Following Winter King’s win at the Starlight Stakes at the Rosehill racecourse, trainer David Payne has his eyes set on the Group 1 Manikato Stakes in Melbourne. Winter King controlled the Listed event from wire to wire in a race that was not grazed by high-class colt Hinchinbrook who was taken out of competition the morning before the race due to an elevated temperature.

Set to run at the Flemington racecourse on the 2nd of November, the 2010 Melbourne Cup has attracted 253 stayers in its nomination period. Out of this figure, 44 are international race horses, five better on the 39 international-trained race horses that were nominated in last year’s Melbourne Cup.

The 2010 Caulfield Guineas which will be staged on the 9th of October has attracted 262 early entries. Some of the notable nominees are Golden Slipper winner Crystal Lily, the Gerald Ryan-trained Hinchinbrook, Champagne Stakes winner Skilled which is trained by Peter Snowden, Redoute’s Choice colt Beneteau and the Gai Waterhouse-trained up-and-coming horse Brightexpectations.

Tagged as the premier weight-for-age race in Australia and in Australasia, the Cox Plate is a 2040-metre race that is held every October at the Mooney Valley racecourse in Melbourne. This race is reserved for the best race horses and that is the reason why it is always won by a top thoroughbred.

The 2010 Spring Gully Spring Stakes will be held at the Allan Scott Park Morphettville racecourse and ten weight-for-age race horses will try to win this 1200-metre, Group 3 race to claim a big share of the $115,000 prize money purse. Not making a run in this year’s Spring Stakes is last year’s Melbourne Cup favourite Alcopop.

As the richest race of the Sydney Spring Racing Carnival, the $1 million, 1400-metre Group 1 The Golden Rose Stakes, approaches, the traditional lead-up race for it will be staged at the scenic Rosehill races. The 1300-metre, Group 3 Run to the Rose is the ideal lead-up race for three-year-old aspirants of the Golden Rose and it has a prize money purse of $125,000. Twelve horses are scheduled to compete at this race with the scratching of From London.

The Bart Cummings-trained Faint Perfume is up for a fantastic campaign this spring as early betting markets show that the four-year-old race horse is the pre-race favourite for the 2010 Caulfield Cup and the 2010 Melbourne Cup.

Trainer Gillian Heinrich has forced to abandon the campaign of Military Rose for next month’s $1 million, Group 1 Golden Rose Stakes at the Rosehill racecourse due his weight problems and wet tracks. Instead, the Magic Million winner will compete in Melbourne at the Group 1, 1200-metre Coolmore Stud Stakes at the Flemington racecourse on the 30th of October during Derby Day.

Intense Australian horse racing action continues this Saturday with two horse races that will fire up the race tracks. First of which is the 1000-metre, Group 3 San Domenico Stakes. This race is staged at the Randwick racecourse in Sydney and it has a prize purse of $125,000. The San Domenico Stakes is staged under set weights and penalty conditions which levels the playing field.

The 150th staging of the Melbourne Cup will draw more international attention due to the presence of the 45 overseas race horses which are included in the 253 nominees for the said race. Due to the Melbourne Cup’s prize money of $6 million, this year’s edition has attracted a large number of foreign-bred horses that are ready to compete against the top Australian stayers.