Werribee Racing Club will host seven race meetings next season, including the much-loved Werribee Cup.
The first meeting on the 2016-17 racing calendar will be on Tuesday, November 29, with the Cup on Sunday, December 11, following the successful hosting of the event in December last year.
Historically, the Werribee Cup has been run on the Wednesday before the Melbourne Cup – usually late October – but organisers have struggled to hold down a consistent date since the international quarantine centre opened in the suburb in 2010.
Racing club general manager Glenn Scott said he believed hosting the event on a Sunday close to Christmas was a winning formula.
He said the club was looking to build on its successful 2015-16 program with an additional meeting next season. “The track has raced well all season and is a credit to track manager Paul Downs and his staff,” Mr Scott said. “It’s now widely regarded by all trainers as one of the better surfaces in the state.”
The club cannot hold race meetings between September and mid-November because of quarantine restrictions, with many international horses stabled at the international quarantine centre.
2016-17 race dates
- Tuesday, November 29, 2016
- Sunday, December 11, 2016 – TAB Werribee Cup
- Friday, January 27, 2017
- Monday, February 13, 2017
- Friday, February 24, 2017
- Saturday, April 8, 2017
- Monday, May 15, 2017
