Perth Cup Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2026

The Perth Cup is a handicap condition race that takes place at Ascot Racecourse every year. The race might be classified as a Group 2, however, there is a stack of prize money on offer, which is why the race generates a lot of interest. In 2026, the 2,400m race will take place on Thursday, January 1.

Looking for some quick facts about the Perth Cup? We’ve got you covered here at OnlyRacing! Check out the details here:

The Perth Cup, which is raced at one of the top tracks in the country, Ascot Racecourse, is one of the biggest Group 2 races on the calendar. In fact, it generates more attention than some of the Group 1 races during the year, thanks to the $1 million in prize money on offer (some Group 1s don’t even have that kind of prize money).

The event always takes place on New Year’s Day and brings out a crowd of over 30,000 racing fans to the track each year. Running since 1887, the Perth Cup is one of the most established Group 2 races on the calendar and the CB Cox Stakes is likely the most critical lead-up race to this event.

We only recently saw a prize money increase to this race and it has reached $1 million in 2023. Now, the Group 2 has become one of the richest in the country and we always see some of the highest-quality runners come out and try their hand winning the lion’s share of their $1 million.

OnlyRacing.com.au is your go-to place for everything you need to know about Perth Cup including betting, tips and odds details. Plus, we cover details on the field, form guide, results and more. We also update this page multiple times a year, so you always have the most up-to-date information on the Perth Cup.

As one of the biggest Group 2 races on the calendar, there’s a stack of prize money on the line. We have the breakdown of how the prize money is divvied up here:

Do you want Perth Cup tips? Well, you’ve come to the right place because we’ve got Perth Cup tips! Each year, our experts crunch the numbers, providing you with three tips for the race - our best bet, next best and best roughie. We also have Ascot tips that cover the racing that happens at the track over the entire year.

Our Perth Cup tips aren’t available just yet. While our Perth Cup tips for the race in 2026 aren’t available, we have free horse racing tips on offer all year round! We will wait until race week for the Perth Cup and then we will crunch the numbers and look into every runner that is competing in the race.

While you’re here, you can check out see our best bet, next best and best roughie for the 2025 Perth Cup:

Perth Cup Best Bet - Sentimental Hero

We kick off the first major race of the year with a wide-open market (of course!). PlayUp currently has four runners listed with odds of $7.00 or less and I think Sentimental Hero is the best out of all of them, with odds of $5.00, which puts him as the equal favourite. His form so far this prep has been excellent. 

Came second last time out in the Listed A.t.a. Stakes at Ascot, but does get a massive swing in the weights from that race, so he should be flying. Jockey Lucy Fiore retained the ride and will need a little bit of luck from the wide-ish barrier, but I think Sentimental Hero is more than capable of making his own luck.

Perth Cup Next Best - Serpentine 

I think Serpentine is one of the better runners in the Perth Cup and he is going around with odds of $7.00 thanks to PlayUp. I would say Serpentine is almost good enough to take the top spot in my set of tips, so if you want a little more extra value - go with Serpentine. He has been competing in much tougher races as of late compared to the majority of the field.

He recently finished second in the Group 2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup by just 0.5L. Didn’t get a lot of luck from the barrier draw, however, he has some serious barrier speed, so if anyone can overcome that, it’s Serpentine. If he can take the lead position in this one, he’ll be pretty difficult to hold out.

Perth Cup Best Roughie - Let’s Galahvant

Okay, so not a massive double-digit roughie, but we are currently getting $9.50 for Let’s Galahvant, which I think is pretty good value. We last saw him in the Group 2 Ted Van Heemst Stakes, where he was unlucky to go down to In Good Order (who also lines up here) by just 0.1L.

Something that has really caught my eye is Let’s Galahvant’s soft record. With the weather around Ascot, the track is currently rated a Soft5, the gelding’s soft record stands at 15:5-3-2. This will be just his third crack at Group 2 level and I reckon he is good enough to finish top three here.

Betting on the Perth Cup should be an enjoyable experience. However, it is a good idea that you have all the important information possible, knowledge is power! When it comes to Perth Cup betting, there are two main areas you need to be across:

• Who are you going to bet with?
• What market are you going to bet on?

There are plenty of betting sites in Australia, from well-established international brands to new betting sites, the options are almost endless. If you’re in the market for a new bookie but don’t know where to start, you should check out our bookie reviews page. Our bookie reviews cover all the best bookies in the country, providing in-depth information.

