Moonee Valley Vase 2023

Ladbrokes Tip: The Moonee Valley Vase is a gun lead-up for VRC Derby hopefuls

The Group 2 Moonee Valley Vase is a key support race on the Ladbrokes Cox Plate Day card at Moonee Valley Racecourse on a Saturday in late October during the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. The meeting is highlighted by the Group 1 $5 million Ladbrokes Cox Plate (2040m), but also features four Group 2 events.

2022 Moonee Valley Vase winner Berkeley Square. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

Along with this Group 2 the other majors on the program are the Group 2 Moonee Valley Fillies Classic (1600m), Group 2 Moonee Valley Gold Cup (2500m) and Group 2 Crystal Mile (1600m). Contested over the same distance as the Cox Plate, 2040m, the race currently offers $400,000 in prize money and is a set weights race open to three-year-olds only.

It makes a nice lead-up to Flemington’s Group 1 Victoria Derby (2500m) held the following Saturday to kick off the Melbourne Cup Carnival, and the double has recently been achieved by Efficient (2006), Plastered (2004) and Helenus (2002).

The Moonee Valley Vase form was also franked in 2019 with the winner Soul Patch going on to run third in that year’s VRC Derby trifecta, while in 2020 Johnny Get Angry won the Victoria Derby on the back of a third in the Vase.

The latest edition of the Moonee Valley Vase ran on Saturday October 28, 2023 and was won in impressive fashion by the Derby-bound improver Apulia ($4.20) for Hayes’ Racing. 

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Results

The official Moonee Valley Vase 2023 Results & Finishing Order will be published below once the race is run and won on Saturday October 28, 2023.

2023 Moonee Valley Vase winner Apulia was excellent winning by two lengths. Photo: Ultimate Racing Photos.

• 1st: #4 Apulia
• 2nd: #3 Verdad
• 3rd: #2 Air Assault

Strong Fiorente colt Apulia is likely for another quick back-up into Saturday week’s Group 1 $2 million Victoria Derby (2500m) at Flemington after an impressive win in the Moonee Valley Vase 2023 results defeating the favourite Verdad by two lengths.

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Odds

The latest Moonee Valley Vase 2023 betting odds and links to our markets will be available below the week of the race so stay tuned for the best Moonee Valley Vase Group 2 Cox Plate Day prices.

Moonee Valley Vase Race Info

• Date: Saturday October 28, 2023
• Track: Moonee Valley
• Distance: 2040m
• Conditions: 3YOs – Set Weights
• Status: Group 2
• Prize Money: $400,000
• First Run: 1981

Moonee Valley Vase Betting

Moonee Valley Vase odds are dominated each year by the colts and geldings, who have a far superior record over the fillies in the race, that come off a run in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) two weeks before.

The Caulfield Guineas has produced more Moonee Valley Vase winners than any other race so top three runners in the Group 1 sit high up the Moonee Valley Vase betting markets each spring.

Five of the past nine Moonee Valley Vase winners up until 2022 came via a run in the Caulfield Guineas, most recently Berkeley Square (4th in 2022).

Runners under double figures in the Moonee Valley Vase betting odds have an outstanding recent record in the race with no horse saluting at double figures in over 20 years until the upset 2018 win by Stars Of Carrum ($31) who went on to run second the VRC Derby results next run.

Cherry Tortoni ($2.60 in 2020) followed by Forgot You ($2 in 2021) and Berkeley Square ($2.60 in 2022) are the latest favourites in Moonee Valley Vase betting to win.

Moonee Valley Vase Tips

Moonee Valley Vase tips come out the week of the race and are dominated by three-year-old graduates coming out of the Caulfield Guineas. Held two weeks before the Vase over the mile, the Caulfield Guineas is the best lead-up to the Moonee Valley Vase and runners that finished in the money in the Group 1 are a great tip to take in the Group 2 a fortnight later.

Other good Moonee Valley Vase tips to take include backing any runners that have previous form over further than a mile, runners that have winning form at the track and those under $10 in betting.

Odds-on favourites also have a gun record in the race so taking the shortie has proved a successful MV Vase betting tip over the past two decades. Cherry Tortoni ($2.60 in 2020) saluted for the punters in the Moonee Valley Vase before a fourth to Vase third place-getter Johnny Get Angry in the VRC Derby results.

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Tips

Our Ladbrokes’ exclusive Moonee Valley Vase 2023 Tips and exotic Moonee Valley Vase betting selections will be detailed below the week of the race so stay tuned for the three-year-old stayers to get behind for the win this spring.

• To Win: #7 Koning ($10 at time of publish) – BET NOW

A Vase field lacking a bit of class and now numbers are right down making it a more open affair than backing the odds-on favourite suggests. Searching for the value and have landed on a last start winner in Koning. The Richard & Will Freedman-trained Kingman colt broke his maiden status at Newcastle last start over 1850m by nearly three lengths. Has been working his way up and improving each time out. This is notably a huge rise in class, but Zac Purton rides and the horse if full of confidence. Peaking at the right time. Let’s see if he is up to it.

Moonee Valley Vase Field

The Moonee Valley Vase race field attracts a quality line-up of three-year-old staying types each spring, some looking to back-up on the short turnaround into the Victoria Derby over more distance the next Saturday.

The race is open to both the colts and geldings as well as the fillies and in 2015 Jameka backed-up off a Group 1 Thousand Guineas (1600m) second at Caulfield a fortnight before to beat home the boys in the Moonee Valley Vase. She also won the Group 1 Crown Oaks (2500m) – VRC Oaks – during the Cup Carnival next start and the following year’s Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m). In 2017 Aloisia was dominant beating home the boys in the Moonee Valley Vase field by over three lengths after her lead-up Thousand Guineas success.

Efficient (2006) completed the Moonee Valley Vase – VRC Derby double during his three-year-old season. Photo Credit: Taron Clarke.

Male gallopers often back-up in the race off a run in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m) that produced the 2015 MV Vase runner-up Shards (13th) and third place-getter Tarzino (7th). Tarzino went on to win that year’s Group 1 Victoria Derby (2500m) seven days after the Vase. Again in 2016 the Caulfield Guineas form held in the Moonee Valley Vase with Sacred Elixir winning the latter after a lead-up eighth.

The 2014 Moonee Valley Vase winner Moonovermanhattan also came off a run in the Guineas (7th), as did Manawanui (2nd) in 2011 who won the Group 2 as the odds-on favourite at $1.18. The last horse to win the Caulfield Guineas – Moonee Valley Vase double was Whobegotyou (2008) who ran second in that year’s Victoria Derby.

Most recently the Caulfield Guineas produced the 2019 Moonee Valley Vase winner Soul Patch (8th) and the 2022 champ Berkeley Square (4th).

A previous lead-up was Sydney’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes (2000m) at Randwick, which last produced a winner of the Group 2 in 2020 with Cherry Tortoni (8th), before that race moved to run on the same day as the Moonee Valley Vase in Sydney.

Recent Moonee Valley Vase winners to finish top three in the VRC Derby next start include Stars Of Carrum (2nd in 2018), while in 2010 the Vase runner-up Lion Tamer won the Derby next start.

The Moonee Valley Vase nominations close the Monday before the race runs on the Saturday and the final field and barriers are out on the Wednesday.

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Field

The official Moonee Valley Vase 2023 Final Field & Barriers are announced the Wednesday before Cox Plate Day and will be published in full below so stay tuned to see what VRC Derby-bound three-year-olds make the starting line-up.

The 2023 Moonee Valley Vase final field features a line-up of promising Derby types led in betting by Verdad coming off a sixth in the Group 1 Caulfield Guineas (1600m).

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Nominations

The early Moonee Valley Vase 2023 entries close the Monday of race week and will be provided for punters below once announced.

Table Credit: Racing Australia.

Moonee Valley Vase Form Guide

The Moonee Valley Vase form guide gives you all the information and statistics you need to place a well-informed wager on the race like the jockeys, trainers, barriers, track / distance records and lead-up runs of the horses in the field.

The Moonee Valley Vase form has stacked up in the Group 1 Victoria Derby (2500m) a week later many times over the past 20 years or so providing plenty of winners and place-getters in the Cup Carnival classic.

The Moonee Valley Vase form from the 2021 race was franked with the winner Forgot You returning the next autumn to run third in Sydney’s Group 1 Rosehill Guineas (2000m). The Vase third place-getter from 2021, Jungle Magnate, meanwhile came back the following autumn and took out the the 2022 Group 1 South Australian Derby.

The Moonee Valley Vase place-getters from 2022 franked the form in the autumn of 2023 with the runner-up Virtuous Circle going on to finish second in the Australian Derby results, while third place-getter Pericles was second in the Rosehill Guineas.

2023 Moonee Valley Vase Form Guide

A link to our insider Moonee Valley Vase 2023 Form Guide will be provided for punters below the week of the race.

Moonee Valley Vase Results

Moonee Valley Vase race results have been dominated by odds-on favourites and runners under $10 over the past 20 years.

Notable recent winners include Cherry Tortoni (2020), Jameka (2015), Super Cool (2012), Manawanui (2011), Whobegotyou (2008), Efficient (2006), and Helenus (2002).

Aloisia (2017) was the last Moonee Valley Vase winning filly.

Blevic holds the current 2040m Moonee Valley Vase race record winning in 1994 in a time of 2 minutes 02:80 seconds.

Past Moonee Valley Vase Winners

Recent Moonee Valley Vase winners and place-getters dating back to the year 2000 are detailed in the below table.

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