SATURDAY'S Rokk Ebony Futurity Stakes is the sixth time that the Group 1 race kicks off the Asian Mile Challenge (AMC) and the 2011 renewal has attracted a strong field headlined by the appearance of glamour Sydney mare, More Joyous.
The 2011 Challenge has undergone change. Firstly, the Futurity Stakes distance has been reduced from 1600m to 1400m in addition to a new incentive structure introduced for owners and trainers of competing horses.
In addition to the introduction of the chance for owners and trainers to win a luxury car (valued at US$100,000) for winning multiple legs, a new ‘home and away’ points system has been introduced whereby double points will be awarded to horses placed between first and sixth if they compete away from their home jurisdiction. Trainers must compete in two or more countries to be eligible for the bonus.
For the owner car bonus to be won, an owner must win two legs with the same horse and the first owner to achieve this will be deemed the bonus winner.
The new points system puts the owners and trainers in Saturday’s Futurity Stakes in a great position as, with no northern hemisphere horses competing, all AMC points will awarded to the runners in Saturday’s Group 1. Effectively, the winner on Saturday is half way there!
The Asian Mile Challenge was introduced in 2006 and Fields Of Omagh became the inaugural first leg winner and went on to race in Dubai in the Dubai Duty Free where he finished 7th.
Since 2006, the Gai Waterhouse trained Aqua D’Amore won the Futurity Stakes (2007) followed by consecutive wins by Niconero (2008/09) and then recently retired champion mare Typhoon Tracy triumphed in outstanding fashion last year.
In this year’s race, both Dao Dao and Ortensia have campaigned in Hong Kong with Dao Dao having won several races and finishing 3rd in the Champions Mile, the third leg of the AMC, in 2009.
More Joyous, winner of the David Jones Toorak Handicap at Caulfield in October last year, has won 11 of her 15 career starts and if successful on Saturday, the four-year-old owned by John Singleton could well be bound for international riches as the 2011 AMC continues onto Dubai (March 26), Hong Kong (April 25) and Japan (June 5).
MELBOURNE RACING CLUB MEDIA RELEASE
