JOHN JENKINS
The three days of this year's Kelt Capital Hawke's Bay racing carnival will each be run a week later than last year due to the lateness of this year's Melbourne Cup.
The Melbourne Cup is always run on the first Tuesday in November and this year that falls on November
7-the latest possible date.
The three days of the Hawke's Bay spring meeting move back a week as does the traditional Wellington Labour weekend meeting.
The first day of the Hawke's Bay meeting, which features the group one Mudgway Partsworld Stakes (1400m), will be run on September 2 compared with August 27 last year.
The second day will be held three weeks later, on September 23, and features the group two Stoney Bridge Stakes (1600m). The third, and final day, will be on October 7 and features the running of the group one $1million Kelt Capital Stakes (2040m).
This maintains the normal of the Kelt being run two weeks before the Caulfield Cup (2400m) and three weeks before the Cox Plate (2040m).
Hawke's Bay Racing general manager John McGifford is still waiting for the funding policy to be finalised before stakes are confirmed for the programmes on each of the three days. However there will be no change to the three weight-for-age features with the Mudgway stake $200,000; Stoney Bridge ($150,000) and Kelt ($1million).
McGifford says the Kelt Memorial (1400m), which carried a stake of $40,000 last year, was one race that would be boosted but the stake could not be confirmed yet.
The lateness of this year's Melbourne Cup also sees the cup week in Christchurch moving back.
The first day of the Canterbury Jockey Club's meeting will now be run on November 11 and the New Zealand Trotting Cup on November 14.
