$16 million increase to Victoria’s prize-money pool next season

Listen

Saturday races to match NSW level as raft of changes to see $280 million up for grabs next season

Mick Price, a leading trainer who often takes an industry-wide view on racing issues, has welcomed a $16 million prize-money injection into the Victorian sector, but says ideally more could be done to help owners recoup their costs at the beginning of a horse’s career.

Across-the-board minimum prize-money increases, from picnic racing to Group 1s, were announced yesterday by Racing Victoria which will see the state’s owners, trainers and jockeys competing for more than $280 million in the 2021-22 season and beyond.

The breakdown of the $16 million increase in prize-money, funded through increased wagering revenue, includes;

• A minimum of $130,000 Saturday metropolitan prize-money level, up $5,000 per race, which matches the total prize-money on offer in a Sydney city race;
• Metropolitan night racing increased by $10,000 to $60,000;
• Nine Group 1 races having prize-money increased significantly; and,
• Country TAB meetings’ minimum prize-money going from $22,000 to $25,000.

Despite a raft of increases, the one grade of racing which will not experience an increase is Melbourne metropolitan midweek racing, which remains at a minimum prize-money level of $50,000.

It would appear that Racing Victoria is attempting to encourage trainers to continue to support night racing with strong field sizes, which the organisation says proves popular with punters and is demonstrated through wagering turnover figures.

Price, who trains in partnership with Mick Kent Jr at Caulfield and Warrnambool, said: “From talking to participants in the industry, the common theme with the feedback about prize-money is that the majority of people in the industry need to get a return from the horses that live in the maidens to Benchmark 70 grade, I guess.

“The lesser races, the more horses there are in them, so it is definitely a good idea (to increase prize-money), but whether it’s enough, I suppose that remains to be seen.”

Typically to-the-point, Price said keeping prize-money in line with the cost of having a horse in training was imperative to ensuring owners remained long-term investors in the sport.

“It would make the industry more buoyant if the lower races were worth a lot more because it would bear a closer relationship to training fees,” he said. 

“I have a lot of people who say to me, ‘look, we break square on the game’, which is fantastic, but a lot of people don’t break square. 

“Prize-money doesn’t match training fees and if you only win two races, a $23,000 maiden and a Benchmark 64, which are $35,000 races, it’s not enough. We sell a lot of horses after they win their maiden because, in another eight or nine starts, they can’t win much (to help cover training fees).” 

Australian Trainers Association chief executive Andrew Nicholl understands the participants’ view of having more lucrative maiden prize-money, but said it would not be a prudent financial management practice if implemented by RV.

“We don’t see it as practical,” Nicholl told Racing.com.

“There are 1,500 maidens each year, the fact is it’s expensive, if you make them $50,000 each it’s just costing too much.

“Then you have Benchmark 70 races running for $25,000. Where do you find the money for that? It’s just not sustainable.”

And Price’s suggestion?

“They could change the tier of the prize-money (from maiden) up to benchmark 70 level and then it flips again (to the current formula),” he said. 

“Their argument is if they raise maidens and then they don’t raise 58, 64, 70, it becomes a little bit out of kilter that the lesser races are worth more than the better-standard-of-horse races.”

The picnic circuit ($4,000 per race to $5,000), a popular spring to autumn fixture of the Victorian racing season, non-TAB meetings ($12,000 to $15,000) and Sky 2 races ($15,000 to $20,000) also received a boost in RV’s announcement.

Sale-based Troy Kilgower – who earned the most picnic prize-money of any trainer this season, preparing 20 winners and 53 placings with his stable earning $89,000 – believes more people will be encouraged to participate at the grassroots level given the extra money on offer.

“It will probably pull a lot more people to the picnics. They were starting to get a lot more bigger trainers coming to them anyway last season, but if the money goes up, they might get a few more, and I’m not against that at all,” Kilgower said upon learning of the RV announcement.

“Say if I had a season like that again, it would push me over the $100,000 mark and that would be really good.

“Everything is going up in the world: feed, the farrier and everything else, so the extra prize-money will help.”

The change in prize-money distribution is up $100 million, or 60 per cent since the 2014-15 season, taking the overall average to $65,000 per race.

“This additional investment is possible thanks to all within Victorian racing who have worked diligently to keep our sport safely going throughout the pandemic and it will most importantly help underpin 25,000 full-time equivalent jobs in our state,” RV chair Brian Kruger said.

“This increase is also a reward for the owners who have remained loyal to Victorian racing despite months of lockouts and restricted access that have been required to ensure that we could safely continue racing during an unprecedented period.  

