Group 1 race | |
Location | Ascot Racecourse |
---|---|
Inaugurated | 1887 |
Race type | Thoroughbred |
Sponsor | James Boag's Premium (2017) |
Race information | |
Distance | 1,600 metres |
Surface | Turf |
Track | Left-handed |
Qualification | Horses three years old and older |
Weight | handicap |
Purse | A$1,000,000 (2017) |
The Railway Stakes is an Australian Group 1 Thoroughbred horse raced under handicap race conditions over a distance of 1600 metres at Ascot Racecourse in Perth in late November. Prizemoney was increased to A$1,000,000 in 2007.
The inaugural running of the event was held on Perth Cup day in 1887 with a stakes of 60 sovereigns when the three-year-old Nimrod won the event over Hermit. The following season the race was held on New Years Day 1889 and in the renewal of the race Hermit won the race while Nimrod finished third. The event continued to be part of the Western Australian Turf Club's Summer Carnival with the race being scheduled on the same day as the Perth Cup. In 2001 the WATC rescheduled the event to late November. From 2011 to 2015 the race date was considered the richest day in thoroughbred racing in Perth, known as Super Saturday, with the Winterbottom Stakes, WA Guineas and several other Listed Races. The Winterbottom Stakes were moved to the following Saturday in 2016. In 2003 the race was held at Belmont Park Racecourse.
Thoroughbreds that have won the Railway Stakes – Kingston Town Classic double: