The 2017 Wagga Wagga Gold Cup is one of the most eagerly anticipated races in the Riverina. Run in early May each year, the Wagga Cup draws considerable numbers of spectators from Wagga itself and surrounding towns. The feature race of the day, the Wagga Cup is the most important event on the Wagga Wagga racing calendar.
Raced over 2000m under handicap conditions, the Wagga Cup is a true test of staying power. Completing almost a full circuit of the triangular track, the final straight at Wagga racecourse is always impressive to watch with any field. The Wagga Cup, however, attracts some top-class horses, so the straight is particularly gripping.
The Wagga Cup is claimed by some to be Australia’s second oldest horse race (questionable, as the region that Wagga Wagga was to later occupy wasn’t even explored until four years after the establishment of the Sydney Turf Club in 1825, the year following the establishment of Queensland penal colony).
Horses that compete in the Wagga Cup often go on to try their luck in races at Morphettville and other smaller, local events. With the exception of a few big days at Morphettville, the Wagga Cup is essentially the culmination of Autumn racing in the southern half of the country. Attention then turns north to Queensland for the Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival.
The Wagga Cup had its inaugural run in 1873, when Mountaineer took the title. The first race was run over 3218 metres (two miles), and it would retain this distance until 1887, when it was reduced to 2414 metres (1.5 miles). Since then, the race has changed distance several times, usually downwards, maintaining a distance of 2011.7m between 1910 and 1973, when it changed to a flat 2000 metres. It has remained that length ever since.
Unlike many other races, the Wagga Cup continued to run during the World War II years. It was abandoned by the Murrumbidgee Turf Club in 1942, so the Wagga Diggers Race Club ran the race that year. 1953 saw a dead heat between Two Birdies and Belavia, uncommon for a listed staying race.
2017 Wagga Cup Field
The 2017 Wagga Gold Cup field will be provided below.
| No | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1837x820x0 | GREY LION (IRE) | Matt Cumani | Tye Angland | 12 | 58kg | 99 |
| 2 | 844700×028 | JACQUINOT BAY | David & B Hayes & T Dabernig | Cory Parish | 17 | 57kg | 97 |
| 3 | 9226522522 | COOL CHAP | Lee & Anthony Freedman | Tommy Berry | 3 | 55kg | 93 |
| 4 | 30x91130x5 | PEMBERLEY (NZ) | Ciaron Maher | Jay Ford | 5 | 54.5kg | 92 |
| 5 | 6x5x5023x7 | DANJEU (IRE) | John P Thompson | Blake Spriggs | 2 | 54kg | 85 |
| 6 | 2221841×12 | LIFE LESS ORDINARY (IRE) | Chris Waller | Kerrin McEvoy | 14 | 54kg | 85 |
| 7 | 4473121232 | MONTAUK | Chris Waller | Tim Clark | 11 | 54kg | 85 |
| 8 | 211×2124 | STAMPEDE | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Ms Rachel King (a) | 6 | 54kg | 80 |
| 9 | 1x75314x34 | MY PSYCHIATRIST | Joseph Pride | Corey Brown | 13 | 54kg | 78 |
| 10 | 8×85412130 | OVERDUE | Kym Davison | Ms Kayla Nisbet | 8 | 54kg | 74 |
| 11 | 416×807516 | MORE ENERGY | Jason Coyle | – | 16 | 54kg | 72 |
| 12 | 000560×308 | DIAMOND MADE | Bruce Cross | Ms Kathy O’Hara | 10 | 54kg | 71 |
| 13 | 961390×106 | LAUTARO (NZ) | Andrew Dale | Brodie Loy | 1 | 54kg | 67 |
| 14 | 4111115×84 | MIDNIGHT OBSESSION | Keith Dryden & Scott Collings | Mathew Cahill | 7 | 54kg | 64 |
| 15 | 0x58925101 | ROSE’S SONG | Steven O’Brien | Lachlan King (a) | 4 | 54kg | 64 |
| 16 | 1161×64439 | DYRHAM PARK | Dave Heywood | Simon Miller | 15 | 54kg | 61 |
| 17e | 11x77x7067 | GENTLEMAN MAX | Trevor Sutherland | Bryan Murphy | 9 | 54kg | 58 |
Notable recent winners of the Wagga Cup include Scream Machine (2013), Tommifrancs (2008) and Voice Commander (2010, ’11).
Wagga Cup winners since 2000 are listed below.
Wagga Cup Results
| Year | Results | Winning Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1 TBD | 2 TBD | 3 TBD | TBD |
| 2014 | 1 Trade Commissioner | 2 Beyond Thankful | 3 Price Of Glory | 2:00.57 |
| 2013 | 1 Scream Machine | 2 Devised | 3 Coliseo | 2:1.93 |
| 2012 | 1 Coliseo | 2 Devised | 3 Rain Drum | 2:1.68 |
| 2011 | 1 Voice Commander | 2 World Wide | 3 Ironstein | 2:1.76 |
| 2010 | 1 Sainthood | 2 Barlagarney | 3 Twin Wing | 2:2.48 |
| 2009 | 1 MacKnuckle | 2 Cape Breton | 3 Penrickson | 2:1.18 |
| 2008 | 1 Tommifrancs | 2 Limani | 3 Grand Zulu | 2:2.91 |
| 2007 | 1 Fooram | 2 Mi Casa | 3 El Meroo | 2:5.32 |
| 2006 | 1 Mc Lir | 2 Jamberoo | 3 Prime Century | 2:2.47 |
| 2005 | 1 Natural Blitz | 2 My Tally | 3 Xlerate | 2:2.79 |
| 2004 | 1 Vanquished | 2 Not Fussy | 3 Maskerado | 2:0.13 |
| 2003 | 1 Kreisler Mirage | 2 Majestically | 3 Johnny Reb | 2:1.64 |
| 2002 | 1 Call Me Lily | 2 Bedouin | 3 Hydromaster | 2:0.39 |
| 2001 | 1 Regal Touch | 2 Viva La Vie | 3 Norm’s Bridle | 2:3.1 |
| 2000 | 1 Sporting | 2 Kugelhopf | 3 Lady Alate | 2:9.28 |