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The Percy Sykes Stakes – formerly the Keith Mackay Handicap – is a lucrative Group 2 race for two-year-old fillies run on Day 2 of Sydney’s ‘The Championships’ on the second Saturday of April annually.

The meeting is also known as Queen Elizabeth Stakes Day and features four Group 1 races including the $4 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m) and $2 million Sydney Cup (3200m) for stayers.

Contested over 1200m at Royal Randwick Racecourse the Percy Sykes Stakes is run under set weights plus penalties and is now worth $600,000 in total prize money after being upgraded to Group 2 status for the first time in 2017.

The 2020 edition of the Percy Sykes Stakes was worth a reduced $500,000 due to the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on Australian racing.

Fillies may come into the Percy Sykes Stakes field via a run in the world’s richest race for juveniles – the Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m) – or the Group 2 Magic Night Stakes (1200m) earlier during the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival or be dropping in grade off a run in the Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m).

Away Game (2020) was the last Golden Slipper graduate (2nd) to win the Percy Sykes Stakes next race.

The 2020 Percy Sykes Stakes took place on Saturday April 11, 2020 and was won by the brilliant Magic Millions Classic winning filly Away Game. 

Percy Sykes Stakes 2020
Date:	Saturday April 11, 2020
Track:	Randwick Racecourse
Distance:	1200m
Race Type:	2YO Fillies – SW+P
Status:	Group 2
Prize Money:	$600,000 ($500,000 in 2020 due to COVID-19)

2019 Percy Sykes Stakes Results

• 1st: #2 Away Game
• 2nd: #9 Vangelic
• 3rd: #3 See You Soon

The Ciaron Maher & David Eustace-trained bonny filly Away Game continued her absolutely brilliant two-year-old season with another dominant performance to win the Percy Sykes Stakes 2020. The $3.20 favourite didn’t disappoint proving her toughness once again as she powered home for a 1.5 length win over the brave runner-up Vangelic on the back of a Golden Slipper second. The Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner has had a run every month since November and looks set for even bigger and better things as a three-year-old in the spring.

Click here to read more on Away Game’s win in the 2020 Percy Sykes Stakes.

Place	#	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Margin	Barrier	Weight	SP
1	2	AWAY GAME	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace	Glen Boss	–	6	56kg	$3.20F
2	9	VANGELIC	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott	Tim Clark	1.5L	1	54kg	$18
3	3	SEE YOU SOON	Jean Dubois	Jean Van Overmeire (a)	2.8L	8	54kg	$11
4	1	DAME GISELLE	Peter & Paul Snowden	James McDonald	3L	2	57kg	$7
5	10	ROCK MY WAND	Matthew Smith	Jason Collett	3.2L	13	54kg	$13
6	14	FORBIDDEN LOVE	Richard & Michael Freedman	Ms Rachel King	3.5L	12	54kg	$18
7	7	PHILIZZY	Anthony Cummings	Brenton Avdulla	4.2L	4	54kg	$15
8	4	MUNTASEERA	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace	Tom Marquand	6.4L	9	54kg (cd 54.5kg)	$15
9	6	TIME IS PRECIOUS	Gerald Ryan	James Innes Jnr	7.6L	7	54kg	$31
10	5	SWATS THAT	Leon & Troy Corstens	Sam Clipperton	8.9L	10	54kg	$8.50
11	12	MARY VALLEY	Steele Ryan	Robbie Dolan (a)	10.5L	3	54kg	$11
12	13	CHIANTI	Kris Lees	Kerrin McEvoy	12.1L	11	54kg	$17
13	11	JEMSS	David Payne	Glyn Schofield	18.7L	5	54kg	$61
–	8	SANCY	Peter & Paul Snowden	Jay Ford	–	0	–	–

2020 Percy Sykes Stakes Odds & Betting

The latest odds on the fillies in the Percy Sykes Stakes 2020 field will be available below the week of the race complete with Percy Sykes Stakes betting markets links to Ladbrokes.com.au.

