Surround Stakes Tips, Betting, Odds, Horses & More 2025

The Surround Stakes is one of the major races on the Australian calendar. This year, the Surround Stakes will take place on the 2nd of March and we can’t wait to see which horses line up as it is one of the most important Group One races, so there is plenty of talent on display. 

This Group 1 race is held each year at Randwick Racecourse, New South Wales and is named after champion horse Surround. Surround is still the only three-year-old filly to win the Cox Plate in the race's history! Randwick Racecourse is much-loved by many racing enthusiasts and it’s no doubt it is one of the top tracks in the whole of Australia.

The honour roll for the Surround Stakes is impressive, to say the least, and we even go through some of the best horses to ever win the Surround Stakes in our “Horses” section below. This page is your one-stop shop for everything you need about the Surround Stakes.

The prize money is what makes a Group 1, a Group 1. For the Surround Stakes, the prize money is currently sitting at a cool $750,000. Previously, the Surround Stakes was held at Warwick Farm Racecourse until 2016, when it was permanently moved to its current location, Randwick Racecourse.

OnlyRacing’s Surround Stakes page will also go into detail about how to bet on the race, as well as the all-important tips for the upcoming race! There is so much to discover about the Surround Stakes and you can find everything you are looking for here.

Lock it in your calendar and visit OnlyRacing.com.au closer to the meet in March to see our most up-to-date tips and analysis of the runners. Our expert tips include the best bet, next best and best roughie, so there’s something for everyone.

The prize money for the Surround Stakes is epic, to say the least. Let’s check out the breakdown of the cash below:

Who doesn’t love some free horse racing tips? And you know what, we love providing them! So, it really is a win-win. Our experts take great pride in providing winners to our loyal readers and while our tips aren’t available for the race in 2025, as soon as our experts have the information they need, you’ll find their three best tips below!

We know how exciting it can be betting on the winner in a race like the Surround Stakes, but you’ll have to wait a bit to check out the latest tips. In the meantime you can check out our top tips for the Surround Stakes in 2024 below:

How good? There’s a quality field of 13 runners taking part in the Surround Stakes in 2024. Learning To Fly is the current favourite, but after that, it’s pretty even in the market. There’s a lot of live chances in the race and I’ve gone through them all, weighing up the options.

All in all, I’ve got three tips for you. My best bet, next best and best roughie cover several different betting options, so there is something for everyone. Let’s see who I’ve picked and if you agree with my thoughts!

Surround Stakes Best Bet - Learning To Fly

Ran Kimochi to a neck in the Light Fingers Stakes last time out and I think she can turn the tables on her in the Surround Stakes. Learning To Fly had to overcome a wide barrier in the Light Fingers and I think that may just have been the difference in the end. 

She won’t have to contend with a wide barrier in the Surround Stakes as she draws barrier 6. Not worried that this is her first go at 1,400m because she was left wanting more in the Light Fingers Stakes (raced at a distance of 1,200m). The extra 200m should do her well and it will take an out-of-this-world ride from another runner or really bad luck for Learning To Fly to lose this.

Surround Stakes Next Best - Kimochi

A little bit surprised at the price for Kimochi ($6.00 at the time of writing) considering she just won the Light Fingers Stakes. Although it was a narrow win, it was still a win nonetheless! Her speed in the closing stages of that race was enough for her to win and I think will help her in this race as well.

I’m expecting a lot of improvement from several different runners in this race, but in particular Kimochi. Jason Collett sticks with Kimochi which is always a good sign and I think he will adopt a similar race style as a fast tempo early in the race is expected.

Surround Stakes Best Roughie - Arctic Glamour

Arctic Glamour hasn’t been spoken about much I think, but she is a solid filly that will surprise a few in the Surround Stakes. At the time of writing, she is listed at $17, so you are getting good value for her! She has trialled well, which is a nice tick.

Another coming through from the Light Fingers Stakes. In that race, she was a little off the speed but she was a lot better late. She’ll be fitter for that run under her belt and she has enough skill to give the top runners a scare. If some things go right for her in the Surround Stakes, I think she will be in the money.

Betting on the Surround Stakes should be an easy and enjoyable experience. You’ve got a lot of different markets you can bet on and there are so many different betting apps to choose from. If you’re new to this world, it can seem overwhelming, but don’t worry because the team here at OnlyRacing have your back!

