A host of potential Caulfield Cup horses make-up the Underwood Stakes 2017 nominations for the spring staying showdown held this Sunday at Caulfield Racecourse.

Dato’ Tan Chin Nam Stakes winning mare Bonneval is a key nominee for Sunday’s 2017 Underwood Stakes at Caulfield Racecourse. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

Punters are treated to three Group 1 race meetings across the footy Grand Finals long weekend including in Melbourne on Sunday for Underwood Stakes Day.

The feature race on the card is the Group 1 $750,000 Underwood Stakes (1800m) for the staying types who could return to the track on October 21 for a shot at the Group 1 $3 million Caulfield Cup (2400m).

One of the best in futures Caulfield Cup betting at Ladbrokes.com.au featuring prominently in the bumper 16 Underwood Stakes nominations is in-form Kiwi-trained mare Bonneval.

The Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman-trained daughter of Makfi won the NZ Oaks – ATC Oaks double over the mile and a half as a three-year-old and returned to winning form first-up down under on September 9.

The now four-year-old took out Moonee Valley’s Group 2 Dato’ Tan Chin Nam Stakes (1600m) and now chases her sixth win on the trot stepping up to 1800m in the Underwood Stakes.

A $7 fancy in all-in Caulfield Cup odds, Bonneval is out to break the hoodoo of mares in the Underwood Stakes results with the last to beat home the boys being Tristarc way back in 1985.

The Dato’ Tan Chin Nam Stakes form has held up a number of times in the Underwood over the past decade including producing two of the past three winners.

The other best Dato’ Tan Chin Nam Stakes graduate nominated for a Sunday rematch with Bonneval in the Underwood Stakes this spring is Michael Kent’s runner-up Abbey Marie.

Five-year-old Redoute’s Choice mare Abbey Marie has had another run in between however having finished fifth to Harlem in last Saturday’s Group 3 Naturalism Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield.

The other two mares in Underwood Stakes contention in 2017 are the Nick Olive’s Single Gaze who ran fifth to Humidor as a $101 roughie in the Group 1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington a fortnight ago and the Lindsay Park-trained Samovare.

Four-year-old Savabeel mare Samovare also contested the Naturalism Stakes last Saturday vying for the Caulfield Cup ballot exemption and ran a brave second.

The David Hayes-led Lindsay Park stable have a total of five Underwood Stakes nominees this weekend.

Their other entries are He’s Our Rokkii, Jacquinot Bay, Petrology and Ventura Storm.

The other standout Underwood Stakes entry sure to dominate betting meanwhile is the James Cummings-trained Godolphin galloper Hartnell.

First-up Hartnell won the Group 2 P.B. Lawrence Stakes (1400m), the seven-year-old backing-up with a second in the Makybe Diva Stakes that produced last year’s Underwood Stakes winner Black Heart Bart (2^nd in 2016).

Check out the official Underwood Stakes 2017 nominations below, the final field and barriers set for release on Wednesday followed by updated markets at Ladbrokes.com.au.

2017 Underwood Stakes Nominations

Caulfield Racecourse – 01/10/2017