William Reid Stakes

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The William Reid Stakes (formerly known as the Australia Stakes) is a Group 1 race held annually at Moonee Valley racecourse as part of the Melbourne autumn carnival. It is race over a distance of 1200 metres at weight-for-aged conditions and attracts some of Australia’s best sprinters. It carries prize money of $500,000.

It was first run in 1925 and was upgraded to Group 1 status in 1987. In 2010 it was renamed back to the William Reid Stakes, having previously been known as the Australian Stakes since 1993. Some of Australia’s finest sprinters have been successful in this race with names such as Apache Cat, Miss Andretti, Cape Of Good Hope, Spartacus and Vo Rogue prevailing in the last decade or so.

Quite often horses enter this race via the Group 1 Lightning Stakes held a fortnight earlier, as it is a similar type of race. The William Reid Stakes is used as a lead up race to big races in the Melbourne autumn carnival such as the Futurity Stakes Oakleigh Plate, producing over 15 winners for these two races.

Previous William Reid Stakes Winners