You aren’t required to settle on just one either, you can open multiple accounts with different bookmakers. This is actually something we recommend because it makes it easier to take advantage of different things like better odds and betting promotions. Bookies like Unibet, Dabble and PlayUp are all great places to start.

Choosing a bookmaker is only half the job though, you also have to nail down the market or markets you which to bet on for the Perth Cup. It doesn’t matter if you wish to bet through betting apps or betting websites, there will be a whole stack of markets available to you.

Some of the main markets you can bet on for the Perth Cup include:

• Daily Double, Treble or Quaddie
• Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta or First Four
• Fixed Win, Place or Each-Way Bets
• Multi Bets

The field for the 2026 Perth Cup is yet to be finalised. This will happen during race week and then we will have a better picture of all the runners targeting the race. If history is anything to go by, we can expect a high-quality field with heaps of quality runners taking part.

One thing you can do to get a picture of the type of runners that might be targeting the Perth Cup is to look at the odds. If the odds are available they will include details about the runners we are more likely to see in the field. Of course, nothing is set in stone until the final field is officially announced.

While we wait for the 2026 Perth Cup final field to be confirmed, let’s check out the runners that lined up in 2025 here:

For the 2025 Perth Cup, we saw a field of 15 runners confirmed, with no emergencies listed either. This didn’t matter in the end because there weren’t any pre-race scratchings, so all 15 confirmed runners took their place in the starting barriers.

Scratchings happen all the time in horse racing, so it’s a good idea to keep your eyes peeled for this, especially if you have placed a bet on the race. If the runner you placed your bet on ends up getting scratched, you can rest easy knowing your original stake will be returned to your account.

Along with scratchings, another area you should look into when checking out the final field is the barrier draw. The barrier draw can have a fairly significant impact on how the race unfolds, especially if the field is on the larger side. Other things that influence the importance of the barrier draw are the track layout and the starting point on the track.

It’s no secret that the Perth Cup is one of the biggest Group 2 races on the Australian racing calendar and it has been running for a long time. If you’re thinking about placing a bet or two on the upcoming Perth Cup, it is a good idea to check out the form guide. 

The form guide is a great place to start as it can present patterns and point you in the direction of the next potential winner. For the Perth Cup form guide or any race for that matter, there are a handful of different areas that you should focus on:

• Recent Form - While the Perth Cup takes place during an odd time of the year (New Year’s Day), it still pays to look into recent form. If there is no recent form, look into each runner’s trial performance. Don’t just look at the end result either, see how strongly the runner hit the line.
• Barrier Draw - The barrier draw is another area that you should look into. The impact of the barrier draw will be influenced by the track layout and starting position on the track. Look for other races at this track and distance for guidance on which barriers are the most successful.
• Success at Track/ Distance - You’ll find that some runners have a lot of success at the same track and distance, so it’s a good idea to look out for them as they could very well put in a good performance again in the Perth Cup.
• Proven Group 2 Form - Not all races are created equal and while a runner might have some good performances under their belt, it might be at a lower level. It is difficult to perform well at Group 2 level, so check for runners who have proven success.

that has been around for as long as the Perth Cup has, there have been countless amazing horses that have competed and gone on to win the race. So many that it has been difficult to narrow down the options to just five.

We have had to make some pretty difficult decisions, but have found five Perth Cup horses to feature in this section. We go through their career history and note if they have won any Group One races in their time. All the details can be found here:

Blue Spec - 1904

Blue Spec won the Perth Cup in 1904 and a handful of other Group 2 races throughout his career. Most notably, he won the biggest race of them all, the Melbourne Cup in 1905, even holding the record at the time. He was also honoured by being inducted into the West Australian Racing Industry Hall of Fame. 

Eurythmic - 1919

With a record of 47:31-6-4, it is easy to see why Eurythmic deserves a spot on this list. The stallion won the 1919 in a dead heat with Rivose. Some of the other major races he won throughout his career included; the Caulfield Cup, the Memsie Stakes, the Might and Power Stakes and the Champions Stakes.

Black Tycoon - 2014

Black Tycoon won the Perth Cup in 2014 and finished his career with a record of 39:11-8-1. He almost won $1 million in prize money throughout his career, with the official prize money standing at $806,914. He had a 28% win strike rate and a 51% place strike rate.

