The Big Dance 2024

1600m 2023 Big Dance – 1600m

Date: Tuesday 7th of November 2023
Time: TBD (AEDT)
Venue: Randwick Racecourse, Randwick, Sydney
Prize Money: $3 million AUD

Prize Money for The Big Dance 2023

Randwick Racecourse will host The Big Dance 2023 for its second consecutive year, one year removed from the success story of the inaugural The Big Dance 2022. This year’s The Big Dance 2023 will be a 1600-metre feature race that will be held for thoroughbreds aged three years and older. The Big Dance racing series, which was announced by Racing New South Wales on February 9, 2022, seems to be one of Racing NSW's new attempts to gain a piece of the Spring Carnival wealth and potentially steal some of the thunder away from the 2023 Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse

To go alongside this mind-boggling proposition by Racing New South Wales; a race held 30 minutes prior to the nation’s most famous horse racing event, the state racing body has increased the prize money of The Big Dance from its $2 million on offer to participants in The Big Dance 2022 to now a whopping $3 million AUD for The Big Dance 2023.

See a distribution table below that denotes the proposed distribution of prize money for the 2023 The Big Dance feature race at Randwick Racecourse. Please note that this is subject to change closer to the race date (7 November 2023) when more information becomes available.

As you can see from the table above in respect of the prize money that is intended to be given out for the 2023 The Big Dance feature race, the winner will take home a cool $1,800,000 AUD for its connections which is a tidy amount for the Spring Carnival which is usually dominated by big races at Victorian thoroughbred horse racing venues such as Caulfield Racecourse and Flemington Racecourse. 

Qualification to The Big Dance 2023

With quite a unique qualification system in place for The Big Dance feature races, it is clear to see that Racing New South Wales really put their heads together for this one. The field of runners making up November’s The Big Dance 2023 race at Randwick Racecourse will come from a composite of the horses that finished first and second in 25 NSW Country Cup events held from 30 October 2022 to 14 October 2023. 

The final race held in mid-October, at Royal Randwick Racecourse, is known as The Big Dance Wild Card race, with the victor and second-place finishers of those aforementioned 25 NSW Country Cup events being excluded from the voting having qualified for The 2023 Big Dance.

The final field will then be selected from the eligible horse pool based on Benchmark Rating at the time of final acceptances, with eligible Country Cup champions given preference over any runners-up in those Country Cup competition thoroughbred races 

As I have previously mentioned, some controversy arose around the 2022 The Big Dance due to the nature of its timing. The Everest, Australia’s most lucrative race, and up there with the world’s biggest prize pots, was scheduled on Caulfield Cup Day. Next, The Golden Eagle was scheduled on Victorian Racing’s Derby Day. However, it was assumed by racing fans and governing bodies across the country that the first Tuesday in November would remain somewhat sacred to the country’s most famous and historic feature race for thoroughbred horses. This was not to be the case, and Racing New South Wales scheduled The Big Dance 2022, and subsequent The Big Dance 2023 on the biggest day in Australian horse racing.

Please see a comprehensive list below of the requisite 25 Country Cup events that allow an opportunity for qualification into the 2023 The Big Dance feature race at Randwick Racecourse on Tuesday, November 7th, 2023. 

It is quite obvious to note that the emphasis by Racing New South Wales for The Big Dance 2022 and its successor, the upcoming The Big Dance 2023, was to include all country racecourses around the state. From Murwillumbah Racecourse to Coonabarabran Racecourse, each of the smaller, or less visited thoroughbred racing venues in the state of New South Wales will have an opportunity to provide its competitors with a ticket to one of New South Wales’ richest races on its thoroughbred racing calendar.

These Country Cup races as they are called, have always been the pinnacle of prizes for these respective racetracks – such as the Wagga Wagga Gold Cup which has long been competed for early in the month of May at Wagga Wagga Racecourse – have now added an entirely new element that has drawn in more prize money and intrigue from Australia’s more elite thoroughbred horses that race across the country’s Group 1, Group 2, and even Group 3 circuits.

Before we get into who won The Big Dance in its first ever race last year in 2022, let us first go through who was vying it out for the lion’s share of a massive $2 million AUD prize pot put on offer by Racing New South Wales to incentivise greater competition being present during New South Wales Racing’s Spring Carnival which historically has fallen well short of Racing Victoria’s offer. See the above section ‘The Feature Race – The Big Dance 2023’ for more information on this new race and lucrative kitty on offer.

