Australian Autumn Racing Carnival

In Australia there are racing carnivals to suit every season, especially with the arrival of Autumn.

The Autumn Racing Carnival is also held in Melbourne and Sydney and features some of the year's most important horse races, including the All Star Mile and Golden Slipper and the Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

In case you are unaware and jumped straight to this chapter, for each of the races, I have included the race name, race distance, whether Group 1 or 2 etc, the horse entry conditions including Weight-For-Age where applicable, the prize money and of course the racecourse.

Melbourne Autumn Racing Carnival

Melbourne also hosts an Autumn Racing Carnival, which can start as early as late January and continue right through to April, featuring some tremendous racing, including numerous Group 1 & Feature races, across the familiar Flemington, Caulfield and Moonee Valley racecourses.

Listed here are the races worthy of note:

Date	Race Name	Status	Distance	Track	Prize Money	Last Winner
08/02/2025	CF Orr Stakes	Group 1	1,400m	Caulfield	$750,000	Mr Brightside
15/02/2025	Black Caviar Lightning Stakes	Group 1	1,000m	Flemington	$1,000,000	Imperatriz
22/02/2025	Blue Diamond Stakes	Group 1	1,200m	Caulfield	$2,000,000	Hayasugi
22/02/2025	Oakleigh Plate	Group 1	1,100m	Caulfield	$750,000	Queman
22/02/2025	Futurity Stakes	Group 1	1,400m	Caulfield	$750,000	Mr Brightside
01/03/2025	Australian Guineas	Group 1	1,600m	Flemington	$1,000,000	Southport Tycoon
08/03/2025	Newmarket Handicap	Group 1	1,200m	Flemington	$1,500,000	Cylinder
15/03/2025	All-Star Mile	Not a Group 1	1,600m	Caulfield	$5,000,000	Pride Of Jenni
22/03/2025	William Reid Stakes	Group 1	1,200m	Moonee Valley	$1,000,000	Imperatriz
29/03/2025	Australian Cup	Group 1	2,000m	Flemington	$3,000,000	Cascadian

The Australian Cup today is run over 2,000 metres but until the 1940s it was Australia´s premium long distance race, run over a longer distance (3,600 metres) than the Melbourne Cup.

It is worth noting that Caulfield was due to close for six months in 2022 as part the Melbourne Racing Club's plan to build a second track at the venue and this has meant that 10 race meetings have moved temporarily to Sandown (including the Blue Diamond Stakes).

Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival

The Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival is equally as big as the Melbourne edition. There are 18 Group 1 races with over $40m in prize money. The first half is primarily based at Rosehill Gardens with 7 Group 1 races and then the attention turns to Royal Randwick for a simply massive program of racing, starting with a real show stopper, the Golden Slipper, the richest race in the world for 2yr olds and which was first run in 1957.

Randwick Autumn Racing Carnival

Date	Race Name	Status	Distance	Track	Prize Money	Last Winner
08/02/2025	Inglis Millennium	Not a Group 1	1,100m	Randwick	$2,000,000	Fully Lit
01/03/2025	Verry Elleegant Stakes	Group 1	1,600m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Think It Over
01/03/2025	Surround Stakes	Group 1	1,400m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Tropical Squall
08/03/2025	Randwick Guineas	Group 1	1,600m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Celestial Legend
08/03/2025	Canterbury Stakes	Group 1	1,300m	Randwick	$750,000	Lady Laguna
05/04/2025	TJ Smith Stakes	Group 1	1,200m	Randwick	$3,000,000	Chain Of Lightning
05/04/2025	Australian Derby	Group 1	2,400m	Randwick	$2,000,000	Riff Rocket
05/04/2025	Sires Produce Stakes	Group 1	1,400m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Manaal
05/04/2025	Doncaster Mile	Group 1	1,600m	Randwick	$4,000,000	Celestial Legend
05/04/2025	Country Championships Final	Not a Group 1	1,400m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Asgarda
12/04/2025	Queen Elizabeth Stakes	Group 1	2,000m	Randwick	$5,000,000	Pride Of Jenni
12/04/2025	Sydney Cup	Group 1	3,200m	Randwick	$2,000,000	Circle Of Fire
12/04/2025	Queen of the Turf Stakes	Group 1	1,600m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Zougotcha
12/04/2025	Australian Oaks	Group 1	2,400m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Autumn Angel
12/04/2025	Provincial-Midway Championships Final	Not a Group 1	1,400m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Territory Express
19/04/2025	All Aged Stakes	Group 1	1,400m	Randwick	$1,500,000	Magic Time
19/04/2025	Champagne Stakes	Group 1	1,600m	Randwick	$1,000,000	Broadsiding

Rosehill Autumn Racing Carnival

Date	Race Name	Status	Distance	Track	Prize Money	Last Winner
15/03/2025	Coolmore Classic	Group 1	1,500m	Rosehill	$1,000,000	Zougotcha
22/03/2025	Golden Slipper	Group 1	1,200m	Rosehill	$5,000,000	Lady Of Camelot
22/03/2025	George Ryder Stakes	Group 1	1,500m	Rosehill	$1,000,000	Veight
22/03/2025	Rosehill Guineas	Group 1	2,000m	Rosehill	$750,000	Riff Rocket
22/03/2025	Ranvet Stakes	Group 1	2,000m	Rosehill	$1,000,000	Via Sistina
22/03/2025	The Galaxy	Group 1	1,100m	Rosehill	$1,000,000	Zapateo
29/03/2025	Tancred Stakes	Group 1	2,400m	Rosehill	$1,500,000	Kalapour
29/03/2025	Vinery Stud Stakes	Group 1	2,000m	Rosehill	$750,000	Orchestral

Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival

While Sydney and Melbourne get a lot of the attention, we can't forget about the Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival, featuring four key races at Morphettville Racecourse. The Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival is conveinently placed between the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival and the Brisbane Winter Racing Carnival.

Date	Race Name	Status	Distance	Track	Prize Money	Last Winner
26/04/2025	Australasian Oaks	Group 1	2,000m	Morphettville	$1,000,000	Vibrant Sun
26/04/2025	Robert Sangster Stakes	Group 1	1,200m	Morphettville	$1,000,000	Climbing Star
03/05/2025	South Australian Derby	Group 1	2,500m	Morphettville	$1,000,000	Coco Sun
10/05/2025	The Goodwood	Group 1	1,200m	Morphettville	$1,000,000	Benedetta

Perth Autumn Racing Carnival

While there is only one key race that takes place during the Perth Autumn Racing Carnival, it is a fairly significant one! The Quokka, raced at Ascot Racecourse is worth a cool $5,000,000 and always attracts quality racehorses.

Date	Race Name	Status	Distance	Track	Prize Money	Last Winner
19/04/2025	The Quokka	Not a Group 1	1,200m	Ascot	$5,000,000	Overpass