Canterbury Stakes 2024

Ladbrokes Tip: Canterbury Stakes favourites have a gun record and are usually the best bet

The Canterbury Stakes is one of two Group 1 races held at Sydney’s Royal Randwick Racecourse on Randwick Guineas Day on a Saturday in early – mid March each year.

2022 Canterbury Stakes winner Forbidden Love. Photo: Steve Hart.

The meeting is one of the first Group 1 race days during the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival and is headlined by the three-year-olds facing off in the Group 1 Randwick Guineas (1600m). The Group 1 Canterbury Stakes is the major support act on the card and offers $750,000 in prize money as of 2024.

Originally run at Canterbury Racecourse it has taken place at Randwick after being transferred from Rosehill Gardens in 1997. Contested over a middle sprint distance of 1300m it is run under weight-for-age conditions and is open to horses aged three-years-old and upwards, holding Group 1 status since 2013 when star colt Pierro won.

The Canterbury Stakes winner is exempt from ballot for the upcoming George Ryder Stakes and Doncaster Mile run at Rosehill and Randwick Racecourses respectively over the following four weeks.

Forbidden Love (2022) was the last runner to complete the Canterbury Stakes – George Ryder Stakes double.

The latest edition of the Canterbury Stakes took place on Saturday March 9, 2024 as part of Randwick Guineas Day in Sydney and was won in an impressive boil-over by the Annabel Neasham-trained mare Lady Laguna ($11). 

2024 Canterbury Stakes Results

The official Canterbury Stakes results 2024 and finishing order will be announced below on Saturday March 9, 2024.

2024 Canterbury Stakes winner Lady Laguna was enormous upsetting the favourites in the Randwick Group 1. Photo: Steve Hart.

• 1st: #7 Lady Laguna
• 2nd: #1 Think About It
• 3rd: #6 Espiona

Lady Laguna ($11) kept her brilliant summer – autumn form going with the Magic Millions Fillies & Mares winner saluting in a Group 1 upset off a smart ride by Tyler Schiller to outsprint the returning The Everest champ Think About It in the 2024 Canterbury Stakes results.

2024 Canterbury Stakes Odds

The season’s best Canterbury Stakes 2024 odds will be available below the week of the race so stay tuned for the best Randwick Guineas Day Group 1 racing markets.

Canterbury Stakes Race Info

• Date: Saturday March 9, 2024
• Track: Royal Randwick Racecourse
• Distance: 1300m
• Conditions: Weight-for-age
• Status: Group 1
• Prize Money: $750,000
• First Run: 1929

Canterbury Stakes Betting

Favourites in the Canterbury Stakes odds have dominated the race throughout history including 14 winning since 1996, most recently Happy Clapper ($4.60 in 2018) and Forbidden Love ($2.20 in 2022).

The latest Canterbury Stakes favourite to salute prior to Happy Clapper (2018) was Cosmic Endeavour (2015).

Because the race often attracts a small field the Canterbury Stakes barriers rarely affect the betting markets however the standout gate producing nine winners in the past 30 years is barrier nine.

Last start winners saluted in the race six times from 2011 – 2024 so those horses coming off a win often dominate the Canterbury Stakes betting markets – the latest being Savatiano (2021) coming off a Group 2 Expressway Stakes victory and Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes winner the Saturday prior Forbidden Love in 2022.

There was an upset in 2024 with Lady Laguna ($11), coming off a second in the Group 2 Millie Fox Stakes (1300m), beating the favourites Think It Over ($2.35F) and Espiona ($2.45) with a stylish boil-over.

Canterbury Stakes Field

The Canterbury Stakes race field attracts a wide variety of weight-for-age gallopers that come via different lead-up races and are often targeting different next-up options.

Pierro (2013) is one of the shortest-priced favourites to salute in the Canterbury Stakes. Photo: Steve Hart.

Because of the ballot exemptions on offer to the winner many Canterbury Stakes winners go on to run in the George Ryder Stakes and Doncaster Mile over 1500m and 1600m respectively later in the autumn.

Rarely does the race attract its capacity number of runners and the Canterbury Stakes field often features small numbers including in 2024 (7), 2023 (11), 2022 (9), 2021 (9), 2020 (7), (2019 (7), 2018 (9), 2017 (8), 2016 (7), 2015 (8), 2014 (10), and 2011 (5) when More Joyous defeated home just four rivals. There were also only five runners in the 2008 Canterbury Guineas field when Mentality won as a 4/1 shot.

Canterbury Stakes nominations close the Monday before the race with the final field and barrier draw out two days later.

2024 Canterbury Stakes Field

The Canterbury Stakes 2024 field and barrier draw will be published below once announced on the Wednesday leading up to Randwick Guineas Day so stay tuned to see what gun sprinters make the starting line-up.

The 2024 Canterbury Stakes final field features eight autumn hopefuls led by the returning Joe Pride-trained The Everest champ Think About It who is unbeaten at Randwick and undefeated first-up.

