World Pool returns for Victoria Derby Day
World Pool
31/10/2024
The Australian spring culminates with the opening meeting of the Melbourne Cup Carnival
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The field jumps away in last year’s Victoria Derby, won by Riff Rocket. Photo: Jay Town/Getty
Thursday 31st October 2024 – International eyes will again focus on Flemington this weekend with World Pool - the largest globally commingled horse racing pools, created and powered by the Hong Kong Jockey Club – to be offered on the opening day of the Victoria Racing Club’s flagship Melbourne Cup Carnival, Victoria Derby Day on Saturday.
Twelve months after Victoria Derby Day became the first full meeting from Australia to be hosted by World Pool, bettors in Australia and abroad will again be able to enjoy unprecedented liquidity and unmatched value on all nine races this Saturday.
Staged since 1855, Victoria Derby Day is renowned as a celebration for racing purists. The day’s feature event, the G1 Victoria Derby (2500m) for three-year-old stayers, is one of three Group 1 contests, along with the G1 Coolmore Stud Stakes (1200m) for three-year-old sprinters and the G1 Empire Rose Stakes (1600m) for fillies and mares.
The Derby has been won by some of the greats of the Australian turf, including Phar Lap and Tulloch, while last season’s champion three-year-old Riff Rocket narrowly claimed the feature last year. This year’s race includes El Castello, searching for his second Group 1 win in seven days after taking the Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) in Sydney last weekend, as well as lead-up winners Red Aces, Saint Emilion, Kingofwallstreet and Keeneland.
The Coolmore Stud Stakes shapes as one of the hottest races of the spring, with a host of emerging sprinters including Growing Empire, Traffic Warden, Switzerland and Lady Of Camelot, while the Empire Rose Stakes will feature Group 1 winners like Orchestral, Amelia’s Jewel, Atishu and Zardozi, who will use the race as her final run before the Melbourne Cup.
In addition to the three Group 1 features, every race staged on Victoria Derby Day is a Group race, with big fields and competitive contests set to make for a fascinating World Pool card. More than half of the card is for three-year-olds too, and each of the three-year-old races has produced future Sha Tin and Happy Valley runners as well.
Five bet types will be available to World Pool customers – Win, Place, Quinella, Quinella Place (Duet) and Tierce (Trifecta) – offering unrivalled choice and value. Last year, turnover across the entire card reached HKD$272.6 million (AUD$52.8 million) with an average pool size of HKD$6.1 million (AUD$1.2 million) for each bet type in each race.
One World Pool Moment of the Day winner will be chosen from across the nine races at Flemington, with AUD$8,000 on offer for the winning groom. They will also gain entry into the World Pool Moment of the Year competition for the chance to win a trip to Hong Kong next year.
Michael Fitzsimons, Executive Director, Wagering Products at the HKJC, said: “Victoria Derby Day marks the start of one of the great festivals in international racing, the Melbourne Cup Carnival. It is only fitting that World Pool will once again be available on every race from Flemington on what is always a spectacular day down under. Australian racing has proven to be extremely popular among World Pool customers, not just in Australia and Hong Kong but right around the world, and Victoria Derby Day is set to continue that trend. We are excited to see what will unfold at Flemington as the Melbourne Cup Carnival begins.”
David Campbell, Executive General Manager VRC Media at the Victoria Racing Club, said: “We are excited to welcome the world to Victoria Derby Day for Australia’s premier race day through our strong relationship with Hong Kong Jockey Club and TABCORP. The World Pool operating on every race is a testament to the quality and depth of the racing at Flemington during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.”
Upcoming World Pool events:
November
Saturday 2: Victoria Derby Day – Flemington Racecourse (F)
Sunday 10: Grosser Preis von Bayern Day – Munich Racecourse (P)
December
Sunday 15: Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini – San Isidro Racecourse (S)
*F: Full meeting - World Pool coverage on all races in the relevant meeting
P: Part meeting - World Pool coverage only on selected races in the relevant meeting
S: Single race - World Pool coverage only on this race in the relevant meeting