The above list of participants in the 2022 The Big Dance feature race at Randwick Racecourse includes some up and comers that may be known to you if you are a horse racing enthusiast. Coming through to rise above the rest of the pack ended up being Rustic Steel, jumping from the inside-middle barrier (7) and storming home to pick up a famous victory for his stable, owners, and Nash Rawiller – the jockey of the day.

Due to this preview to the 2023 The Big Dance feature race being written more than one month in advance of the 2023 The Big Dance Wild Card race, it is too early to hypothesise or discuss the potential field of runners who will be competing in the 2023 The Big Dance at Randwick Racecourse on the 7th of November. However, we can learn about the type of winners seen at The Big Dance feature races despite the very, very limited sample size we have on offer! Scroll down to the ‘Race History & Past Winner of The Big Dance 2023’ for more information on Rustic Steel’s victory in the 2022 The Big Dance race.

The Big Dance’s 2023 edition promises to be bigger and better than the first iteration held last year at Randwick Racecourse where some of the best in the country (aged three years and below) battled it out to claim victory in a massive Sydney Spring Carnival race, as well as a monster payday out of the $2 million AUD available in the prize purse.

So it is very important on these lucrative horse racing meets to choose the best possible available Australian bookmaker to place your racing bets. In order to assist you for The Big Dance 2023, in addition to any other prized race day, we have included some recommendations – with Pros and Cons lists attached – of where to place your The Big Dance 2023 punts. 

This is no substitute for our OnlyRacing Bookmaker Reviews page that includes a comprehensive, and complete list of all available Aussie bookies that you can place Group 1 thoroughbred horse racing bets with. Also, check out our Promotions page which includes the below mentioned PlayUp and Unibet!

Randwick Racecourse is almost inarguably considered to be the biggest, best, and most historic racing venue in New South Wales. With history dating back over 100 years ago, there has been a rich tapestry of stories, victories, and legends being made at the iconic Eastern Suburbs racetrack in Sydney. 

Adding to the already impressive resume that Randwick Racecourse owns in relation to Group 1 thoroughbred horse races and other lucrative non-Group 1 thoroughbred races, Randwick Racecourse played host to the inaugural The Big Dance race known as the 2022 The Big Dance, which was won by Rustic Steel ridden by Nash Rawiller. 

Instead of trying to fit a full, and comprehensive review of Randwick Racecourse within this preview to The Big Dance 2023, we have created a complete page dedicated to Randwick Racecourse and its unique factors, greatest days, and best moments. Be sure to visit this racecourse page for an in-depth look into the home off The Big Dance 2023 and other similar high-profile Australian horse races held at the famous New South Wales track.

Although extremely short, the race history of The Big Dance feature race series that started with the 2022 The Big Dance at Randwick Racecourse, is important to look at before diving headfirst into the 2023 The Big Dance feature race on Tuesday the 7th of November 2023, the same day as the 2023 Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse.

Please scroll up to the ‘The Feature Race – The Big Dance 2023’ section of this The Big Dance 2023 preview in order to completely grasp the previous winner, Rustic Steel, and how he won the 2022 The Big Dance and the largest part of $2 million AUD.

In relation to the history of The Big Dance feature races that commenced in 2022, one needs to see that Racing New South Wales were never going to schedule a race on the early-Tuesday in November due to, of course, the 2023 Melbourne Cup being held on that day. Holding the nickname ‘The Race That Stops The Nation’ you would think that this was a correct assumption. 

However, when Racing New South Wales revealed that The Big Dance's debut event would take place at Randwick on the first Tuesday in November 2022, that presumption was completely disproved and the Sydney Spring Carnival truly announced its presence with some seriously rich events supporting the already richest race in Australia, in The Everest.

Peter V'Landys, chairman of Racing New South Wales, has openly disputed that the Melbourne Cup, a 3200-metre legendary race that draws competitors from all over the world, will be impacted by The Big Dance feature races that are available to thoroughbreds aged three years and older. Instead, V’Landys has openly praised the system that seeks to create more inclusion for Country Cups held around rural New South Wales.

Hopefully this preview to the 2023 The Big Dance feature race at Randwick Racecourse has provided you with some clarity as to how qualification for The Big Dance 2023 will work, as well as the cool history behind The Big Dance feature races, and the previous winner, Rustic Steel, who claimed victory in the 2022 The Big Dance. Be sure to tune into your respective racing channel to view the 2023 The Big Dance at Randwick Racecourse scheduled for Tuesday, the 7th of November 2023.