• Canterbury Stakes Scratchings: #8 Call Di (7) has been scratched and will instead face an easier field in the Group 3 Wenona Girl Handicap later on Randwick Guineas Day.

2024 Canterbury Stakes Nominations

The Canterbury Stakes 2024 Nominations are open until the Monday of Randwick Guineas Day and will be available in full below.

Canterbury Stakes Tips

2023 Canterbury Stakes winner Artorius was huge late winning the weight-for-age first-up back in Australia. Photo: Steve Hart.

The best Canterbury Stakes betting tip is to back the favourite as they have a stellar record in the weight-for-age feature, which is one of Australia’s youngest Group 1 races.

From 2011 – 2024 six of the Canterbury Stakes favourites saluted for the punters.

Other Canterbury Stakes tips include looking at horses coming off a last-start win as they have a strong showing in the winners’ list and checking for any Gai Waterhouse-trained starters.

Waterhouse has saddled-up over 20 runners in the race over the past three decades for an incredible seven wins including four of the five champions from 2011 – 2015. She also more recently ran second with Global Glamour in 2018.

2024 Canterbury Stakes Tips

Bookmark this page for our insider Ladbrokes’ Canterbury Stakes tips 2024 with exotic betting selections to make on the Randwick Guineas Day support act this autumn.

• To Win: #1 Think About It ($1.80 at time of publish) – BET NOW

Happy to stick with the odds-on elect resuming despite a few of his rivals in a small field having the fitness edge. Joe Pride’s The Everest champion is first-up for the autumn with plenty of hype surrounding his resumption. Was enormous last prep despite going out beaten when backing-up from his $20 million The Everest success to run third over further in the Winners Stakes. Looking slick in recent trials so should be spot on again this time in. Flawless four-from-four record here at Randwick and same unbeaten strike-rate first-up. Right track and distance, outside alley but just eight final acceptors. Wins.

Canterbury Stakes Form Guide

The Canterbury Stakes form guide shows runners in the race come off a mix of lead-up runs and there is no standout race line to follow into the event.

The only races to produce multiple Canterbury Stakes winners over the past decade are the Group 2 Apollo Stakes and the Group 2 Hobartville Stakes both held the previous month at Randwick.

Canterbury Stakes form also shows the barriers of all runners and while there is a fairly even spread one gate has produced more winners than any other, nine, but not since Empire (2002) and Defier (2003) went back-to-back. Mares also stand out in the Canterbury Stakes form guide with Forbidden Love the seventh in 13 years to win.

The Canterbury Stakes form often stacks-up in other Group 1 autumn and spring races later in the year. In 2021 the Canterbury Stakes winner Savatiano ran second next-up in the All Aged Stakes, while the third placed Masked Crusader took out Melbourne’s Group 1 William Reid Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley.

Forbidden Love franked the 2022 Canterbury Stakes form winning the George Ryder next start before a Doncaster Mile fourth while the runner-up Lighthouse won the Group 1 Coolmore Classic next-up.

The 2023 Canterbury Stakes runner-up Imperatriz franked the form winning her next five starts on the trot including the Group 1 William Reid Stakes, Moir Stakes, Manikato Stakes and Flemington’s Champions Sprint over the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

Canterbury Stakes Form Facts

• From 2011-24 six last start winners saluted including Appearance (2014) who completed the Apollo Stakes – Canterbury Stakes double, Le Romain (2017) who came off a Southern Cross Stakes win at the track, Expressway Stakes winning mare Savatiano (2021) and Forbidden Love (2022) on the short turnaround after winning the previous Saturday’s Group 2 Guy Walter Stakes.
• From  2006 – 2024 seven favourites in Canterbury Stakes betting saluted for the punters.
• Mares have a strong recent record in Canterbury Stakes results with seven saluting from 2011 – 2024 most recently Lady Laguna (2024).

2024 Canterbury Stakes Form Guide

A link to our comprehensive Canterbury Stakes 2024 Form Guide will be provided for punters the week of the race.

Canterbury Stakes Results

The Canterbury Stakes race results and final finishing order of all runners in the field is released when the race event takes place on Randwick Guineas Day in early March each autumn.

The Canterbury Stakes winner, starting prices, successful margin and winning time are all listed in the results post-race.

Notable recent Canterbury Stakes winners include international Group 1 performer Artorius (2023), Pierro (2013), and dual winner More Joyous (2011-12) both prepared by the race’s most successful trainer Gai Waterhouse.

Lady Laguna (2024) was the last Canterbury Stakes winning mare.

Holler (2016) was the last three-year-old Canterbury Stakes winner.

Trapeze Artist holds the current Canterbury Stakes race record winning in 2019 in a time of 1 minute 14.19 seconds.

Recent Canterbury Stakes Winners

Past Canterbury Stakes winners and place-getters dating back to the year 2001 are detailed in the below table.