The first Victorian race to feature in the new $5 million Inglis Xtra Bonus Maiden Series takes place at Sale on Thursday, August 22, when the 3YO Maiden Plate (1100m) will carry a $100,000 bonus for eligible horses.
The national series will see a total of 50 maiden races throughout the 2024-25 season carry the lucrative $100,000 bonus.
Provided the winning horse is an Inglis graduate and fully paid up for the Inglis Race Series, connections will be entitled to benefit from the bonus in addition to the winner’s cheque (and any VOBIS bonuses).
Sale stages the first of nine Inglis Xtra Bonus races held across Victoria this calendar year, with Benalla (September 3) and Cranbourne (September 19) taking over hosting duties before the 3YO Maiden Plate (1200m) at the Moonee Valley metropolitan meeting on Saturday, October 4 carries the incentive.
The programs for the Country Cup Racedays at Moe (October 18), Bendigo (October 30), Donald (November 17) and Werribee (December 8) have all been enhanced with the introduction of an Inglis Xtra Bonus Maiden, with Seymour providing some pre-Christmas cheer when the club hosts the ninth and final bonus race of 2024 on Thursday, December 19.
In total, there will be 23 races in the Inglis Xtra Bonus Maiden Series held across Victoria during the 2024-25 season.
“We are delighted to partner with Inglis in their Xtra Bonus Maiden Series, which offers huge rewards to the winners of 23 Victorian Maiden races this season,” said Matt Welsh, Racing Victoria’s (RV) Executive General Manager – Racing.
“The announcement builds on our existing Sportsbet Future Stars Series, which is the country’s richest series for Maiden horses and seeks to reward connections at the very start of their ownership journey.
“When taking into account any additional VOBIS bonuses, these rich Inglis Xtra Bonus Maidens will be worth more to the winner than most Saturday metropolitan races, so there is now a major incentive for all owners and trainers to target the heats of the new Inglis series in Victoria.”
Inglis Bloodstock CEO, Sebastian Hutch, said the series was “an opportunity for clients to win more prizemoney, more often’’.
“The hardest race for a horse to win is their Maiden, so we wanted to give every buyer and owner of an Inglis graduate the opportunity to win extraordinary prizemoney at the entry level of racing,’’ he added.
“There will effectively be one Maiden a week on average nationally, at different venues, over different distances ranging from 900m to 2000m, giving so many of our clients regular chances to win significant money.
“If you look at the Sale race carrying the bonus as an example, if the winner of that race meets the criteria of the Inglis Xtra Bonus Maiden Series, the winning prizemoney will be boosted to $120,625. That’s more than the winning purse for most races throughout the world, so it really does represent an incredible opportunity for owners with Inglis Race Series-eligible horses.
“To put it into further context, only two per cent of races run in Australia last season saw the winners take home $100,000 or more, so it’s an enormous carrot for owners of eligible horses and we expect the designated Maidens to be targeted and bonuses to be won regularly through the 2024-25 season and beyond.’’
It is worth noting that the race at Sale also carries VOBIS Silver and Gold bonuses, therefore if the winning horse is eligible to receive them the total collect would be increased to $143,025, with an additional $30,000 in VOBIS Platinum vouchers also on offer.
RV will advise of the dates and locations of the 14 Inglis Xtra Bonus Maiden Series races programmed in 2025 in due course.
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