2020 Percy Sykes Stakes Field

The Percy Sykes Stakes field attracts a smart field of young fillies usually dropping down in grade off a run in the Golden Slipper field. The race has a capacity of fourteen starters plus four emergencies, but rarely does the Percy Sykes Stakes field run at capacity.

The official 2020 Percy Sykes Stakes field is out the Tuesday leading-up to the race following the early Percy Sykes Stakes Nominations taken in February and the Percy Sykes Stakes First Acceptances in March about four weeks out from the April event.

The 2020 Percy Sykes Stakes final field drew 14 smart two-year-old gallopers with Golden Slipper runner-up Away Game the favourite in gate six looking to return to her previous ace Magic Millions Classic winning form.

Update: #8 Sancy (14) drawn wide for Team Snowden has been scratched.

Click here for the full 2020 Queen Elizabeth Stakes Day Scratchings & Track Report.

#	Form (Last 10)	Horse	Trainer	Jockey	Barrier	Weight
1	21×317	DAME GISELLE	Peter & Paul Snowden	James McDonald	2	57kg
2	411142	AWAY GAME	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace	Glen Boss	6	56kg
3	12×28	SEE YOU SOON	Jean Dubois	Jean Van Overmeire (a)	8	54kg
4	21×2520	MUNTASEERA	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace	Tom Marquand	9	54kg
5	1	SWATS THAT	Leon & Troy Corstens	Sam Clipperton	10	54kg
6	1×323	TIME IS PRECIOUS	Gerald Ryan	James Innes Jnr	7	54kg
7	134	PHILIZZY	Anthony Cummings	Brenton Avdulla	4	54kg
8	1×0	SANCY	Peter & Paul Snowden	Jay Ford	14	54kg
9	162	VANGELIC	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott	Tim Clark	1	54kg
10	73321	ROCK MY WAND	Matthew Smith	Jason Collett	13	54kg
11	43×37	JEMSS	David Payne	Glyn Schofield	5	54kg
12	2×1	MARY VALLEY	Steele Ryan	Robbie Dolan (a)	3	54kg
13	1	CHIANTI	Kris Lees	Kerrin McEvoy	11	54kg
14	1	FORBIDDEN LOVE	Richard & Michael Freedman	Ms Rachel King	12	54kg

2020 Percy Sykes Stakes First Acceptances

The official 2020 Percy Sykes Stakes First Acceptances are taken in mid-March along with all the other The Championships races narrowing down the list of potential runners in the lucrative Group 2 race.

The Percy Sykes Stakes 2020 first acceptances feature 85 hopeful young fillies including the Magic Millions 2YO Classic winner Away Game coming off a Golden Slipper second.

