Australia: South Grafton Cup might be stepping-stone to riches
The South Grafton Cup at Grafton Racecourse in Australia on Sunday is a one-mile race with a modest purse of $54,800. For the first two finishers, the race could lead to a richer racing opportunity later this year.
The South Grafton Cup is a qualifying race for the newly created The Big Dance Stakes at a mile at Royal Randwick Racecourse in Sydney on Nov. 1. The Big Dance has a purse of $1.36 million and is restricted to horses that have finished first or second in 26 qualifying races from last October to Oct. 9 of this year at tracks in the state of New South Wales.
The South Grafton Cup is the 17th qualifying race in the series. The Big Dance will be limited to 20 runners. Two berths will go to the first two finishers of the Big Dance Wildcard Stakes at Randwick on Oct. 15, which will be limited to horses winless in previous races in the qualifying series. The remaining 18 berths will be awarded to horses with the highest official handicap ratings who finished in the first two in qualifying races.
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The South Grafton Cup has drawn a field of 14 led by Wicklow, the winner of a handicap at 7 1/2 furlongs at Rosehill Gardens on June 22 for trainer Chris Waller. Wicklow, a 4-year-old Irish-bred gelding, will carry minimum weight of 119 pounds in the South Grafton Cup, far below topweight Attorney at 136.6 pounds.
But Attorney has an official rating of 96, while Wicklow is rated at 78. Wicklow needs a win in the South Grafton Cup to gain a qualifying position for The Big Dance as well as boost his official rating to ensure a place in the final.
Wicklow has won 4 of 9 start. He was winless in three starts in England in 2020 and has won 4 of 6 starts in Australia.
Attorney, a 7-year-old French-bred gelding, won two stakes in Australia in 2020, but is winless in his last eight starts. Attorney, who is rated as an outsider in the South Grafton Cup, has not raced since a seventh-place finish in the Australia Day Stakes at 1 1/2 miles at Warwick Farm Racecourse in January.
The 5-year-old gelding Surf Dancer is the expected pacesetter in the South Grafton Cup. The style worked for a win in a handicap at 1 1/8 miles at Rosehill Gardens on June 4. Surf Dancer was sixth of eight in the listed McKell Cup at 1 1/4 miles at Rosehill Gardens on June 18 at a distance that may have been beyond his best trip.
Surf Dancer will carry 134.4 pounds on the basis of a handicap rating of 94.
The South Grafton Cup is part of an eight-race program that begins at 10:15 p.m. Eastern or 7:15 p.m. Pacific on Saturday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.