The Newcastle Jockey Clubs first meeting for 2019 at the Newcastle Racecourse will be held on Saturday, Australia Day.
As is the norm the NJC has a busy program scheduled at Newcastle in the first half of the year.
Newcastle Racecourse will host sixteen race meetings from Saturday until June 30, 2019.
On the track. Back to back race meetings on March 8 and 9 are the highlights.
Friday March 8 will see the staging of the $160,000 Group 3 Suez Newmarket (1400m) the NJC’s major race in the first half of the year.
The time-honoured Newmarket was first run in 1955 and the event has been won by many outstanding sprinters.
Arguably the best horse to win the Newmarket was Pat Webster’s Happy Clapper in 2017. He went on to win a close second in the Group 1 Doncaster two weeks later, won an Epson and to date $6.36 million in prizemoney.
In 2018 the ultra-smart Lanciato a former Kiwi was successful for Mark Newnham.
On March 9 the day after the Newmarket, the NJC hosts its heat of the Provincials Championships with prizemoney of $150,000.
The three placegetters progress to the $500,000 Provincial Championship Final at Randwick.
Newcastle trainer Kris Lees has won two of the four Provincial Championship Finals with Danish Twist in 2016 and Serene Miss in 2018.
On the eve of the Newcastle Newmarket. The Beauford Club luncheon will take place at the track.
Newcastle & Hunter Racing Hall Of Fame.
The Newcastle & Hunter Racing Hall Of Fame rewards racing champion horses, trainers, jockeys and associates from our region.
The original eight inducted in 2017 were
Rogilla, Luskin Star, Max Lees, Paul Perry, Robert Thompson, Wayne Harris, Billy Hill and Alf Ellison.
On Tuesday May 7, 2019 during a Newcastle race meeting a second Group of eight will be inducted.
The function will take place in the Pavilion.