The Summer Cup is a Group 3 handicap held at Royal Randwick on Boxing Day each December over the Christmas racing season.
2023 Summer Cup Results
- 1st: #5 Lion's Roar
- 2nd: #3 Luncies
- 3rd: #9 Baby Rider
Summer Cup News
The Summer Cup is a Group 3 handicap event held at Royal Randwick Racecourse each year on Boxing Day, December 26. After a break from racing on Christmas Day, the Boxing Day races in Sydney are hugely popular.
Held over 2000m under handicap conditions, the Summer Cup is open to all horses aged three years and older. With $250,000 prize money on offer as of 2023, the Summer Cup is a decent target for horses who are at the end of their spring campaign.
It stands as one of the only Group events held in Sydney during the summer and is the only Black-Type race on the card that day. Elsewhere in the country Caulfield Racecourse also hosts some popular Boxing Day races with the Listed Christmas Stakes (1100m) and Listed Lord Stakes (1700m) running in Melbourne.
The Group 2 $2 million The Ingham (1600m) – formerly known as the Villiers Stakes – is a reasonably popular lead up race to the Summer Cup, however the Villiers Stakes – Summer Cup double hasn’t been completed since Aqua D’Amore (2005).
Following the Summer Cup, most horses head to the paddock. Some might choose to head over to Western Australia for the last of the Perth Summer Racing Carnival races including the Group 2 Perth Cup (2400m) run on New Year’s Day.
Summer Cup graduates may also continue onto the Queensland’s Magic Millions Day races the following month at the Gold Coast. The 2021 Summer Cup winner Parry Sound went on to run a good fourth the following January in the $1 million Magic Millions Trophy (2400m).
The 2022 Summer Cup runner-up Sky Lab won the Magic Millions Trophy next start at the Gold Coast in January of 2023.
The 2023 Summer Cup ran on Tuesday December 26, 2023 as part of the Boxing Day racing program in Sydney and saw the John O’Shea-trained Lion’s Roar ($2.80F) salute for his punters to break a notable winning drought.
| Summer Cup 2023 | |
|---|---|
| Date: | Tuesday December 26, 2023 |
| Track: | Royal Randwick |
| Distance: | 2000m |
| Race Type: | 3YO+ Handicap |
| Status: | Group 3 |
| Prize Money: | $250,000 |
2023 Summer Cup Results
- 1st: #5 Lion’s Roar ($2.80F)
- 2nd: #3 Luncies
- 3rd: #9 Baby Rider
John O’Shea’s Contributer six-year-old Lion’s Roar ($2.80F) finally returned to winning form when clinging on in a tight finish to hold off Luncies and salute for the punters in the 2023 Summer Cup results in Sydney on Boxing Day for his first turf triumph since the Group 1 Randwick Guineas in March of 2021.
| Finish | No. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Bar. | Weight | Penalty | Starting Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | LION’S ROAR (NZ) | John O’Shea | Tyler Schiller | 3 | 55kg | $2.80F | |||
| 2 | 3 | LUNCIES (GB) | Kris Lees | Dylan Gibbons (a) | 0.38L | 1 | 57kg | $11 | ||
| 3 | 9 | BABY RIDER (FR) | Bjorn Baker | Ms Rachel King | 1.02L | 5 | 53kg | $4.20 | ||
| 4 | 2 | STOCKMAN (NZ) | Joseph Pride | Reece Jones | 1.13L | 4 | 58kg | $9.50 | ||
| 5 | 4 | DARK DESTROYER (NZ) | John O’Shea | Zac Lloyd (a) | 4.01L | 2 | 56kg | $15 | ||
| 6 | 1 | HUETOR (FR) | Peter & Paul Snowden | Tom Sherry | 4.45L | 6 | 60kg | $8.50 | ||
| 7 | 6 | WARNING | Anthony & Sam Freedman | Keagan Latham | 7.89L | 7 | 54kg (cd 55kg) | $17 | ||
| 8 | 10 | WYCLIF (GB) | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | Brock Ryan | 7.98L | 10 | 53kg | $17 | ||
| 9 | 8 | REGAL LION (NZ) | Annabel Neasham | Ashley Morgan | 11.66L | 8 | 53.5kg | $31 | ||
| 10 | 7 | FOUJITA SAN | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Jay Ford | 13.08L | 9 | 54kg | $17 | ||
| 11 | DEFICIT | Gerald Ryan & Sterling Alexiou | Jay Ford | 0 |
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
2023 Summer Cup Betting Odds
The latest Summer Cup odds on the Group 3 Boxing Day race at Royal Randwick will be found below complete with links to Ladbrokes.com.au for you to back your Summer Cup Tips at the best racing odds!
