Craven Plate 2023

Ladbrokes Tip: The Craven Plate serves as a nice lead-up into the $750,000 Rosehill Gold Cup.

The Craven Plate is a Group 3 race run at Randwick Racecourse on a Saturday in mid-October as part of Spring Champion Stakes Day.

2022 Craven Plate winner Cascadian. Photo: Steve Hart.

The meeting is headlined by the Group 1 $2 million Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) for VRC Derby hopefuls, the $2 million The Invitation (1400m) for the mares, and the Group 2 $1 million Callander-Presnell (1600m).

Open to horses aged three-years-old and above, the Craven Plate is contested over 1800m at weight-for-age, having had its distance dropped from 2000m ahead of the 2022 race, and offers a lucrative $750,000 in prize money as of 2021.

Run and won since 1867, the race has held Group 3 status since since 1993.

Many superstar stayers have won the Craven Plate over the event’s long history including Tim Whiffler (1807-71), Carbine (1890), Wakeful (1902), Gloaming (1919, 1922, 1924), Phar Lap (1929-31), Flight (1943, 1945), Tulloch (1960), Ming Dynasty (1978), Tie The Knot (1999), Mummify (2005), and Happy Clapper (2019).

This season the 2023 Craven Plate ran on Saturday October 28, 2023 as part of Spring Champion Stakes Day in Sydney and was won in a narrow upset by the Hawkes Racing-trained Group 1 graduate Zeyrek ($9.50).

2023 Craven Plate Results

The official Craven Plate 2023 Results & Finishing Order will be provided below once the race is run and won on Saturday October 28, 2023.

2023 Craven Plate winner Zeyrek narrowly got his nose down on the line to win. Photo: Steve Hart.

• 1st: #5 Zeyrek
• 2nd: #10 Renaissance Woman
• 3rd: #4 Skyman

The Team Hawkes-trained Zeyrek ($9.50) came with a flashing late run down the outside to snare the 2023 Craven Plate win by a nose over Renaissance Woman.

2023 Craven Plate Odds

The season’s top Craven Plate 2023 odds and betting market links will be available below as soon as open.

Craven Plate Race Info

• Date: Saturday October 28, 2023
• Track: Randwick Racecourse
• Distance: 1800m
• Conditions: Weight-for-age
• Status: Group 3
• Prize Money: $750,000
• First Run: 1867

Craven Plate Betting

Craven Plate betting markets are led by in-form staying types with good lead-up form in similar class races in Sydney.

Proven weight-for-age horses sit high up the Craven Plate betting markets each Sydney Spring Racing Carnival and any Group 1 performed gallopers down in grade are usually kept at short Craven Plate odds.

Think It Over ($1.75 in 2021) for his successful title defence followed by Cascadian ($1.75 in 2022) are the latest Craven Plate betting favourites to salute for the punters.

Craven Plate Field

The Craven Plate field attracts a quality line-up of weight-for-age horses that may be eyeing a trip south for the Melbourne features including the Group 1 $5 million Cox Plate (2040m).

Some of the better horses out of the Craven Plate field may stay in Sydney for a run in the Rosehill Gold Cup on Golden Eagle Day, an event the 2019 Craven Plate runner-up Tally won the inaugural edition of.

Think It Over (2021) was the last horse to complete the Craven Plate – Rosehill Gold Cup double.

The Craven Plate final acceptances are released on the Wednesday of race week following the early nominations taken the Monday leading-up to the race.

2023 Craven Plate Field

The official Craven Plate 2023 field and barriers will be published in full below once final acceptances are taken by Racing NSW on the Wednesday of race week.

The 2023 Craven Plate final field features a line-up of quality spring staying types led in betting by Chris Waller’s former The Metropolitan winner No Compromise.

2023 Craven Plate Nominations

The early Craven Plate 2023 Nominations are taken the Monday prior to the race and will be published below once confirmed.

2023 Craven Plate nominations extended until 11:00am (AEDT) 24/10/2023 

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

Craven Plate Tips

Top Craven Plate tips include looking for proven weight-for-age horses, runners with a strong Randwick record and any standout stars down in grade.

Last start winners make a nice bet in the Craven Plate tipping as do single-figure fancies in the markets.

2023 Craven Plate Tips

Our Ladbrokes’ insider Craven Plate 2021 betting tips and Randwick racing selections will be detailed below the week of the race so bookmark this page for the stayers to back and sack in the potential Cox Plate lead-up this spring.

• To Win: #2 Numerian ($6.50 at time of publish) – BET NOW

Open edition of the Craven Plate and even with the bigger weight have Numerian on top from the stables of Annabel Neasham. This now eight-year-old ran in the Caulfield and Melbourne Cup last year, and he put in a solid performance in the winter when runner-up in the Doomben Cup. Fresh he ran ninth in the Hill Stakes over the 1900 at Rosehill only 3.5 lengths beaten. Wide draw that day, gets the rails run over 100m less now. Proven Group 2 winner, was second in the Group 1 Australian Cup (2000m) at Flemington two runs in during the autumn so looks a chance fitter now from the gate.

Craven Plate Form Guide

The Craven Plate form guide features all the info punters need to place a well-informed wager on the 1800m showdown including the saddlecloth number, barrier, trainer and jockey of all the runners in the field.

In recent years the Craven Plate form has gone on to stack-up in bigger races including when the 2020 winner Think It Over went on to run third in that spring’s $1 million The Gong before winning the following year’s Group 1 George Ryder Stakes.

In 2021 Think It Over won the Hill Stakes before his second Craven Plate victory. He further franked the form winning the Rosehill Gold Cup next-up before returning in 2022 for a top autumn campaign that included a Group 1 Australian Cup second in Melbourne and victory in Sydney’s Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2000m).

Cascadian (2022) is the last horse to do the Hill Stakes – Craven Plate Sydney spring double.

Cascadian franked the 2022 Craven Plate form in the autumn of 2023 with a $5 million The All-Star Mile second, Group 1 Australian Cup victory and third in the All Aged Stakes.

2023 Craven Plate Form Guide

A link to our comprehensive Craven Plate 2023 Form Guide will be provided for punters below the week of the race.

Craven Plate Results

The Craven Plate race results and finishing order are announced on Spring Champion Stakes Day, the same day Melbourne hosts its coveted Cox Plate Day program.

As well as the Craven Plate winner, successful trifecta and first four you can also see the starting price and margin of all the runners as well as any scratched horses.

In the early years many of the country’s best horses dominated the Craven Plate results including the likes of The Barb, Phar Lap, Peter Pan, Tim Whiffler, Carbine, Chatham, Windbag, and Tulloch.

Miss Marielle (2009) was the last Craven Plate winning mare.

Adventurous (1996) was the last three-year-old Craven Plate winner.

No filly has won the Craven Plate since Tea Rose (1944).

Past Craven Plate Winners

Recent Craven Plate winners and place-getters dating back to the year 1988 are detailed in the below table.