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Perth Summer Racing Carnival Tips, Dates & Betting Guide

The Perth Summer Racing Carnival is Western Australia’s premier racing festival, run at Ascot Racecourse from November through to New Year’s Day. Its centrepiece is a feat no other track in the world can match — three $1.5 million Group 1s on three consecutive Saturdays: the Railway Stakes, the Winterbottom Stakes and the Kingston Town Classic (now run as the Northerly Stakes). The carnival then signs off with the time-honoured Perth Cup on New Year’s Day.

Perth Summer Carnival Feature Races

Race Grade Distance Prize Typical date Guide
Railway Stakes Group 1 1600m (Hcp) $1.5m Super Saturday, late Nov Tips & guide
Winterbottom Stakes Group 1 1200m $1.5m Super Saturday, late Nov Tips & guide
Kingston Town Classic (Northerly Stakes) Group 1 1800m (WFA) $1.5m Early December Tips & guide
Perth Cup Group 2 2400m — New Year’s Day Tips & guide

 

Also at Ascot — The Quokka. Separate to the November–January summer carnival, Ascot stages The Quokka — Western Australia’s richest race, a $5 million slot sprint over 1200m — each April. See our Quokka guide for tips, recent winners and how the slot system works.

Guide to the Perth Summer Carnival

Held at Ascot Racecourse on the banks of the Swan River, the carnival is the highlight of Perth’s summer sporting and social calendar. It opens in late October and builds to Railway Stakes Day — Western Australia’s biggest raceday — when the 1600m Railway Stakes and the 1200m Winterbottom Stakes headline a stakes-packed card. A week later the Kingston Town Classic (run since 2024 as the Northerly Stakes) completes the trilogy of weight-for-age and handicap Group 1s, before the staying Perth Cup (2400m) closes the summer on January 1.

Beyond the three Group 1s, the carnival stages the Group 2 WA Guineas (1600m) for the three-year-olds plus a deep program of Group 3 and Listed races, drawing many of the eastern states’ best gallopers west to take on Perth’s locals. The Perth Cup has been run since 1887 and was cut from 3200m to 2400m in 2009 to lift the quality of the field.

Perth Carnival Betting Angles

  • Respect the WA form. Ascot is a fair, galloping track and the strong local sprinters and milers are hard to beat first-up against eastern raiders still finding their feet on the long trip west.
  • The trilogy form lines tie together. Horses backing up across Railway, Winterbottom and Kingston Town Classic days reveal themselves quickly — track who is peaking through the three weekends.
  • Each-way value in the big handicaps. The Railway Stakes and Perth Cup are competitive handicaps where extra-place specials and each-way plays pay.

Perth Summer Carnival FAQs

When is the Perth Summer Racing Carnival? It runs from late October to New Year’s Day at Ascot Racecourse, with the three Group 1 weekends across late November and early December and the Perth Cup on January 1.

What are the Group 1 races? The Railway Stakes (1600m), Winterbottom Stakes (1200m) and Kingston Town Classic / Northerly Stakes (1800m) — each worth $1.5 million.

Where is it held? At Ascot Racecourse in Perth, Western Australia.

Where to Bet on the Perth Summer Carnival

For the best odds and sign-up offers across the Perth Summer Carnival, see our best horse racing betting sites in Australia guide, or take advantage of the top bookmaker deals below.