2005) served as the first leg of the series. In the years before the race was included, the Randwick Guineas was a popular event. Once the race was inducted as part of the series, the prestige of the Randwick Guineas skyrocketed. It currently offers a purse in the amount of AU$1 million, and the winner of the Randwick Guineas gains automatic entry into the AJC Australian Derby (as of 2017).
Despite the age restriction preventing multiple wins for this event, some horses have gone on to succeed in other prestigious races for three-year-olds (as of 2017).
2016's Le Romain won with a time of 1m: 33.83sec making him the fastest winner since the event became a mile long in 2006.
Since 1935, 13 horses have completed the Randwick Guineas/Australian Derby double starting with 1943's Moreland. The last to have done so was 2013's It's A Dundeel who went on to win the Australian Triple Crown series.
Since becoming a part of the Australian Triple Crown in place of the Canterbury Guineas, the Randwick Guineas, the Rosehill Guineas, and the Australian Derby have gained added prestige. Below details a moment that stands out in the recent history of the race (as of 2017) .
The 2016 event gave spectators a thrill when 20/1 shot Le Romain narrowly won by a head in front of 30/100 favourite Press Statement. Not only is Le Romain the longest odds winner of the past decade, but he also holds the fastest time of 1m: 33.83sec – a record for the event at 1600m.
