Cox Plate plan could uproot Ballarat Cup day

AS part of an annual Spring Racing Carnival review, the date of the Cox Plate could be moved from late October to late November.

Racing Victoria has not yet made any changes to the schedule, but if the major Moonee Valley race meeting was uprooted from Saturday, 28 October, it could be shifted to Saturday, 25 November; the current date of the 2023 Sportsbet Ballarat Cup.

“As we do each year, we review the Spring Racing Carnival with the Clubs and Country Racing Victoria to consider whether there are any enhancements to be made and if we have the right schedule to maximise engagement with the sport,” a statement from Racing Victoria said.

“Several options are currently under consideration, however no decision regarding any changes to the SRC has been made at this time.”

Country Racing Victoria CEO Scott Whiteman confirmed no decision had been made, but said his organisation is expecting a “significant consultation” period to occur with Racing Victoria in coming weeks to determine whether or not the Cox Plate may move back a month.

“That could play on all various options which would include Ballarat,” he said. “Ballarat Cup is a significant country racing cup, and it contributes a hell of a lot to wider Ballarat.

“It’s not just ultra-important to country racing, but to the entire racing industry. If the Cox Plate was to come on the 25th of November, the Ballarat Cup would have to move.

“We would be disappointed if it was forced to move.”

Ballarat Turf Club CEO Belinda Glass said it will be key that her staff are included in open and genuine consultation with Racing Victoria, and that they “have to have faith” that their position will be considered.

“We’ve known, even pre-Cup, that this discussion was back on the table,” she said. “We’ve provided feedback through the draft race date consultation process and to the RV executive team regarding the potential change to Spring Racing Carnival.”

Ms Glass said BTC wants what’s best for the broader region, and their best-case scenario is that they don’t have to move their “strong standalone Saturday.”

“We want to retain our date because it works… as the third Saturday after Melbourne Cup.

“It works for our key partners, for Sportsbet, for community groups, and for Magic Millions, who launch their sales and Gold Coast Races on Ballarat Cup day and can’t have their two-year-old catalogue prepared much earlier than that,” she said.

“We don’t want to move. It may not work for our sponsorship, for race programming, relationships, and prize money. All of that potentially goes into question..

“If there is chance that we relocate, we want to be an active participant to make sure Ballarat is not worse off.

“If we were to go too much later, we can’t be a lead-up race to Magic Millions’ other two-year-old race programs, and the Gold Coast Races.”