“In formulating our prize-money structure our priority was to ensure that all levels of Victorian racing, from picnic meetings right up to Group 1 race days, benefitted from an uplift in wagering returns and I’m pleased that we have been able to achieve that.”

ATA’s Nicholl had input into RV’s prize-money strategy and he added: “It is a positive step and one that looks to address prize-money across the board. There are increases from grassroots racing at picnic level right through to Saturday and the black-type races.

“It has been a holistic approach and everyone has been a winner with these improvements.

“Clearly we had input and recognised we needed some improvement and we feel we have seen this be catered for.

“There has been a combination of prize-money between all classes for all levels of participants.”

 

Minimum Victorian prize-money levels

2020-21 2021-22

Picnic racing $4,000 $5,000

Non-TAB $12,000 $15,000

Sky 2 races $15,000 $20,000

Country TAB $23,000 $25,000

Metro midweek $50,000 $50,000

Metro night $50,000 $60,000

Saturday metro $125,000 $130,000

Listed $140,000 $160,000

Group 3 $160,000 $200,000

Group 2 $200,000 $300,000

Group 1 $500,000 $750,000

*Total 2021-22 prize-money of more than $280 million

 

Group 1 race increases

• Newmarket Handicap (1200m, Flemington) – $1.5 million (up $250,000)
• Toorak Handicap (1600m, Caulfield) – $1 million (up $500,000)
• William Reid Stakes (1200m, The Valley) – $1 million (up $500,000)
• Black Caviar Lightning (1000m, Flemington) – $1 million (up $250,000)
• Sir Rupert Clarke Stakes (1400m, Caulfield) – $750,000 (up $250,000)
• Turnbull Stakes (2000m, Flemington) – $750,000 (up $250,000)
• C.F. Orr Stakes (1400m, Caulfield) – $750,000 (up $250,000)
• Futurity Stakes (1400m, Caulfield) – $750,000 (up $250,000)
• Oakleigh Plate (1100m, Caulfield) – $750,000 (up $250,000)

 

Flemington carnival changes

• Cantala Stakes (1600m, Group 1) – $2 million (up $500,000)
• Darley Sprint Classic (1200m, Group 1) – $2 million (up $500,000)
• Carbine Club Stakes (1600m, Group 3) – $500,000 (up $250,000)
• Hotham Handicap (2500m, Group 3) – $300,000 (up $100,000)
• Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2600m, Group 3) – $300,000 (up $100,000)
• Red Roses Stakes (1100m, Group 3) – $300,000 (up $100,000)

 

Staying and 3YO race prize-money increases

• The Andrew Ramsden (2800m, 3,4&5YO) – $500,000 (up $100,000)
• VRC St Leger (2800m, 3YO) – $300,000 (up $100,000)
• St Leger Trial (2200m, 3YO) – $200,000 (up $65,000)
• Geelong Classic (2200m, 3YO) – $200,000 (up $60,000)
• Galilee Series Final (2400m, 3YO) – $200,000 (up $50,000)
• Torney Night Cup (2500m, Open) – $200,000 (up $50,000)
• Bendigo Guineas (1400m, 3YO) – $200,000 (up $50,000)
• Bagot Handicap (2800m, Open) – $200,000 (up $40,000)
• Mahogany Challenge Final (2500m, 3YO) – $200,000 (up $40,000)
• Flemington Cup 1849 (2800m, Open) – $175,000 (up $25,000)
• Mornington Guineas (1500m, 3YO) – $150,000 (up $15,000) 

 

Country Cup changes

• The Cranbourne Cup (Listed, 1600m), which headlines a new standalone Saturday metropolitan meeting on November 13, will be run for $500,000 – an uplift of $100,000. The 2022 Warrnambool May Carnival has received a significant boost with total prize-money rising over $400,000 to more than $2.64 million. Minimum prize-money increases to $50,000 per race across all three days.
• The Warrnambool Cup (Listed, 2350m) rises to $300,000 (from $250,000) and the Wangoom Handicap (Listed, 1200m) to $200,000 (from $175,000);
• The 2022 Swan Hill Cup Carnival will boast a 20 per cent increase in total prize-money with minimum levels on the Friday and Sunday of the three-day carnival boosted to $40,000. 
• Swan Hill’s major races will also rise next year with the Swan Hill Cup (1600m) going to $175,000 (from $125,000) and the Golden Topaz (1200m) to $150,000 (from $100,000). 
• The 2022 Golden Mile Raceday at Bendigo, one of the state’s six standalone Saturday metropolitan meetings, will offer record prize-money with the purse for the Golden Mile, Bendigo Guineas (1400m) and St Leger Trial (2200m) all lifted to $200,000 – increases of between $50,000 and $65,000 each.