Caulfield Cup

The Caulfield Cup is a Melbourne Racing Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race held under handicap conditions. This is for all horses aged three years old and older. It takes place over a distance of 2400 metres at the Caulfield Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia in mid October. The prize money is A$5,000,000.

History
The race has become one of Australia's richest Thoroughbred horse races. The race is held annually on the third Saturday in October, the third day and final day of the Caulfield Carnival. Performances in the Caulfield Cup are one of the possible qualification methods for a run in the Melbourne Cup which is held 17 days later.

During World War II the race was run at Flemington Racecourse and in 1943 the race was run in divisions.

Race qualification
The field is limited to 18 starters with four emergency entries which is decided by a ballot system. The prize money, wins and placings in lead up races are among the major factors that determine the eligibility of a horse. Automatic entry is awarded to winners of the Toorak Handicap, Herbert Power Stakes and the Mornington Cup.

Sponsors

 * 1985–1999 - Foster's
 * 2000–2005 - Carlton Draught
 * 2006–2013 - BMW
 * 2014 - Crown Golden Ale
 * 2015–2017 - BMW
 * 2018–2020 - Stella Artois
 * 2021-current - Carlton Draught

Distance

 * 1879–1971 - 1$1/2$ miles (~2400 metres)
 * 1972 onwards - 2400 metres

Grade

 * 1879–1978 - Principal Race
 * 1979 onwards - Group 1

Dual winners
The following thoroughbreds have won two Caulfield Cups.
 * Paris (1892, 1894), Hymettus (1898, 1901), Poseidon (1906–07), Uncle Sam (1912, 1914), Whittier (1922, 1925), Rising Fast (1954-1955) and Ming Dynasty (1977, 1980).

Caulfield-Melbourne Cup double wins
The following thoroughbreds have won the Caulfield-Melbourne Cup double in the same year.
 * Poseidon (1906), The Trump (1937), Rivette (1939), Rising Fast (1954), Even Stevens (1962), Galilee (1966), Gurner's Lane (1982), Let’s Elope (1991), Doriemus (1995), Might and Power (1997), Ethereal (2001) and Without A Fight (2023).

Caulfield Cup-Cox Plate double wins
The following thoroughbreds have won the Caulfield Cup-Cox Plate double in the same year.
 * Tranquil Star (1906), Rising Fast (1954), Tobin Bronze (1967) and Northerly (2002).

Caulfield Cup-Cox Plate-Melbourne Cup triple wins
The following thoroughbreds have won the Caulfield Cup-Cox Plate-Melbourne Cup triple in the same year.


 * Rising Fast (1954).

Notable runnings

 * Australian Test cricketer Clem Hill was the handicapper for the Victoria Amateur Turf Club (VATC) and responsible for setting the weights for the Caulfield Cup from 1937 to 1943.
 * Jockey Scobie Breasley rode the winner of four consecutive Caulfield Cups from 1942 to 1945. This included a division of the 1943 race, which was run in two divisions. He also holds the record for most wins by a jockey of the race - five wins.
 * Trainer Bart Cummings holds the record for training Caulfield Cup winners with seven - Galilee, Big Philou, Leilani, Ming Dynasty (twice), Let's Elope and Viewed.
 * 2014 Caulfield Cup winner Admire Rakti died after his run in the Melbourne Cup from natural causes.
 * Horses trained outside Australia and New Zealand have been participating in the race since 1998. Six have won the race. They are Taufan's Melody (1998) for British trainer Lady Herries, All the Good (2008) and Best Solution (2018) for Saeed bin Suroor of the Godolphin stables, Dunaden (2012) for French trainer Mikel Delzangles, Admire Rakti (2014) for Japanese trainer Tomoyuki Umeda and Mer De Glace (2019) for Japanese trainer Hisashi Shimizu.
 * The worst race fall in Australian history occurred at the 1885 Caulfield Cup when 15 of the 44 horses competing fell as they turned onto the straight, resulting in the death of 25-year-old jockey Donald Nicolson.
 * In 2007, Maldivian and Eskimo Queen were late scratchings. Maldivian, shortest price favourite for 41 years, misbehaved and injured himself in the starting stalls, frightening second priced favourite Eskimo Queen who for a time was trapped beneath the stalls. The race started almost nine minutes late.