So, how do you choose who to bet with? It’s a question we get asked all the time! There are so many different horse racing betting sites, how can you know which one is best for you? The decision is made easy once you have all the information and you can find all the details you’re looking for by reading our bookie reviews.

We have reviews on all the top Australian betting sites and we go to great lengths to provide you with heaps of information, so you can choose the best bookie for you! No matter what you are looking for, we have it covered in our reviews, from who offers the best odds to who has the best betting sites bonuses and everything in between.

While you can find heaps of bookies on our bookie review page, we’d like to highlight three in particular that we think are the bees-knees, especially when it comes to Surround Stakes betting:

1. EliteBet - They are one of the best betting apps, especially if you’re looking for unique offers and bonuses.
2. Bluebet - If you like betting the favourite, they are the bookie for you! Not to mention the range of betting promotions as well!
3. Bet365 - One of the biggest players in the industry and they have some consistently great odds.

Those are just three bookies that we think you’ll like and there’s plenty more where that came from so why don’t you check our “Betting Sites” section above if you’re looking for more!

Who will be running in the 2025 Surround Stakes? Well, all will be revealed in due course! While we don’t know who will be lining up in the Surround Stakes field in 2025, we can expect it to be a star-studded affair. Along with the field, we also list the odds of all the runners in the race in our “Odds” section below, when available, so you can see who is favoured in the race.

As the 2025 field has not been released for the Surround Stakes, the odds will be constantly changing. Many things need to be factored in when looking at the odds and you’ll find that different bookies may also be offering different odds for the same runner.

Waiting is annoying, but why don’t you check out the final field for the 2024 Surround Stakes below until we know which runners will feature in the race in 2025:

Just like we’ve seen in the last couple of years, we saw 13 runners line up for the Surround Stakes in 2024. A decent enough sized field will fight it out for Group 1 glory and there was just one scratching from the race, Kind Words, so we saw 12 runners jump.

Scratchings can happen at any time in the lead-up to the race and it is highly annoying to see that the horse you’ve bet on gets scratched, especially if it’s right before the race. However, it is good to know that you will get your stake back in this instance.

Something else that’s important to look into is the barrier draw. Each runner will have to deploy race tactics based on where they will be jumping from. Certain barriers are more successful than others and some runners' racing style makes them more attuned to specific barriers.

Finding out some key form indicators is an important step before placing any bets on the Surround Stakes. Reading a form guide can be confusing, especially if you aren’t a regular punter. This is why it’s a good idea to leave it to the experts here at OnlyRacing!

We’ve gone through the Surround Stakes form guide and found some interesting patterns that can help ensure you choose a runner based on the facts. The stats don’t lie! So, let’s dig into some of the key form indicators.

It should come as no surprise that the Light Fingers Stakes is the best lead-up race, as we always see many runners from that race also come to contest the Surround Stakes. The Light Fingers Stakes is by far the most successful lead-up race with 11 winners of the Surround Stakes from the last 15 years coming from this race.

You’ll also find that Surround Stakes winners come into the race in form. Only a handful of winners have finished worse than fourth in their lead-up race. In fact, only six winners since 2010 finished lower than fourth in their race before the Surround Stakes. In 2024, Tropical Squall won the Surround Stakes first up. Her race before the Surround Stakes was back in November of the previous year, in the Kennedy Oaks, where she finished 10th.

Since the Surround Stakes gained Group 1 status in 2018, the majority of winners have had a double-digit starting price. Four of the last seven races have seen a double-digit odds winner and three of the last four winners have had odds of $10 or above. On top of this, since 2018, the widest barrier a winner has jumped from is barrier 6. So, you are better off looking at runners who are drawn an inside barrier.

We see some of the best horses on offer competing each year in the Surround Stakes. The rich history means it’s difficult to choose just a handful of winners to feature in this section. We have tried our best to choose the top Surround Stakes horses!

So, check out some of the best horses to win the Surround Stakes below:

More Joyous - 2010

The Gai Waterhouse-trained More Joyous won the 2010 Surround Stakes. She was also able to complete the Surround Stakes - Light Fingers Stakes double that year. The mare amassed over $4 million in prize money throughout her career thanks to wins in races like the Doncaster Mile, the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, the Queen of the Turf Stakes and the George Main Stakes.

In total she won eight Group 1s throughout her career and in 2012 she was named the Australian Champion Middle Distance Racehorse. Her overall career record was an astounding 30:21-0-2, which presented excellent ROI for all those who backed her throughout her career.