Neufbosc - 2021

Neufbosc’s home track was Ascot Racecourse, so it’s no surprise that he performed well and won the Perth Cup in 2021. Heavily raced gelding with just a handful of wins under his belt, but they were some pretty decent wins. His career record finished at 61:6-3-7 and he won almost $1 million in prize money.

Buster Bash - 2023

Buster Bash won the 2023 Perth Cup and ended his career with a record of 26:10-3-3. He never won at Group 1 level but did amass a total of $756,620 in prize money. Throughout his career, he had a 38% win strike rate and a 61% place strike rate.

One of the most important pieces of the puzzle when it comes to betting on the Perth Cup has to be the odds. The Perth Cup odds will signify which runners are more favoured in the market and therefore more likely to win (in the eyes of the bookie). The shorter the odds, the more chance the bookmaker thinks that the runner will win the race. 

Just because a runner has short odds, however, doesn’t mean they are going to win the race. We see long-shot roughies win races like the Perth Cup all the time. As we get closer to race day, more horse racing markets will open up. So, if you like betting on more of the exotic type markets, you’ll have to wait until less than a week out from the event.

Markets like Fixed Win and Place will open up well before the event and we recommend getting your bets sorted as soon as you can if you want to bet on this market. You’ll usually find there are higher odds available compared to if you place your bet on the day of the race. 

Also, if you are betting when the market is listed as “Before Noms”, you’ll get your stake back if your chosen runner doesn’t make the final field. If the market is listed as “All-In” you won’t get any such luxury, so make sure you keep your eyes peeled on what stage the market is in.

The Perth Cup odds for the race in 2026 aren’t available, but you can see the odds for all runners who took part in the 2025 race here:

*Odds correct as of 31/12/2024.

The Perth Cup has been running since 1887 and it is currently a Group 2 that is raced over a distance of 2,400m. While the race isn’t really in any of the main horse racing carnivals during the year, it is one of the biggest races at Ascot Racecourse each year.

Over the years, we have seen multiple changes to the status of the race along with the distance. Some of the key changes to note can be found here:

Status of the Perth Cup:

• 1887 - 1978: Principal Race
• 1972 - 1992: Group 1
• 1993 - now: Group 2

Distance of the Perth Cup:

• 1887 - 1946: Two miles (~3,219m)
• 1947 - 1961: Two miles and 11 yards (~3,230m)
• 1962 - 1972: Two miles (~3,219m)
• 1972 - 2008: 3,200m
• 2009 - now: 2,400m

The race was cut back to a distance of 2,400m from 2009 onwards in an attempt to attract a stronger field to head West to Perth to compete in the Perth Cup. In 2018, we saw trainer Justin Warwick win the Perth Cup with his daughter, Lucy Warwick, in the saddle, making them the first father-daughter combination to win the race.

Trainer Patrick Andrew Connolly won five consecutive Perth Cups, seven in total. His wins included; Blue Spec (1904), Czarowitch (1905), May King (1906), Post Town (1907), Scorcher (1908), Jolly Beggar (1910) and Jolly Cosy (1922). However, Connolly doesn’t hold the record that belongs to Bob Peters, who claimed his 10th victory in 2022.

So, you want to know who won the Perth Cup? Well, you’ve come to the right place as we go through all the Perth Cup results details you’ve been searching for! Was it the favourite that got the chocolates or did a double-digit roughie cause an upset? All will be revealed, keep reading to find out what happened.

The 2025 Perth Cup was won by a massive $81 roughie, Hemlock Stone. The Grant and Alana Williams trained gelding jumped from barrier three and absolutely stormed home from near the rear of the field. Hemlock Stone finished 0.63L ahead of one of the more favoured runners in the race, Diamond Scene.

Filling in the final minor placing was Be Optimistic, who was paying a mammoth $101 to take the victory in the Perth Cup. In the end, there was a total of 20.53L that split the first and last runners across the finishing post and the race was run in a time of 2:27.33.

Check out the full Perth Cup results below:

Words are fun, but videos are better! Check out the full race replay of the 2025 edition of the Perth Cup here:

There can only be one winner in each race, and the good news is - we’ve got them all (well, up until 2010, that is!). Check out the table in this section to see all the most recent winners of the Perth Cup:

Before you go, we’ve got one last section for you. Our Perth Cup FAQs are here to answer all the most common questions people have about the race. So, if you’ve got some last-minute questions, you’ve come to the right place. Keep reading to find out more information about the Perth Cup: