Following a review and consultation with trainers, Racing Victoria (RV) and the Victoria Racing Club (VRC) have today announced programming amendments to two races offering a golden ticket into the 2023 Lexus Melbourne Cup.
The Roy Higgins, a $500,000 set weights and penalties race at Flemington on Saturday, 25 March 2023, will remain at a distance of 2600m – the same as 2022.
The Listed race had originally been earmarked to increase to 2800m this year to coincide with its elevation to a Lexus Melbourne Cup ballot exempt race.
It remains the first of six automatic qualifiers for the Lexus Melbourne Cup and features on the final day of Victoria’s Festival of Racing alongside the $3 million TAB Australian Cup (2000m).
The Lexus Andrew Ramsden, a $500,000 Listed race at Flemington on Saturday, 13 May 2023, will continue to be run over 2800m, however the eligibility conditions have been altered.
Restricted to three, four and five-year-old horses only in recent editions, the Lexus Andrew Ramsden will now be open to all horses aged three and older.
The race will be conducted under set weights as follows - 5YO+ 58.5kg; 4YO 58kg; 3YO 54kg; fillies and mares allowance 2kg; northern hemisphere three-year-old allowance 3kg.