Australian Spring Racing Carnival: Makybe Diva Stakes
Tuesday, September 3rd, 2013
With the Group 1 races underway, the Australian Spring Racing Carnival is really hotting up and we at Panda Sweeps will be keeping you up-to-date on all the best, most exciting events while giving you the low down on all the smartest betting options. Up next is Maykbe Diva Stakes Day on Saturday September 7th.
2013 is a big year for the Makybe Diva Stakes − this will be the first time the event has been run as a Group 1 race, following an upgrade from its previous Group 2 status. Beginning in 1948, the race was originally known as the Craiglee Stakes until 2007, when the name was changed in honour of record-setting mare, Makybe Diva – the only horse to ever win three consecutive Melbourne Cups.
The race is run over 1600m, under weight-for-age conditions, at Flemington racecourse − also the site of the world-famous Melbourne Cup later in the Carnival − with prize money of $350,000 (approximately £201,000). As one of the Carnival’s first Group 1 events, Makybe Stakes is a great lead-in event for the rest of the series, and usually attracts a field of high quality entrants.
Many trainers use Makybe Stakes as a warm-up event for bigger races later in the season, meaning the Flemington race is especially beneficial as an opportunity to estimate form for later, higher-value events. Many previous winners and placers have gone on to success in events such as the Turnbull Stakes, W.S. Cox Plate and the Caulfield Cup, including, perhaps most famously, the gelding Northerly, who won all three in 2002. In 2004, Makybe Diva Stakes runner-up Elvstroem went on to win that year’s Turnbull Stakes and the Caulfield Cup.
The race is generally considered one of the first top−class, middle-distance events of the Carnival, and is known for attracting good quality gallopers and, due its length, can offer a good chance to both sprinters and younger horses building their stamina. However, the wide track and its long straight means all types of horse have a shot at victory.
Watch this space for more information on the horses you’ll see at the Makybe Diva Stakes, and all the odds you’ll need to get in on the action.
If you’re looking to get your friends or co-workers involved in all the thrills and excitement of horse racing, then the Australian Spring Racing Carnival is the perfect series of events and a sweepstake could just be the perfect method. Panda Sweeps makes setting up a sweepstake quick and painless, and, best of all, it’s free! Let Panda Sweeps take the sweat out of sweepstakes.
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