#	Form (Last 10)	Horse	Sex	Age	Trainer
1	3	ACACIA ROAD	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
2	–	AKAHAI	F	2	James Cummings
3	4	ALIGHTED	F	2	Anthony Cummings
4	–	ALTERNATE	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
5	–	ARCTIC THUNDER	F	2	Gary Portelli
6	–	ATTRIBUTION	F	2	James Cummings
7	–	AUDACIOUS HEART	F	2	Anthony Freedman
8	0	AUTUMN FALLS	F	2	Gary Portelli
9	–	AVENTURINE	F	2	Tony Gollan
10	3435	AVENUE OF PLEASURE	F	2	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig
11	411142	AWAY GAME	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
12	–	AZRAQ	F	2	James Cummings
13	5	BROOKS BATTLE	F	2	John O’Shea
14	–	CABARITA	F	2	Richard & Michael Freedman
15	3×46	CANADIAN SPICE	F	2	Chris Waller
16	4×153	CELLSABEEL	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
17	1	CHIANTI	F	2	Kris Lees
18	32	CHICA FUERTE	F	2	Anthony Freedman
19	227166	COSMIC GOSSIP	F	2	Stuart Kendrick
20	–	COVENT GARDEN	F	2	Chris Waller
21	27	DAISY CAKES	F	2	Anthony Freedman
22	21×317	DAME GISELLE	F	2	Peter & Paul Snowden
23	25	DENIKI	F	2	Mark Newnham
24	84377	DISMISSAL	F	2	Gary Portelli
25	20	DOTTIE DEE (NZ)	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
26	26×18	DUBAI STAR	F	2	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
27	6×86	FALL ON A STAR	F	2	Kris Lees
28	44443	FAYERRA	F	2	Anthony Cummings
29	5×6343	GEIST	F	2	James Cummings
30	1	GLACIERS	F	2	James Cummings
31	155	HARMONIUM	F	2	Richard & Michael Freedman
32	–	HEAD ON UP	F	2	Richard & Michael Freedman
33	530	HEMBROW	F	2	Michael Costa
34	4	HEROESS	F	2	Peter & Paul Snowden
35	215	HUNGRY HEART	F	2	Chris Waller
36	19	HYBRID THEORY	F	2	Bjorn Baker
37	1	I SAY HELLO (NZ)	F	2	Kris Lees
38	5x25x	IN FLANDERS	F	2	James Cummings
39	43×37	JEMSS	F	2	David Payne
40	10	KAAKIT AKIT	F	2	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
41	2763	LADY OF LUXURY	F	2	Bjorn Baker
42	9	LATIN LYRIC	F	2	Craig Carmody
43	–	LUCE DEL SOLE	F	2	Richard & Michael Freedman
44	0x48	LUISELLI	F	2	Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes
45	–	MACROURA	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
46	223	MASSEUSE	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
47	45	MEYDAN LASS	F	2	Kris Lees
48	115×1330	MILDRED	F	2	Grahame Begg
49	110	MINHAAJ	F	2	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig
50	2×23	MISS CANADA	F	2	Kris Lees
51	–	MISS PARMIGIANA	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
52	–	MISSOURI WALTZ	F	2	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
53	14	MONTIA	F	2	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig
54	21×2520	MUNTASEERA	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
55	0P	ONLY MINE	F	2	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
56	4x	PANNA COTTA	F	2	Mark Newnham
57	2130	PERSONAL	F	2	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig
58	134	PHILIZZY	F	2	Anthony Cummings
59	510	PINK BEAU	F	2	Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes
60	–	POIGNANT	F	2	Peter & Paul Snowden
61	–	PRESS BUTTON	F	2	Gregory Hickman
62	35×7	PRESS START	F	2	Gregory Hickman
63	22	PRINCESS BETTY	F	2	Kim Waugh
64	2	RAISON D’ETRE	F	2	James Cummings
65	2	READY FOR CAVIAR	F	2	David & B Hayes & T Dabernig
66	3×9215	RIVER NIGHT	F	2	Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra
67	73321	ROCK MY WAND	F	2	Matthew Smith
68	1×0	SANCY	F	2	Peter & Paul Snowden
69	12×28	SEE YOU SOON	F	2	Jean Dubois
70	–	SHIVANI	F	2	Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes
71	4x	SOUL OBSESSION	F	2	Anthony Freedman
72	2×2225	STELLAR PAULINE	F	2	Peter & Paul Snowden
73	15×5750	SUNBORN	F	2	Edward Cummings
74	6	SWEET ANNA	F	2	John Thompson
75	42110	THERMOSPHERE	F	2	James Cummings
76	3×3468	TICKET TO RIDE	F	2	Richard & Michael Freedman
77	1×323	TIME IS PRECIOUS	F	2	Gerald Ryan
78	3	UNIVERSAL LADY	F	2	Ciaron Maher & David Eustace
79	162	VANGELIC	F	2	Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott
80	–	WIJDAAN	F	2	Anthony Cummings
81	7	WILD IRISH	F	2	David Payne
82	45	XYLAROO	F	2	Chris Waller
83	3×11	ZEFTABROOK	F	2	Kris Lees
84	6	ZERETTE	F	2	Archie Alexander
85	–	ZOU ISLAND	F	2	Damien Lane

Percy Sykes Stakes History

The Percy Sykes Stakes was first run back in 1960 as the Keith Mackay Handicap and was won by Primrose Lane. It started out as a non-black type race and gained its now Group 2 race status for the first time in 2017. The event is still officially registered as the Keith Mackay Handicap despite it not being raced under handicap conditions, in honour of the former AJC Chairman Keith Mackay.

