Voting has now opened for Australia’s richest mile race, The All-Star Mile.
The polls opened early on Monday morning with punters from Australia and New Zealand eligible to cast their vote to decide who the first 10 horses are to make the final field.
The $5m All-Star Mile will be run at The Valley on Saturday, March 18.
A total of 78 horses have nominated for the race, including the likes of defending champion Zaaki, as well as Group 1 stars Alligator Blood, Gold Trip, Mr Brightside and I’m Thunderstruck.
Voting will close two weeks later in 2023 with voters now getting an extended opportunity to judge the form of racing’s stars before deciding to cast their vote.
Voting will close on Sunday, February 26 at 10pm with the leaderboard going into blackout for the final 24 hours of voting.
The top 10 will be revealed by Racing Victoria on February 28.
The balance of the 15-horse field will then be filled with five wildcards with two of those determined by ‘win and you’re in’ races – the Group 1 Futurity Stakes (1400m) at Sandown on Saturday, February 25 and the Group 2 Blamey Stakes (1600m) at Flemington on Saturday, March 4.
The remaining wildcard runners, which can be drawn from outside the original nominations list, will be selected by the All-Star Mile wildcard panel and revealed by RV on or before Tuesday, 7 March.
There has been one change to the race conditions for the All-Star Mile 2023.
Previously, the a wildcard horse that withdraws from the race would be replaced by a provisional emergency, as occurs for the top 10 public-voted selections.
In 2023, if a wildcard is withdrawn prior to final acceptances it will be replaced by another wildcard selection.
“The list of 78 horses entered is exceptional, but not all can gain a start so it’s now over to their connections to woo voters. History shows that those owners and trainers who think outside the square and campaign hard are often rewarded,” Racing Victoria (RV) Executive General Manager – Racing, Matt Welsh said.
“Whilst the fundamentals of the fifth All-Star Mile remain the same, we have made one significant change to the timetable this year and that it is to open and close voting two weeks later than last year.
“Fans will get a better opportunity this year to see how horses have returned from their summer break before casting their vote. Equally, in-form horses will have more of a chance to impress on the racetrack.”
There will be $500,000 again up for grabs in prize money with the lucky Owner Ambassador of the All-Star Mile winner set to pocket a cool $250,000.
Click here to vote in this year’s All-Star Mile.