The 2016 Group 1 $500,000 Treasury Casino & Hotel Queensland Oaks (2400m) will be run next Saturday at Eagle Farm on Stradbroke Handicap Day after the reopening of the newly reconstructed Eagle Farm track was cancelled last Saturday because of the wild weather.

Heavy rain on Friday and Saturday morning caused the cancellation of the Queensland Oaks meeting with Racing Queensland and Brisbane Racing Club officials transferring the fillies classic to Saturday’s Eagle Farm meeting that already has the Group 1 $1.5m AAMI Stradbroke Handicap (1400m), the Group 1 $600,000 Channel Seven Queensland Derby (2400m) and the Group 1 $600,000 BMW J.J. Atkins (1600m) for the two year olds.

The running of four Group 1s is some consolation for the delayed reopening of the Eagle Farm track, but BRC Chairman Neville Bell is looking forward to this weekend’s Super Saturday of racing.

“It is a massive coup for the return to racing at Eagle Farm to have the biggest race day ever staged in Queensland on Stradbroke Day,” said Bell.

“We are extremely excited about AAMI Stradbroke Day which will be a sensational way to officially open Eagle Farm.”

The field for the Queensland Oaks will stay intact, with the scratchings being reinstated while the field for the Group 2 $175,000 QTC Cup (1300m), also transferred to Stradbroke Handicap Day, will be made up of new nominations.

The Listed $100,000 Lightning Handicap will now be run at Doomben on Wednesday with the distance being amended from 1000m to 1050m while the Listed $100,000 Spear Chief Handicap (1500m) will be added to the Tattersall’s Club Tiara Race Day on June 25.

“It is unfortunate that racing was unable to go ahead at Eagle Farm but the safety of our participants is our number one priority,” Racing Queensland Acting Chief Executive Officer Sam Adams said.

“There were many factors to consider in devising a contingency plan, but we feel this is the best possible outcome for all participants without impacting on the existing races programmed for the remainder of the Queensland Winter Racing Carnival.

“Re-programming the entire meeting to an alternate day was considered but it was deemed impractical to do so without adversely impacting existing meetings and participants.

“The positive of this situation is we will now have four Group 1 races, four Group 2 races and 2 Listed race on a Super Saturday of racing at Eagle Farm for AAMI Stradbroke Day next Saturday after the transfer of the Treasury Casino & Hotel Queensland Oaks and the QTC Cup.”