The Underwood Stakes is set to get greater exposure being transferred to AFL Grand Final Day.
With Perth to host the AFL Grand Final with a later starting time in Melbourne, Racing Victoria has switched dates for the Underwood Stakes meeting.
The meeting was scheduled to run on September 26 to avoid a clash with the AFL showpiece, but with the Grand Final to be a twilight match in Perth and shown live in Melbourne as an evening event, it has allowed RV to run the Underwood Stakes program during the afternoon.
In moving the Underwood meeting to September 25, RV has switched the Ansett Classic meeting, scheduled for that day, to September 26.
Group 1 racing will be held on consecutive days in Melbourne with the Moir Stakes (1000m) to be run the night prior to the Underwood Stakes meeting.
RV Executive General Manager – Racing, Greg Carpenter, said the rescheduling of the AFL Grand Final allowed the Group 1 race day to be held in a premier weekend timeslot.
“The Underwood Stakes meeting is the first Group 1 meeting at Sandown since 1996 and it will attract increased coverage and wagering in the Saturday afternoon timeslot,” Carpenter said.
“The switch also has the added benefit of providing an additional day between the Underwood Stakes meeting and the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes meeting at Flemington on October 2 for any horses that are backing up between the two.”
Last year’s Underwood Stakes (1800m) was run at Caulfield when taken out by the Danny O’Brien-trained Russian Camelot.