For one year in 2014 the race was known as the Royal Randwick Stakes and added to the ATC Championships series of races enjoying a notable boost in prize money. The current race name – Percy Sykes Stakes – is in honour of esteemed veterinarian Percy Sykes who passed away in 2014. He is best known for his work with legendary trainers including Bart Cummings, Gai Waterhouse and her father TJ Smith – whom the TJ Smith Stakes is named after.

Keith Mackay Handicap / Percy Sykes Stakes Winners

During the early stages of Percy Sykes Stakes history the race didn’t hold a huge amount of prestige and attracted a mediocre class of fillies. As it increased in status and prize money the Percy Sykes Stakes winners have also improved with notable champions of the event including Streama (2011), Eloping (2014), Missrock (2016), Shoals (2017) who went on to defeat the older mares during Melbourne Cup Carnival in the Group 1 Myer Classic (1600m) and the brilliant Away Game (2020).

See below for the list of Percy Sykes Stakes winners and placegetters going back to 2000.

Year	Place	Horse	Time
2020 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Away Game	1 minute 12.26 seconds
	2nd	Vangelic
	3rd	See You Soon
2019 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Anaheed	1 minute 09.67 seconds
	2nd	Flit
	3rd	Villami
2018 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Pure Elation	1 minute 10.08 seconds
	2nd	Fiesta
	3rd	Outback Barbie
2017 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Shoals	1 minute 13.7 seconds
	2nd	Formality
	3rd	Serena Bay
2016 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Missrock	1 minute 11 seconds
	2nd	Prompt Response
	3rd	Spright
2015 Percy Sykes Stakes	1st	Ottoman	1 minute 12.4 seconds
	2nd	Calaverite
	3rd	Lake Geneva
2014 Royal Randwick Stakes	1st	Eloping	1 minute 10.8 seconds
	2nd	Ygritte
	3rd	Shaumari
2013 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Everage	1 minute 13.4 seconds
	2nd	Little Miss Smiley
	3rd	Major Conquest
2012 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Single Style	1 minute 10.5 seconds
	2nd	Driefontein
	3rd	Meidung
2011 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Streama	1 minute 8.5 seconds
	2nd	Charm’s Honour
	3rd	Houston Benefactor
2010 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Golden Millennium	1 minute 10.2 seconds
	2nd	Boto Vermelho
	3rd	Parables
2009 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Readyor	1 minute 13.1 seconds
	2nd	Amarantha
	3rd	Tallow
2008 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Shoboard	1 minute 12.6 seconds
	2nd	Strawberry Field
	3rd	Silent But Deadly
2007 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Sliding Cube	1 minute 11.1 seconds
	2nd	Gamble Me
	3rd	Mega Lass
2006 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Catechuchu	1 minute 10.6 seconds
	2nd	Heart Of The Fire
	3rd	Admirelle
2005 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Blizzardly	1 minute 12.3 seconds
	2nd	Regal Cheer
	3rd	Heart Strings
2004 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Strawberry Storm	1 minute 11.5 seconds
	2nd	Sweet Ransom
	3rd	Monsoon Wedding
2003 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Bella Corona	1 minute 12.0 seconds
	2nd	Shamekha
	3rd	Danish Magic
2002 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Before Too Long	1 minute 10.2 seconds
	2nd	Verstak
	3rd	Cirque du Soleil
2001 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Allez France	1 minute 10.8 seconds
	2nd	Miss Bussell
	3rd	Breezer
2000 Keith Mackay Handicap	1st	Actress	1 minute 9.7 seconds
	2nd	She’s A Pretender
	3rd	Mielleuse