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The Queen Elizabeth Stakes

The AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes are part of the Sydney Autumn Racing Carnival, an epic race meeting from the end of February to the end of April. As one of the most prestigious and anticipated races of this event, the AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes are a special treat presented on the very last day of the carnival, on Sydney Cup day.

Sydney Cup Day is perhaps the single most exciting day on the Australian Flat racing calendar, featuring a total of four Group 1 Stakes including the AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes; the Sydney Cup, the Champagne Stakes and the All Aged Stakes. The finest equine contenders save their strength throughout the season to give an ideal performance at the meeting where it really matters, in fact a number of AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes winners have gone on the win or place in the Melbourne Cup, the most outstanding event in Australian horse racing. 1995's stand-out was Jeune, followed by Doriemus in 1996 and Might And Power in 1998.

The Queen Elizabeth Stakes also counts the iconic Australian stallion Phar Lap as one of the winners. However, when Phar Lap strutted his stuff in 1930 the race was known as the AJC Plate, the name it carried from 1873 to 1954, with the exception on 1934 when the race was advertised as the AJC Kings Cup. Earlier still, from 1851 to 1872, the original version of the race was known as the Queens Plate.

The distance of the race has changed even more frequently than its name. The original race was run over 24 furlongs from 1851 to 1922. From 1923 to 1941 the race was shortened to 18 furlongs, and even further scaled down to 14 furlongs from 1944 to 1946, only to be extended back to 18 furlongs from 1947 to 1953. Throughout the 50s, 60s and 70s the race varied between 12 and 11 furlongs on a regular basis, before it was finally fixed on the distance of 10 furlongs which it still maintains today.

The AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes is run at the iconic Radwick Racecourse in Sydney.

Recent AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes Winners