Darwin Cup 2022

The Darwin Cup is a popular handicap race run and won in the Northern Territory on the first Monday of August annually on the sand track at Darwin Racecourse, also known as Fannie Bay Racecourse, approximately seven minutes outside the city centre.

Despite not holding Black-Type status, the showdown attracts plenty of attention both locally and across the nation each year, and was first held at Fannie Bay back in 1956.

The bicentennial Darwin Cup in 1990 was the Northern Territory’s first $100,000 race, and the event now offers double that with stakes set at $200,000.

Darwin Cup Day is big business in the Top End, and the $200,000 Darwin Cup is not only the headline event at the meeting, but the Northern Territory’s leading sporting event attracting over 20,000 race-goers to the track every year.

There are no class or age restrictions in the 2050m event, and the Darwin Cup winner takes home a healthy $132,000 in prize money.

Darwin Cup Day is part of the wider Darwin Cup Carnival held over eight days throughout the winter.

Other key race days during the Carnival include the Ladbrokes NT Derby Day in mid-July and the Ladbrokes Calcutta at the end of July.

A number of nice horses have won the Darwin Cup over the years including two-time champion, Perth expat Ihtsahymn, best known for his 2013 Group 1 Kingstown Town Stakes (1800m) victory in WA.

The Darwin race track, unlike those in the country’s southern states, has an oil mixed sand track, rather than a traditional turf overlay, and so past runs on the surface are key for horses contesting the Darwin Cup.

The next edition of the Darwin Cup runs on Monday August 1, 2022 and is known as the Great Northern Darwin Cup for sponsorship purposes.

2022 Darwin Cup Results

The official Darwin Cup 2022 Results & Finishing Order will be available below once the $200,000 race is run and won in the NT on Monday August 1, 2022.

• 1st: #3 Playoffs ($5.50)
• 2nd: #7 Kaonic
• 3rd: #11 Vallabar

Darwin Cup Race Info

• Date: Monday August 1, 2022
• Track: Fannie Bay Racecourse
• Distance: 2050m
• Conditions: Handicap
• Prize Money: $200,000
• First Run: 1956

Darwin Cup Betting

The Darwin Cup betting markets are dominated by in-form middle-distance gallopers coming off good lead-up runs in similar grade local events around the Northern Territory.

Previous experience at Fannie Bay, runners proven at 2000m or further, and the higher weighted and rated horses are installed at shorter Darwin Cup odds each season.

Ihtsahymn (60.5kg in 2020 and 61.5kg in 2021) was the last Darwin Cup top-weight to win doing so on back-to-back years.

Ihtsahymn ($3.40 in 2020) for his second success was also the latest favourite in Darwin Cup favourite to salute for the punters.

2022 Darwin Cup Odds

The latest Darwin Cup 2022 betting odds will be provided below as soon as markets on headline event on Darwin Cup Day during the winter are announced.

Darwin Cup Field

The Darwin Cup field draws a quality line-up of winter staying types from primarily local stables.

A potential lead-up into the Darwin Cup field for three-year-olds looking to take on the older runners is the NT Derby (2000m) held a fortnight earlier.

The Darwin Metric Mile (1600m) is another key lead-up for Darwin Cup horses each Carnival. Ihtsahymn (2019) was the last horse to complete the Metric Mile – Darwin Cup double, while Lotion also ran second in both events that season.

Following a run in the Darwin Cup field, a nice next-up option for gallopers is the Listed $150,000 Kalgoorlie Cup (2200m) in early October. In 2019, following his first of two Darwin Cup victories, Ihtsahymn finished a next-up third in that year’s Kalgoorlie Cup results.

Darwin Cup nominations close the Monday prior and the final field out that Thursday.

2022 Darwin Cup Field

The official Darwin Cup 2022 field of final acceptors is announced by the Darwin Turf Club on the Thursday prior to the race and will be published below along with the confirmed jockeys and barriers.

The 2022 Darwin Cup final field features a capacity line-up of hopefuls facing off in the Top End on Monday led in betting by Robert Gulberti last-start Metric Mile winner by over two lengths fresh, Living The Dream.

2022 Darwin Cup Nominations

Early Darwin Cup 2022 Nominations close the Monday leading-up to Darwin Cup Day the following Monday, which is the biggest day of racing held in the Northern Territory each season.

Darwin Cup Form Guide

The Darwin Cup form guide lists for punters all the crucial pre-betting information like the jockeys, trainers, barriers and lead-up runs of the female sprinters in the field.

The form out of the Darwin Cup has gone on to hold-up in tougher grade interstate races a number of times over the years including when dual champ Hawks Bay ran second in the Group 2 Crystal Mile (1600m) at Moonee Valley that October following his first success in 2011.

2022 Darwin Cup Form

A link to our comprehensive Darwin Cup 2022 form guide and race betting preview will be provided for punters below the week of the event.

Darwin Cup Tips

Darwin Cup tips include looking for in-form winter stayers coming off a win in a similar lead-up race, graduates that finished in the money last start and tipping single-figure fancies.

2022 Darwin Cup Tips

Our Ladbrokes’ exclusive Darwin Cup 2022 betting tips on the winter racing showdown will be detailed below the week of the race so, stay tuned for those to back and sack this season.

• To Win: #1 Living The Dream ($2.90 at time of publish) – BET NOW

Hard to bet against the favourite here who was so good fresh winning the traditional Darwin Cup lead-up when taking out the Metric Mile first-up by over two lengths with 61kg. Fitter here second-up and will appreciate the extra distance having won up to 2200m previously. Last year’s Kalgoorlie Cup winner now resides in Broome with Rob Gulberti and is out to make it a perfect record under his new trainer. Gives the weight away again but has Brad Rawiller in the saddle and looks to have the class edge here.

Darwin Cup Results

Notable recent dual Darwin Cup winners include the Rob Gulberti-trained Ihtsahymn (2019-20) and the Neil Dyer-trained Hawks Bay (2011-12).

Darwin Cup Winners

Satan’s Son (1956) was the Darwin Cup winner. The horse, the sole non-thoroughbred Darwin Cup winner in history, was owned and trained and ridden by Peter McCracken. He won in just 126 seconds with the race contested over only 1200m due to the Fannie Bay track being unfinished at the time.

One of the most famous Darwin Cup winners was the 1972 champ Son OF Cyrus whose victory was called by premier Australian race caller, John Russell.

The Nicole Irwin-trained Highly Decorated became the latest horse to add their name to the Darwin Cup winners list in 2021 leading from barrier to box and extend his winning streak to seven on the trot.

See below for a full list of past Darwin Cup winners from the race’s inauguration in 1956 to the present.