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Adelaide in South Australia is home to an exciting and elite range of Group races that are held as part of the 2023 Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival.

Morphettville Racecourse, approximately five kilometres out of the Adelaide CBD, is the premier South Australian track and the location of the Adelaide Racing Carnival. Conducted by the South Australian Jockey Club (SAJC) the major period of racing at Morphettville runs through March until May annually.

Before the carnival gets into full swing, the Group 3 Lord Reims Stakes (2600m) runs in early March as a lead-up to the iconic Adelaide Cup, which is contested over the same two mile distance as the world famous Melbourne Cup in the spring.

From mid-March things heat up with Adelaide Cup Day and the opening Group 1 race contested at Morphettville each season takes place on either the last Saturday in April or first of May with the running of the Australasian Oaks.

Other highlights during the Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival including the South Australian Derby for the three-year-old stayers and The Goodwood sprint worth half-a-million in prize money and attracts stars from right around the country.

Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival Race Days

There are a host of major Morphettville race days held during the annual Adelaide Racing Carnival:

• Adelaide Cup Day
• Auraria Stakes Day
• RN Irwin Stakes Day
• Australasian Oaks Day
• Robert Sangster Stakes Day
• SA Derby Day
• Goodwood Day

ADELAIDE CUP DAY

Monday March 13, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

The first official race meeting of the carnival takes place on a Monday in mid-March making for a long weekend in South Australia to celebrate Adelaide Cup Day. The highlight race of the day is the Group 2 $300,000 Adelaide Cup (3200m), which is an open handicap and the most prestigious distance race of the carnival.

2023 AURARIA STAKES DAY

Saturday April 15, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

Auraria Stakes Day runs in mid-April and is headlined by the Group 3 $127,250 Auraria Stakes (1800m) for the three-year-old Australasian Oaks-bound fillies. Also on the program are the Listed $107,250 Port Adelaide Guineas (1800m) which has produced a number of subsequent SA Derby winners over the years. The two-year-old fillies also have a black-type target on the card in the form of the Listed $107,250 Dequetteville Stakes (1050m).

2023 RN IRWIN STAKES DAY

Saturday April 22, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse 

Towards the end of April Morphettville hosts a double shot of Group 3 racing action including the weight-for-age RN Irwin Stakes (1100m) for horses that traditionally back-up in the Euclase Stakes before shooting for a Group 1 The Goodwood run. The meeting also features the Listed $107,250 Redelva Stakes (1100m) for the three-year-old sprinters.

2023 AUSTRALASIAN OAKS DAY

Saturday April 29, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

As of 2022, the opening Group 1 of the Adelaide Autumn Racing Carnival is now the Group 1 Australasian Oaks, which is a 2000m race for three-year-old fillies at set weights worth $500,000 in stakes. Previously run on Robert Sangster Stakes Day, the Australasian or South Australian Oaks is now the feature race on its own meeting. Another South Australian Derby lead-up takes place on the same day in the form of the Group 3 SAJC Chairman’s Stakes (2000m), while the Group 3 Breeders’ Stakes (1200m) for the two-year-old is the other key support act on the card.

2023 ROBERT SANGSTER STAKES DAY

Saturday May 6, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

The second Group 1 Morphettville race meeting of the autumn, this day is held on a Saturday in early May and the feature race on the card is the Group 1 Robert Sangster Stakes (1200m), which is a weight-for-age event for fillies and mares currently offering just over $500,000 in prize money and won by the likes of Black Caviar (2012) and Allinghi (2005).

The Goodwood-bound sprinters do battle in the Group 2 $202,250 Eucalse Stakes (1200m), while the other key races on the program are the Group 3 $127,250 DC McKay Stakes (1100m) and Group 2 $202,250 Queen Of The South Stakes (1600m).

2023 SOUTH AUSTRALIAN DERBY DAY

Saturday May 13,  2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

The Adelaide Group 1 events continue in the form of the South Australian Derby (2500m) in mid-May, which offers a total of $500,000 in prize money and that attracts stayers from local and interstate stables. Runners may come off a Morphettville lead-up in a race like the Chairman’s Stakes or Australasian Oaks. The other Group status race on SA Derby Day sees the two-year-olds face off in the Group 3 SA Sires’ Produce Stakes (1400m) on the Morphettville Parks track, while the  Listed Adelaide Guineas (1600m) for three-year-olds is also popular with the punters.

2023 THE GOODWOOD DAY

Saturday May 20, 2023 – Morphettville Racecourse

With half-a-million million in prize money up for grabs, Adelaide’s premier sprint race is the Group 1 The Goodwood (1200m) run in late May. The race is now a set weights plus penalties event and continues to draw ace sprinters from interstate stables with standout winners including Black Caviar (2012) and Black Heart Bart (2016).

The Goodwood Day also hosts four Group 3 events making for a top day of racing and betting. The Group 3 RA Lee Stakes (1600m) is a great race for milers, the two-year-olds face off in the Group 3 National Stakes (1200m), the Group 3 SA Fillies Classic (2500m) is a top event for the Australasian Oaks graduates and the Group 3 Proud Miss Stakes (1200m) is open to fillies & mares only.