VRC Oaks 2024
VRC Oaks
Preview, Trends & Analysis
- Date: 3/11/2022
- Distance: 2500m
- Course: Flemington
- Conditions: Fillies Set Weights
- Level: Group 1
- Prize money: $1,000,000
The Rundown
The VRC Oaks is the premier staying event for the three-year-old fillies who are part of the Spring Racing Carnival.
Run over 2500 metres at Flemington, the race boasts a $1,000,000 prize pool with the the winner receiving $600,000.
The inaugural running of the VRC Oaks dates all the way back to 1861 with the first winner of the race being Palestine.
A genuine stamina sapping test for the three-year-old fillies, the race is run on the third day of the Flemington Spring Racing Carnival which falls on a Thursday.
The day is usually centred around a focus on the women at the racetrack with Oaks Day being dubbed ‘Ladies Day.’
The VRC Oaks ranks equal first as the most valuable race for fillies in Australia alongside the AJC Oaks and the Queen of The Turf.
The Famous Winners and Record Results
Jockeys and trainers have made this race their own in recent memory.
This year, Damien Oliver equalled Bobbie Lewis’ record for wins in the race by claiming his seventh Oaks victory when piloting Willowy to success.
The victory made it the first success in the Oaks for the Godolphin training operation in Australia.
Legendary trainer Bart Cummings is the current record holder from a trainers perspective having won the race an unprecedented nine times.
Faint Perfume (2009) was Bart’s final victory in the race before his death.
Other famous winners of the Oaks include Jameka (2015) who would then go on to become a staying champion by winning the Caulfield Cup the following the year.
Mosheen (2011) bolted in the Oaks in sloppy and heavy conditions, while Samantha Miss (2008) and star filly Miss Finland (2006) were also triumphant.
Melbourne Cup winning horse Light Fingers (1964) also made the race her own.
The Statistics
Barrier two and barrier seven have provided the most amount of winners in the VRC Oaks in the last 38 years.
Barrier two is where 2021 winner Willowy jumped from.
Wide barriers seem to be no issue as well with four winners jumping from barrier ten in this time.
Barrier 4, 5, 6, 8 and 9 have all housed three winers each in the last 38 years.
There have been 16 favourites to win the VRC Oaks in the last 38 years with Willowy (2021) being the most recent to do so.
Prior to her victory this year, the John Sargent-trained filly Kirramosa (2013) was the last favourite to win the race.
The VRC is a race restricted to three-year-old fillies.
That said, you usually want to be siding with a filly who has at least had one or two runs in her two-year-old campaign which usually provides a nice platform to catapult into longer distances.
Generally, the main lead-up runs for the fillies heading into the Oaks will be through the Wakeful Stakes (2000m) at Flemington on Derby Day or, more recently, the Ethereal Stakes (2000m) at Caulfield.
Some fillies will also use the Thousand Guineas as the lead-up to the VRC Oaks.
Willowy used the Wakeful Stakes as her platform to victory in the 2021 Oaks.
VRC Oaks Recent Winners
Year | Winner | Trainer | Jockey | Odds |
2021 | Willowy | James Cummings | Damien Oliver | $3.8 |
2020 | Personal | Tom Dabernig & Ben Hayes | Damien Oliver | $6 |
2019 | Miami Bound | Danny O’Brien | Damien Oliver | $4.2 |
2018 | Aristia | Mathew Ellerton & Simon Zahra | Damian Lane | $5.5 |
2017 | Pinot | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Stephen Baster | $5.5 |
2016 | Lasqueti Spirit | Lee Curtis | Brenton Avdulla | $101 |
2015 | Jameka | Ciaron Maher | Damien Oliver | $4.5 |
2014 | Set Square | Ciaron Maher | Hugh Bowman | $7.5 |
2013 | Kirramosa | John Sargent | Nash Rawiller | $2.70 |
2012 | Dear Demi | Clarry Conners | Jim Cassidy | $5 |
2011 | Mosheen | Robert Smerdon | Danny Nikolic | $5 |
2010 | Brazilian Pulse | Michael Moroney | Craig Williams | $3 |
The Questions
3rd November, 2022.
- Yes, there are eight other races on the nine-race program.
- The Inglis Bracelet (1600m), The Darley Ottawa Stakes (1000m), The Century Stakes (1000m) and the Melbourne Cup Carnival Country Cup Final (1600m) are also feature events on the day.
- Download the brand new BetDeluxe app on iPhone or Android from your app store and/or punch in betdeluxe.com.au to your browser.
BetDeluxe is your home for all different types of ways to bet not only on the VRC Oaks but every race across Australia.
- Given the VRC Oaks is usually the final target race for juvenule staying horses in the spring, nearly all runners will head to the spelling paddock.
- A return in the Autumn to the tackle staying races such as the AJC Oaks might be on the offering.
