Trio of Caulfield Group 1 races repositioned

Racing Victoria (RV) and the Melbourne Racing Club (MRC) today announced the repositioning of three Caulfield Group 1 races among changes to the program for the 2025 Spring Racing Carnival and 2026 Festival of Racing.

The changes have been ratified by the RV Board and come with the endorsement of the Asian Pattern Committee who have approved an application lodged on RV’s behalf by Racing Australia.

The programming amendments come following a review of the 2024 Spring Racing Carnival after which options for the 2025-26 racing season were workshopped at RV’s inaugural Racing Forums through the first quarter of 2025.

All key industry stakeholders, being the MRC, Moonee Valley Racing Club (MVRC), Victoria Racing Club (VRC), Country Racing Victoria (CRV), Southside Racing, Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners Association (TROA), Australian Trainers Association (ATA), Victorian Jockeys Association (VJA) and Thoroughbred Breeders Victoria (TBV), have endorsed the changes via the Racing Forums.

Programming Changes

Since 2023, Caulfield has hosted Group 1 racing on the Saturday following the Melbourne Cup Carnival with the meeting yielding positive wagering, engagement and on-course attendance.

All industry stakeholders agreed that it is in the best interests of Victorian racing to maintain Group 1 racing at Caulfield on the second Saturday after the Lexus Melbourne Cup.

There was further consensus that adjustments to the program could enhance more meetings across Victoria’s peak racing period, whilst benefitting the overall pattern of Australian races.

As a result, the following changes have been announced at Caulfield for 2025-26:

Schweppes Thousand Guineas

The Group 1 Schweppes Thousand Guineas (1600m) for three-year-old fillies will be returned from its current mid-November timeslot to a place inside the Sportsbet Caulfield Cup Carnival.

It will be run on Sportsbet Caulfield Cup Day – Saturday, 18 October 2025 – returning to the program it had occupied prior to 1988 and strengthening the MRC’s biggest raceday with a second Group 1.

The Schweppes Thousand Guineas will now be run two weeks after the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m, 3YO fillies) in Sydney, while runners will reclaim the opportunity to subsequently compete in the Group 1 TAB Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) and Group 1 Crown Oaks (2500m) during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

Sportsbet Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes

The Sportsbet Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m), one of four Group 1 handicaps run during the Spring Racing Carnival, will also return from mid-November to its previous position in the calendar on Saturday, 20 September 2025.

The Sportsbet Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes restores the September meeting to a dual Group 1 raceday alongside the Underwood Stakes (1800m) and reinstates its link with the Group 1 Hyland Race Colours Toorak Handicap (1600m) run three weeks later on Sportsbet Caulfield Guineas Day (Saturday, 11 October 2025).

Sportsbet C.F. Orr Stakes

Acknowledging the value of Caulfield’s feature mid-November meeting over its two editions and a collective desire to maintain Group 1 racing on the day, the Sportsbet C.F. Orr Stakes (1400m, WFA) will shift from its traditional February timeslot to Saturday, 15 November 2025. 

The move also addresses a point of contention in the Festival of Racing pattern where the Group 1 Sportsbet C.F. Orr Stakes and Group 1 Futurity Stakes are currently run under the exact same conditions at Caulfield just two weeks apart.  

Moving the Sportsbet C.F. Orr Stakes provides a further option for Group 1 success at the back end of the Spring Racing Carnival for horses that have competed in the Melbourne Cup Carnival or interstate. 

It will join the Memsie Stakes, run 11 weeks earlier on 30 August 2025, as the only 1400m Group 1 weight-for-age contests during the Spring Racing Carnival.

Other Feature Races

As a result of the Group 1 revamp, the following programming changes will also occur in 2025-26:

• Group 2 Manhari Thousand Guineas Prelude (1400m) – Moves from 18 October back to 20 September, four weeks prior to the new date for the Schweppes Thousand Guineas;

• Group 2 Sportsbet Sandown Guineas (1600m) – Moves from Saturday, 29 November back to 15 November where it will again provide a mile feature for three-year-olds in the timeslot occupied by the Schweppes Thousand Guineas over the past two years;

• Group 3 Catanach’s Jewellers Blue Sapphire Stakes (1200m) – Moves from 15 November to 29 November and returns to its previous distance of 1200m where it will provide a late spring feature for sprinting three-year-olds; and 

• Group 3 Kevin Heffernan Stakes (1400m, WFA) – Moves from 29 November to Saturday, 7 February 2026 replacing the Sportsbet C.F. Orr Stakes as a lead-up to the Group 1 Futurity Stakes.

Prizemoney for all races during the 2025 Spring Racing Carnival, along with any other programming changes, will be announced over the coming months.

Quotes attributable to RV Chief Executive, Aaron Morrison

“These changes serve to strengthen our racing calendar throughout the Spring Racing Carnival, whilst maintaining 12 consecutive weekends of Group 1 racing from late August to mid-November.

“The revamp comes following great consultation and collaboration between industry stakeholders via our new industry Racing Forums and with the blessing of the Asian Pattern Committee whom I want to acknowledge for their support and diligence.

“RV and stakeholders were all in agreement that Group 1 racing at Caulfield in mid-November works and should continue to be embraced. We have maintained that goal whilst strengthening Caulfield Cup Day, one of our marquee racedays.” 

Quotes attributable to MRC Chief Executive, Tom Reilly

“These changes are an important step in shaping a racing program at Caulfield that not only enhances the Spring Racing Carnival but supports the broader racing industry and racing pattern in Victoria.

“By putting the Schweppes Thousand Guineas to Sportsbet Caulfield Cup Day, we’re creating a more compelling platform to attract quality fillies and maintain the strength of our feature race day. 

“Returning the Schweppes Thousand Guineas to earlier in the Spring also gives fillies the chance to progress through to the Oaks or Empire Rose at Flemington.

“Equally, the enhancements to our September and November racedays are about ensuring Caulfield continues to attract high-quality horses, provide greater opportunities for participants, and reinforce its role as one of Australia’s premier racing venues throughout the entire spring period.”