Spirit Ridge ($3.60 in 2020) and Lion’s Roar ($2.80 in 2023) are the latest favourites in Summer Cup betting to salute for the punters.
There was a notable upset meanwhile in 2021 with Parry Sound saluting at Summer Cup odds of $26.
CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST 2023 SUMMER CUP ODDS (Final Field)
2023 Summer Cup Form Guide
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL 2023 SUMMER CUP FORM GUIDE
2023 Summer Cup Tips
Stay tuned for our insider Summer Cup 2023 Tips on the popular Boxing Day race in Sydney this summer.
- To Win: #5 Lion’s Roar ($2.80 at time of publish) – BET NOW
Great edition of the Summer Cup race on Boxing Day and happy to stick with the John O’Shea-trained favourite Lion’s Roar. Good gate three draw for the Contriubter six-year-old who is out to finally break a notable losing streak. He hasn’t won a race since his 2021 Group 1 Randwick Guineas victory. He has been competitive at the highest level without winning throughout his entire career however and looks well positioned to return to winning form here. Top form of late including a Group 2 $2 million The Ingham third only a half-length beaten over the mile here on December 9. Can salute.
2023 Summer Cup Field
The Summer Cup Field attracts a quality line-up of middle-distance summer stayers, many of which are backing-up out of a Villiers Stakes run over the Randwick mile in mid-December.
Racing NSW officially release the Summer Cup 2023 Final Field & Barriers the Thursday before the race and the acceptances will be available in full below.
The 2023 Summer Cup field features a quality line-up of hopefuls led in betting by former Randwick Guineas winner Lion’s Roar and the Peter & Paul Snowden-trained top-weight Huetor.
| No | Last 10 | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Probable Weight | Penalty | Hcp Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 653216×067 | HUETOR (FR) | Peter & Paul Snowden | Tom Sherry | 6 | 60kg | 109 | ||
| 2 | 75×0984019 | STOCKMAN (NZ) | Joseph Pride | Reece Jones | 4 | 58kg | 105 | ||
| 3 | 22418×9840 | LUNCIES (GB) | Kris Lees | Dylan Gibbons (a) | 1 | 57kg | 103 | ||
| 4 | 4x1x060x90 | DARK DESTROYER (NZ) | John O’Shea | Zac Lloyd (a) | 2 | 56kg | 101 | ||
| 5 | 0020×50623 | LION’S ROAR (NZ) | John O’Shea | Tyler Schiller | 3 | 55kg | 99 | ||
| 6 | 06x00427x2 | WARNING | Anthony & Sam Freedman | 7 | 54kg | 96 | |||
| 7 | 70×5431601 | FOUJITA SAN | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | 9 | 54kg | 83 | |||
| 8 | 437x0169x0 | REGAL LION (NZ) | Annabel Neasham | Ashley Morgan | 8 | 53.5kg | 96 | ||
| 9 | x9x07x0851 | BABY RIDER (FR) | Bjorn Baker | Ms Rachel King | 5 | 53kg | 94 | ||
| 10 | 770×013952 | WYCLIF (GB) | Ciaron Maher & David Eustace | Brock Ryan | 10 | 53kg | 84 | ||
| 11 | 7x5605x254 | DEFICIT | Gerald Ryan & Sterling Alexiou | Jay Ford | 11 | 53kg | 76 |
Table Credit: Racing Australia.
Summer Cup History
The Summer Cup was inaugurated in 1890, with Stockwell taking home the first Summer Cup trophy. Throughout the years, the Summer Cup has been variously held at Warwick Farm, Rosehill Gardens and its current home, Royal Randwick.
The distance of the Summer Cup has varied too, with it running over 2400m at Rosehill in 2011, as opposed to its current 2000m.
Quite a few decent horses have gone through the Summer Cup. Notable recent Summer Cup winners include I’m Imposing (2013-14), Mighty Lucky (2015), and Red Excitement (2016) who improved on a lead-up third in the Group 3 Festival Stakes (1500m) at Rosehill three weeks earlier. Red Excitement also went on to run second to Montauk (2017) in the following year’s Summer Cup results.
The Summer Cup form of 2018 was franked the following year when the winner Fierce Impact dominated the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival winning the Group 1 Toorak Handicap – Group 1 Cantala Stakes double in 2019.