Earlier winners

 * 1987 – Lord Reims
 * 1986 – Mr. Lomondy
 * 1985 – Tristarc
 * 1984 – Affinity
 * 1983 – Hayai
 * 1982 – Gurner's Lane
 * 1981 – Silver Bounty
 * 1980 – Ming Dynasty
 * 1979 – Mighty Kingdom
 * 1978 – Taksan
 * 1977 – Ming Dynasty
 * 1976 – How Now
 * 1975 – Analight
 * 1974 – Leilani
 * 1973 – Swell Time
 * 1972 – Sobar
 * 1971 – Gay Icarus
 * 1970 – Beer Street
 * 1969 – ¶ Big Philou
 * 1968 – Bunratty Castle
 * 1967 – Tobin Bronze
 * 1966 – Galilee
 * 1965 – Bore Head
 * 1964 – Yangtze
 * 1963 – Sometime
 * 1962 – Even Stevens
 * 1961 – Summer Fair
 * 1960 – Ilumquh
 * 1959 – Regal Wench
 * 1958 – Sir Blink
 * 1957 – Tulloch
 * 1956 – Redcraze
 * 1955 – Rising Fast
 * 1954 – Rising Fast
 * 1953 – My Hero
 * 1952 – Peshawar
 * 1951 – Basha Felika
 * 1950 – Grey Boots
 * 1949 – Lincoln
 * 1948 – Red Fury
 * 1947 – Columnist
 * 1946 – Royal Gem
 * 1945 – St. Fairy
 * 1944 – Counsel
 * 1943 – † Saint Warden / Skipton
 * 1942 – Tranquil Star
 * 1941 – Velocity
 * 1940 – Beaulivre
 * 1939 – Rivette
 * 1938 – Buzalong
 * 1937 – The Trump
 * 1936 – Northwind
 * 1935 – Palfresco
 * 1934 – Journal
 * 1933 – Gaine Carrington
 * 1932 – Rogilla
 * 1931 – Denis Boy
 * 1930 – Amounis
 * 1929 – High Syce
 * 1928 – Maple
 * 1927 – Textile
 * 1926 – Manfred
 * 1925 – Whittier
 * 1924 – Purser
 * 1923 – Wynette
 * 1922 – Whittier
 * 1921 – Violoncello
 * 1920 – Eurythmic
 * 1919 – Lucknow
 * 1918 – King Offa
 * 1917 – Bronzetti
 * 1916 – Shepherd King
 * 1915 – Lavendo
 * 1914 – Uncle Sam
 * 1913 – Aurifer
 * 1912 – Uncle Sam
 * 1911 – Lady Medallist
 * 1910 – Flavinius
 * 1909 – ‡ Blue Book / Aborigine
 * 1908 – Maranui
 * 1907 – Poseidon
 * 1906 – Poseidon
 * 1905 – Marvel Loch
 * 1904 – Murmur
 * 1903 – Sweet Nell
 * 1902 – Lieutenant Bill
 * 1901 – Hymettus
 * 1900 – Ingliston
 * 1899 – Dewey
 * 1898 – Hymettus
 * 1897 – Amberite
 * 1896 – Cremorne
 * 1895 – Waterfall
 * 1894 – Paris
 * 1893 – ¶ Sainfoin
 * 1892 – Paris
 * 1891 – G'naroo
 * 1890 – Vengeance
 * 1889 – Boz
 * 1888 – Chicago
 * 1887 – Oakleigh
 * 1886 – Ben Bolt
 * 1885 – Grace Darling
 * 1884 – Blink Bonny
 * 1883 – Calma
 * 1882 – Little Jack
 * 1881 – Master Avenel
 * 1881 – Blue Ribbon
 * 1880 – Tom Kirk
 * 1879 – Newminster

Key:

† Run in divisions

¶ Won by Protest

‡ Dead heat

Attendance

 * 2023 – 25,121
 * 2022 – 24,289
 * 2021 – 0 (no public attendance due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions)
 * 2020 – 0 (no public attendance due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions)
 * 2019 – 28,000
 * 2018 – 30,000
 * 2017 – 30,000
 * 2015 – 30,000
 * 2014 – 32,000
 * 2013 – 33,056
 * 2012 – 35,500
 * 2011 – 30,097
 * 2010 – 23,697
 * 2009 – 43,210
 * 2008 – 51,328
 * 2007 – 48,529
 * 2006 – 47,551
 * 2005 – 52,000
 * 2004 – 51,015
 * 2003 – 46,873

Sponsorship
In March 2015, BMW Australia and the Melbourne Racing Club announced a reunion in partnership, effective as of August 1, 2015 after the eight-year partnership ended in 2014.