The Valley Season 2022/23 Preview

Are you ready for the biggest racing season The Valley has ever seen?This year the Moonee Valley Racing Club will celebrate the Centenary running of the W.S. Cox Plate, first run in 1922 and won by Violoncello.&nbsp; The W.S. Cox Plate is regarded as Australia’s premier Weight-For-Age race, and has produced the greatest champions in Australian Racing History. Phar Lap, Tulloch, Kingston Town, Might And Power, Sunline, Makybe Diva, So You Think, and now Winx – the rich honour roll is everlasting and the very mention of these champion names is enough to send shivers down one’s spine.&nbsp; The Ladbrokes Friday Night Lights season will again commence on AFL Grand Final Eve, and this is one night you simply don’t want to miss. Headlined by the Charter Keck Cramer Moir Stakes over the flying 1000 metres, the night also features four other black-type races and Heat 1 of the Ladbrokes 55 Second Challenge. It is the perfect way to kickstart one of the great weekends in Australian sport.&nbsp; With no crowds over the Ladbrokes Cox Plate Carnival for the past two years, The Valley is set to roar again as we conjure up another defining moment in racing folklore. Ladbrokes Manikato Stakes night is the perfect entrée to a #LEGENDARY two-day carnival where we will see a crack field of sprinters cross swords over 1200 metres. Ladbrokes Cox Plate Day features a 10-race card full of black-type racing. Gates will open at 10:30am and The Valley will pack out within the hour as we welcome back the many thousands. Robbie Dolan will make his debut Cox Plate Day debut – but it won’t be in the saddle. The star hoop and talented singer will belt out Darryl Braithwaite’s ‘The Horses,’ before the race, a Ladbrokes Cox Plate Day staple that has become synonymous with the whole experience. Anamoe, Zaaki, I’m Thunderstruck, and Mr Brightside loom as the main contenders to take home Australia’s Best Race and crown themselves a champion.&nbsp; New Year’s Eve racing is back again at The Valley, and there is no better way to welcome in 2023 and celebrate the festive season. This year, New Year’s Eve falls on a Saturday, so the quality of field will be better than ever.&nbsp; Saturday 28 January is MA Services Australia Stakes Day, the first feature race of the new year! Come and enjoy the warm weather, and watch the horses put on a show. Last year, Marabi won the feature races on her way to becoming a Group 1 winner! Could we see something similar this year? Lunar New Year powered by Alinta Energy falls on Friday 3 February and 2023 marks The Year of the Rabbit! All the traditional Chinese fun and festivities will be on course for all to enjoy, and we could have a new feature race on the program, which is sure to spark great interest!&nbsp; Sunday racing returns to The Valley for the first time in a few years, and on 5 March, Community Day at The Valley will be a wonderful opportunity to bring the whole family along for a day of kid’s activities and racing action.&nbsp; No one could forget the stirring battle between Mugatoo and Russian Camelot in the 2021 All-Star Mile, and again The Valley will play host to another epic race this season. Coupled with the Group 2 DCE Alister Clark Stakes, All-Star Mile Day is truly one for the racing fanatics!&nbsp; And finally, Ladbrokes Friday Night Lights Season Finale is the culmination of a brilliant season in one epic climax. The best of racing, food, and live entertainment comes together under lights as we draw the curtain on another terrific season. The Group 1 William Reid Stakes is the last of its kind in Victoria for the season, while the Ladbrokes 55 Second Challenge Final is always a popular highlight. Which trainer will receive the $55,000 cheque for the fastest time across the series? With the Centenary Cox Plate, All-Star Mile, and a plethora of exciting Ladbrokes Friday Night lights meetings, season 2022/23 at The Valley promises to be one of the greatest we’ve ever seen. &nbsp;

Season 2022/23 Racing Highlights at The Valley, including Group 1 Races Ladbrokes Cox Plate, Manikato Stakes, William Reid Stakes and Moir Stakes.

The Valley Season 2022/23 Preview | The Valley