Shoals - 2018

Shoals won the 2018 Surround Stakes, the first year the race was classed as a Group 1. While she only went on to win two Group 1s, she did build up her prize money to over $2 million throughout her entire career. The two other Group 1s were the Empire Rose Stakes along with the Robert Sangster Stakes.

Overall, her career record stands at 15:7-4-1 and she won a handful of Group 2s and Group 3s along the way as well. She won her first ever race in Seymour and it’s easy to say that the rest was history!

Probabeel - 2020

Purchased by Brendan and Jo Lindsay for just NZ$380,000, Probabeel ended her career with an amazing $4,358,978 in prize money! The filly started her racing career in New Zealand where she became the first horse to complete the Karaka Million 2YO - Karaka Million 3YO double.

She then made her way to Australia, where she won Group 1s like the Epsom Handicap,, the Futurity Stakes, the Caulfield Stakes along with the Surround Stakes. In the 2020/21 racing season, Probabeel was named the New Zealand Horse of the Year and she ended her career with a record of 29:13-8-0.

Looking for the Surround Stakes odds? Well, you’ve come to the right place because we will list all the latest odds as soon as they are available from our favourite bookie, PlayUp. No matter who you bet with, you’ll find that all the top horse racing betting apps will have markets up for the Surround Stakes well in advance of race day.

One thing that’s important to remember is that the odds will be constantly changing. Several factors influence odds changes when it comes to horse racing markets, so if you find a price you like, it’s a good idea to jump on it (you don’t want to risk the odds shortening!).

Betting when the market is “Before Noms” is also a good idea because this means that you’ll receive a refund if your chosen horse doesn’t end up making the final field. As the Surround Stakes odds are yet to be released for the race in 2025, we’ve left up the odds for the field in 2024, just a couple of days out from the race, just for your reference. Check out the odds below:

*Odds correct as of 29/02/2024.

The Surround Stakes only gained Group 1 status in 2018, but there is still a long history surrounding (see what we did there!) the race. Between 1979 and 1985, the Surround Stakes was listed as a Group 3, it was then elevated to Group 2 status between 1986 and 2017. 

The Surround Stakes is known as one of the key targets for 3YO fillies throughout the Sydney Autumn Carnival, which is one of the important horse racing carnivals on the calendar. The race was first won by Impede in 1979, a race that was contested under set weights.

As previously mentioned, the Surround Stakes is named after Surround, who had an amazing 3YO season in 1976/77. Obviously, her biggest win was the Cox Plate, but she also won several other Group 1 races including the Caulfield Guineas, the Queensland Oaks and the CF Orr Stakes.

A win in the Surround Stakes can really kick off the calendar year for a 3YO filly and it is raced on the same day as the Verry Elleegant Stakes (previously known as the Chipping Norton Stakes). We also see many runners compete in the Light Fingers Stakes before stepping out to the 1,400m Surround Stakes.

As you probably already know, The Surround Stakes is just one Group 1 of many that grace the Australian racing calendar each year. If you’re itching to know more about the other races, make sure you check out our Group One races list.

So, who will win the Surround Stakes in 2025? Unfortunately, we don’t know that (we would be rich if we did!). We have to wait like everyone else to see who will claim Group 1 glory. But in 2024, the race was taken out by multiple Group 1 winner, Tropical Squall. It was a stellar performance by jockey Adam Hyeronimus who had Tropical Squall leading for the majority of the race.

In the end, Tropical Squall was able to put a distance of just 0.2L between her and second-placed Stefi Magnetica. Tutta La Vita put in the ride of her life to finish in third place in the Surround Stakes, the filly was paying $41 before the race.

The race was run in a time of 1:22.63 and there was just 7.6L that separated all 12 runners, so you know it was a hotly contested race. The pre-race favourite, Learning To Fly, didn’t make it into the top three.

Check out the full Surround Stakes results for the 2024 race below:

It was a thrilling race in the Surround Stakes with so much action going down, it has to be seen to be believed. So, why don’t you check out the full race replay below:

There have been some pretty epic Surround Stakes races over the years, that’s for sure. We have gone through all the recent winners of the Surround Stakes (since the race was elevated to Group 1 status) and you can find all the details below:

Before you go off on your merry way, we have just one more section for you, our FAQ section. If you’ve got any final burning questions about the Surround Stakes, you’ll find what you’re looking for (we hope!). Check out the Surround Stakes FAQs below: