News

A Place For The Stayer?

16th Apr 2009

Stallions - Graeme Kelly - Thursday, 16 April 2009

THE Emirates Melbourne Cup (3200m) and other staying events have traditionally provided the “best theatre” in Australian racing, but their numbers and distances are steadily diminishing.

On that basis GRAEME KELLY asked several industry leaders the question – “Should more general support be given by racing’s administrators and breeders to restoring the once dominant place of staying races on the Australian calendar?”

The Cups King Bart Cummings

“Unfortunately we are copying America by going towards shorter and shorter races. That’s a bad idea because you only have to look at what they’ve done to Wall Street - and their racing’s not that great either.

“I know that years ago it was stipulated by the individual racing clubs in Australia that there was to be a mile and a half race on the program every Saturday and later that was reduced to a mile and a quarter, or 2000m as it is now. Then when they built the Kensington track at Randwick, there was no 2000m start - only 1800m - so they reduced the distances even further. “Also there’s a beautiful 2000m chute at Rosehill with a perfect lead up to the first turn but, what do they do . . . have fields of 10, 12 and 15 starting from the 1800m where horses drawn out wide have a much lesser chance of winning because the turn comes up too quick. It shouldn’t be allowed. In my opinion the administrators shouldn’t have reduced the Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth Cups from 3200m to 2400m, and given time they’ll probably reduce the distance further - like the Yanks have done.

“Against that the Victoria Racing Club committee has stuck to its guns and has a race which is recognised internationally as one of the best races in the world - so hats off to them! However common sense has gone out the window with other clubs. They have the power to do something about the situation - it depends, though, on whether the committees have the will power and the knowledge of racing’s needs, to something about it. The clubs should go back to having a 2000m or 2400m race every Saturday, and if they did that the breeders would go back to breeding more stayers.”

Five-time Melbourne Cup winning trainer Lee Freedman:

“I definitely think more effort should be put into restoring the balance of race distances. We have become so infatuated with speed all the time that the race distances have become very lopsided. After all, racing isn’t and shouldn’t be about short course speed horses all the time . . . it’s just an infatuation we have with it. It is difficult to see the value of putting the Melbourne Cup up to $8m or $10m and not having Australian horses stoutly enough bred to run in it.

“I believe the clubs have to go back to programming more 2400m races. There is always going to be the constant complaint that the fields are small, but you have to grow back from the damage that has been done. It might take five or six years to get back to the point where there are plenty of horses to run in the longer races. Although this doesn’t seem to be as big a problem in Melbourne because those $100,000 races they put on - and there are quite a few of them - don’t attract quality fields, but there seems to be plenty of quantity with big fields and plenty of horses having a crack at them.

“It is going to take some time and some willpower to restore the situation. I don’t know whether there is the will because most of these committees are dominated by breeders who feel the market only demands sprinting horses . . . and that’s all they want programmed. In a way it’s the old chicken and the egg story.”

Racing Victoria handicapper Greg Carpenter:

“IT may be surprising to many people, but Australia has 64 Group and Listed Races run each season at 2200m and beyond, which is more than any other country in the world. By way of comparison Great Britain has 26, and Ireland - considered by many as the home of stayers - has 14 only.

“The truth is the Australian Pattern system caters well for stayers with five Derbys and three Oaks, all at Gr.1 level, providing ample evidence of this. Stayers also fare well in stakes races with five of the eight richest races held in Australia being run over 2400m or further.

However, racing administrators across Australia needs to support these black type races by ensuring enough distance races are run week in-week out, to underpin the staying Pattern.

“As a group we (racing administrators) have allowed the view, generally speaking, that maximum field sizes are ‘King’ in driving wagering. As a result that has swung the balance, in general programs, away from staying races to sprint racing. We need to redress this imbalance and provide continuity in programming for stayers. To achieve long term success in clawing back lost ground we may have to put up with smaller fields, in staying races, in the short to mid-term.

“Victoria has, though, led the way in its support of staying races. Every Saturday race run at Flemington over a distance of 2500m and further, is worth at least $100,000. The Lavazza over 2800m has become a semi-feature on Melbourne Cup Day. The distance of the Bagot Handicap has been extended to 2800m, and both the Mornington Cup and Ansett Stakes have been lengthened to 2400m. Added to that the Moonee Valley night season features the Stayers’ Challenge Series with 12 heats and a $100,000 final of 3000m.

“Other innovations just launched include the $150,000 Moonee Valley Night Cup over 2500m and the Galilee Three Year Old Stayers’ Series with five heats and a $100,000 final leading up to the VRC St Leger, the only race by that name run in Australia and still restricted to three year-olds. It is a model that proves the racing industry wants staying races and has the will to support them - the leap of faith is having the courage to program them.”

Doncaster Bloodstock principal Les Young:

“THIS question is a part of a wider problem, which is a lack of a co-ordinated national racing program with a defined series of logical (in distance and timing) lead ups to our Gr.1 features. Racing administrators need to work with breeders in ensuring Australia has a balanced racing program with opportunities for horses of all ages and distance preferences, including fillies and mares, with greater prize money incentives for later developing horses racing over longer distances.

From a commercial viewpoint breeders cannot be blamed for not paying enough attention to producing classic-type horses and stayers, as many owners shun these types in the sale ring - not being prepared to invest the time and the money involved in developing such horses. Because of that, commercial breeders try to give owners what they want most and that is early maturing two year-olds and sprinter/milers.

“However, if Australia is to play an increasing role in international racing we need to produce horses capable of getting 2000m to 2400m - if not longer. We must not lose speed, but we need to increase the stamina factors in our broodmare population, which takes time to achieve.”

Lomar Park proprietor and leading owner-breeder Fred Peisah:

“THE ever-diminishing role of stayers and staying events has now unfortunately permeated every section of the breeding and racing industries. The absolute emphasis on the sprinting, early-maturing horse is also certainly leaving its mark on the longevity and soundness of the racehorse which is being produced.

“The commercial viability of the staying-class bred horse has almost now disappeared. The short-term shelf life of the racehorse will further impact on the racehorse market. Racing administrators must make serious efforts to revive the staying races, as only this will encourage owners and trainers to seek the classic stayer, thereby creating a market which breeders will be tempted to foster.”

Arthur Mitchell of the highly successful breeding ground Yarraman Park:

“I AGREE that the Melbourne and Caulfield Cups offer great theatre. They are both very valuable and heavily promoted, but they are really the only two popular staying races and both are handicaps.

“The popularity of Australian racing has always been geared around handicaps and they usually offer the best betting mediums and often great finishes. From a breeder’s point of view, when we try to breed and then sell a staying-bred yearling they are unfortunately very hard to sell - especially in Australia. Unless they are by outstanding sires like Zabeel, and the purchasers who buy them know they will have to exhibit more than the usual patience in getting a horse to the track, staying bred horses are generally speaking, very hard to shift.

“I believe in this current economic climate people want a quick return on their money and a precociously-bred yearling gives the buyer more of a chance of having them perform for good prizemoney at two and then hopefully, be competitive as a sprinter/miler as they get older. I do believe though, that putting in more distance races is going to improve the situation. Already a few of the major cup races have had their distances reduced, and maybe more 2000m races which I classify as middle distance races, would be popular.”