The Robert Sangster Stakes, or Sportingbet Classic, is a Group 1 horse race held each year at Morphetville Racecourse in Adelaide.  This female event is run over 1200 metres, with horses racing under weight-for-age conditions for $400,000 in prizemoney.  The Robert Sangster Stakes has been run since 1983, making it a relatively new inclusion on the Australian racing calendar.

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The Robert Sangster Stakes was originally named the Swettenham Stakes, changing to the Robert Sangster Stakes in 2005 and the Sportingbet Classic in 2010.  Robert Sangster was the principal of Swettenham Stud, with the name change taking place in 2005 after the prolific owner and breeder died in 2004.  Originally a Special Race, this event became a Listed Race in 1984, a Group 3 race in 1986, a Group 2 race in 2004, and a Group 1 race in 2005.

While most runners in this event are local South Australian horses, there is some interstate interest in this event from horses who want to compete in an entry level Group 1 race.  Two of the more notable names who have won the Robert Sangster Stakes are Alinghi in 2005 and Black Caviar in 2012.  Other classy horses who have won this race over the years include Egyptian Raine in 2003, Apple Danish in 1997, and With Me in 1991.

Champion mare Black Caviar in 2012 and Platelet in 2013 both went on to win the Group 1 Goodwood on their next start after winning the Robert Sangster Stakes.  Recent graduation to Group 1 status has made this an attractive event for many horses, with this race now held on the same day as the Group 1 Australasian Oaks, Group 2 Queen Of The South Stakes, Group 3 SA Chairmans Stakes, and Group 3 DC Mckay Stakes.

The race record for this event is held by Umaline, who came home in 2001 in a time of 1:08.14.  Lee Freeman and Mick Price share the record for most wins by a trainer, with Freeman winning three consecutive times between 2005 and 2007 and Mick Price winning in 1998, 2004, and 2009.

In the news:

Trainer Jason Warren was relieved to win with one well-related galloper at Geelong on Thursday and he is confident of doing likewise with another at Flemington on Anzac Day.

Warren has Cox Plate winner Shamus Award’s older half-sister Double Dee in Friday’s Kokoda Track Handicap, a day after producing stable star Bel Sprinter’s younger brother Bel Rain to win on debut at Geelong.

Double Dee is also entered for the Group Two Queen Of The South Stakes at Morphettville on Saturday but Warren said the mare would run in Melbourne after drawing wide in both races.

“We toyed with the idea of taking her to Adelaide but when she drew the outside barrier in Adelaide we thought we’d go with the outside barrier at home, rather than going all the way over there,” Warren said.

“We’re going to run her at Flemington. She’ll be very hard to beat there.”

The winner of four of her 16 starts, Double Dee is favourite for Friday’s 1610m race.

Warren is looking to take Double Dee to Queensland in search of valuable black type during the winter carnival.

Three-year-old Bel Rain stepped out in a 1200m maiden on the synthetic track and pressed forward from the outside gate before going on to score by two lengths.

“I was very relieved to see him step out and do what he did,” Warren said.

The trainer said he had taken his time with Bel Rain in the belief he was better than average.

“He’s not the horse Bel Sprinter is but he’s certainly above average,” he said.

Bel Sprinter’s career has included a victory in the Group One Galaxy last year and a second in the KrisFlyer International Sprint in Singapore.

The six-year-old hasn’t won this season but gets another chance in the Group One Goodwood in Adelaide on May 10.

“Hopefully we get a dry track,” Warren said.