Arapaho Stuns in Sydney Cup, Clocking Record Time in Upset Victory

The staying feature on Day 2 of The Championships witnessed a significant upset as Bjorn Baker‘s $20 outsider, Arapaho, defied expectations to claim the Sydney Cup 2025 in emphatic record-breaking fashion.

The resilient eight-year-old Lope De Vega gelding, who had finished fourth in the lead-up Tancred Stakes, relished the step up in distance and a drop in weight, powering away to a dominant victory in the Group 1 $2 million Sydney Cup (3200m).

Arapaho crossed the finish line nearly three lengths ahead of the Matthew Smith-trained Waltham ($51), while Chris Waller‘s River Of Stars ($20) filled the third spot, adding further value to a lucrative Sydney Cup trifecta.

Dour stayer Mostly Cloudy ($41) also ran a brave race to finish fourth at long odds.

Arapaho was expertly guided to victory by Rachel King, who had the horse settled beautifully with 56kg after he carried 59kg at weight-for-age when finishing less than two lengths behind international star Dubai Honour in the Tancred Stakes over 2400m.

An emotional Bjorn Baker shared his affection for the veteran galloper.

“Well, we get a bit emotional about this horse at the stables, we love him, and we gave him a bit of Murray Baker treatment on Thursday, and he relaxed beautifully today,” he said.

“That entails just doing a solid piece of groundwork, and he’s a sound horse.

“We know he’s got acceleration and that’s where having a father that won everything, but the Melbourne Cup comes into it.

“So impressive and great ride today, Rachel King, just held him up, held him, held him, held him, and he exploded, which he can do.”

This victory marked Baker’s second Group 1 triumph in just seven days, following Stefi Magnetica’s surprise win in the Doncaster Mile the previous Saturday.

“I’m the luckiest man in the world, I’m just lucky to train good horses that are fit, healthy and well,” Baker humbly added.

The heavily favoured Alalcance ($2.80F), coming off a dominant win in the Group 2 Chairman’s Quality, led the Sydney Cup field by a significant margin heading into the home turn.

However, the front-running grey faded dramatically in the straight, eventually finishing a disappointing 17th, beaten by over 16 lengths.

Jockey Tim Clark offered his assessment of the beaten favourite.

“Probably come to the end of her prep. Just raced a bit keen in the blinkers. Probably needs to conserve a bit more getting out to this trip,” he said.

As the field straightened, River Of Stars and the eventual winner Arapaho emerged to challenge for the lead.

Arapaho then unleashed a powerful turn of foot, surging clear of his rivals in the concluding stages to secure a memorable victory.

Arapaho had previously won the 2023 Tancred Stakes before finishing fourth in that year’s Sydney Cup, but proved superior in his second attempt at the gruelling two-mile contest despite his veteran status.

A delighted Rachel King spoke of her admiration for Arapaho.

“You can just see what this horse means to everyone, he’s just been a superstar, he’s won races we never thought he even should have been in at the start and to do what he did today,” she said.

“I probably had as many doubts as everyone else about 3200m, I wasn’t quite sure, you know, but the one thing I always say to everyone is I’ve never ridden a horse so honest, he just tries.

“I was bolting, I had to count to 10 and just wait until I got to the top of the rise.

“He’s got an awesome turn of foot for a stayer. I knew if he got an economical run, which he did himself because he jumped super today and put himself in a beautiful spot.

“He went to sleep and look credit to Bjorn and his team. They had him perfect, cherry ripe today, couldn’t have been any fitter and feeling any better.”

2025 Sydney Cup Results

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

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