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Australian Oaks TIPS & BETTING ADVICE

2020 Australian Oaks

Date Saturday 11 April
Track Royal Randwick
Distance 2400m
Class Group 1
Race Type Set weights
Prizemoney $1 million
Age 3YO fillies

AUSTRALIAN OAKS BETTING SELECTIONS & TIPS

Our experts will have their pre-race predictions and Australian Oaks betting selections available for the Group 1 race.

Some key pointers are:

  • Vinery Stud Stakes or the Adrian Knox Stakes have been the ideal lead up races
  • Favourites have a poor record in this race – even Winx was rolled
  • A low draw is advantageous

WHERE TO BET ON THE AUSTRALIAN OAKS

Bookmakers Ladbrokes and Sportsbet are some of the best places to bet on the Australian Oaks and all Randwick races. They offer some of the best odds and promotions on the big race. Or take advantage of the top 5 bookmaker deals below.

AUSTRALIAN OAKS HISTORY AND GUIDE

The Group 1 Australian Oaks (2400m) is held at Randwick Racecourse in April and is a gruelling staying test for the country’s top three-year-old fillies.

The race is run under set-weights conditions with all fillies carrying 56kg, making it a true test of talent, speed and stamina.

The race is the female equivalent of the Australian Derby (2400m) and takes place one week after the male’s version during Day 2 of The Championships during the Sydney Autumn Carnival.

The Group 1 fillies’ race was first run in 1885 when won by Uralla and in the following year the race had its first and only dead-heat when the judge failed to split Tamarisk and Crossfire.

Until 1894 this race was known as the AJC Oaks and was not run between 1895 and 1921 and between 1922 and 1945 the race was held in January and was run over a distance of 2000m.

When it resumed in 1922 it was known as the Adrian Knox Stakes and stayed with that name until 1956 until it was given its current name of the Australian Oaks in 1994.

The prestigious race attracts the country’s top three-year-old staying fillies and is run alongside the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m), the Group 1 Sydney Cup (3200m) and the Group 1 Coolmore Legacy (1600m).

The most reliable lead-up races to the Australian Oaks are the Group 3 Adrian Knox Stakes (2000m) held one week earlier at Randwick Racecourse and the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes (2000m) held two weeks earlier at Rosehill Racecourse.

Past champion winners of the Australian Oaks include Flight (1944), Evening Pearl (1956), Wenona Girl (1961), Leilani (1974), Surround (1977), Research (1989), Circles of Gold (1995), Grand Archway (1999), Republic Lass (2002), Sunday Joy (2003), Streama (2012), Royal Descent (2013), Rising Romance (2014), Gust Of Wind (2015), Sofia Rose (2016), Bonneval (2017) and Unforgotten (2018).

Australian Oaks Winners (Since 2000)

2000 Coco Cobanna
2001 Rose Archway
2002 Republic Lass
2003 Sunday Joy
2004 Wild Iris
2005 Dizelle
2006 Serenade Rose
2007 Rena’s Lady
2008 Heavenly Glow
2009 Daffodil
2010 Once Were Wild
2011 Absolutely
2012 Streama
2013 Royal Descent
2014 Rising Romance
2015 Gust Of Wind
2016 Sofia Rose
2017 Bonneval
2018 Unforgotten
2019 Verry Elleegant
2020 Colette

RANDWICK RACECOURSE TRACK DESCRIPTION

Randwick is the largest racetrack in New South Wales and all races are run in a clockwise direction. It is a sweeping track with a rise from the 300m mark to the winning post in the home straight.

As well as the main track, Randwick Racecourse contains a second track known as Kensington. Due to large rainfall in the area, Kensington has been reconstructed using the Strathayr racing surface which is similar to Moonee Valley.

Strathayr is a turf cover over a base of sand, this means it is a free draining track which can take a substantial amount of rain without affecting the rating.

RANDWICK RACECOURSE HISTORY

Originally known as the ‘Sandy Course,’ Randwick Racecourse was first used in 1833 where a private match race between two horses was held.

In 1840 the track was abandoned as a racecourse and used for training purposes before the Australian Jockey Club (AJC) moved its headquarters to Randwick and held a meeting in 1860.

The Queen Elizabeth II stand was opened to the public on August 4, 1969, and in 1992, Queen Elizabeth II visited Randwick and opened the new $30 million Paddock Grandstand.

The Australian Derby (2400m) remains one of the longest standing races to be held at Randwick after its inaugural running took place in 1861.

Randwick hosts some of Australia’s most iconic Group 1 races throughout the year, during both the spring and autumn carnivals in Sydney.

The Queen Elizabeth Stakes, Doncaster Mile and TJ Smith Stakes are some of the elite races taking place at Randwick during the prestigious The Championships during the autumn.