In 2022 Diamil set a new Summer Cup race record winning over the 2000m in 2 minutes 00.76 seconds.
In 2023 Lion’s Roar won the Summer Cup in his first victory since the 2021 Randwick Guineas.
Summer Cup Results
| Year | Place | Horse | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 Summer Cup |
1st | Lion’s Roar | 2 minutes 2.87 seconds |
| 2nd | Luncies | ||
| 3rd | Baby Rider | ||
| 2022 Summer Cup |
1st | Diamil | 2 minutes 00.76 seconds |
| 2nd | Sky Lab | ||
| 3rd | Berdibek | ||
| 2021 Summer Cup |
1st | Parry Sound | 2 minutes 4.94 seconds |
| 2nd | Criaderas | ||
| 3rd | Polly Grey | ||
| 2020 Summer Cup |
1st | Spirit Ridge | 2 minutes 2.20 seconds |
| 2nd | Best Of Days | ||
| 3rd | Black On Gold | ||
| 2019 Summer Cup |
1st | Luvaluva | 2 minutes 2.84 seconds |
| 2nd | Black On Gold | ||
| 3rd | Taikomochi | ||
| 2018 Summer Cup |
1st | Fierce Impact | 2 minutes 4.02 seconds |
| 2nd | Satono Rasen | ||
| 3rd | Life Less Ordinary | ||
| 2017 Summer Cup |
1st | Montauk | 2 minutes 5.74 seconds |
| 2nd | Red Excitement | ||
| 3rd | Testashadow | ||
| 2016 Summer Cup |
1st | Red Excitement | 2 minutes 3.81 seconds |
| 2nd | Foreign Prince | ||
| 3rd | Shalmaneser | ||
| 2015 Summer Cup |
1st | Mighty Lucky | 2 minutes 3.7 seconds |
| 2nd | Junoob | ||
| 3rd | I’m Imposing | ||
| 2014 Summer Cup |
1st | I’m Imposing | 2 minutes 4.8 seconds |
| 2nd | Midsummer Sun | ||
| 3rd | Casino Dancer | ||
| 2013 Summer Cup |
1st | I’m Imposing | 2 minutes 4.8 seconds |
| 2nd | Travolta | ||
| 3rd | Destiny’s Kiss | ||
| 2012 Summer Cup |
1st | Le Roi | 2 minutes 35.1 seconds |
| 2nd | Brightest | ||
| 3rd | Praecido | ||
| 2011 Summer Cup |
1st | Yulalona | 2 minutes 30.1 seconds |
| 2nd | Nextanix | ||
| 3rd | Count Encosta | ||
| 2010 Summer Cup |
1st | Spechenka | 2 minutes 26.3 seconds |
| 2nd | Strike One | ||
| 3rd | Let Them Have It | ||
| 2009 Summer Cup |
1st | Solid Billing | 2 minutes 30.6 seconds |
| 2nd | Zazabeau | ||
| 3rd | Rockwood | ||
| 2008 Summer Cup |
1st | Ready To Lift | 2 minutes 31.8 seconds |
| 2nd | Bellagio Wynn | ||
| 3rd | Zazabeau | ||
| 2007 Summer Cup |
1st | Race Not Held | – |
| 2nd | – | ||
| 3rd | – | ||
| 2006 Summer Cup |
1st | Jamberoo | 2 minutes 32.9 seconds |
| 2nd | Game On | ||
| 3rd | Taken At The Flood | ||
| 2005 Summer Cup |
1st | Aqua D’Amore | 2 minutes 28.1 seconds |
| 2nd | County Tyrone | ||
| 3rd | Beat The Tide | ||
| 2004 Summer Cup |
1st | This Manshood | 2 minutes 27.8 seconds |
| 2nd | Vereza | ||
| 3rd | New York Style | ||
| 2003 Summer Cup |
1st | Stadium | 2 minutes 30.1 seconds |
| 2nd | Ocho | ||
| 3rd | Stoway | ||
| 2002 Summer Cup |
1st | Stoway | 2 minutes 33.2 seconds |
| 2nd | Ego Fast | ||
| 3rd | Barawin | ||
| 2001 Summer Cup |
1st | Majestically | 2 minutes 29.3 seconds |
| 2nd | Zarayev | ||
| 3rd | Power Of Pegasus | ||
| 2000 Summer Cup |
1st | Lanolin | 2 minutes 27.4 seconds |
| 2nd | Vitrinite | ||
| 3rd | Consolidator | ||
