A field of 14 has been drawn for the inaugural Inglis China Australia Cup, which–with a purse of ¥1-million (US$149,738)–will be the richest open class race ever contested in China. The race will be run at Yulong Racecourse in Shanxi Province in the North China region on Saturday.
The field for the 1200-metre race is made up of graduates of various Inglis sales, and six of the 14 were formerly trained in Australia.
Seven ownership groups are represented, headed by Yuesheng Zhang, who has six entered. With two runners each are Zhiheng Zhao and Zhiqiang An.
The race forms part of Inglis's program to support horse racing in China. The company's Managing Director Mark Webster said, “The Chinese racing market continues to evolve at a rapid rate and Inglis is thrilled to have been a long-time partner. To be involved with the richest open race run in China in such a long time is something we are very proud of. Saturday's race will mark a significant milestone in the Chinese racing industry and Inglis hopes to be involved for many years to come and continue to play a role in strengthening the industry with our Asian neighbours.”
Yuesheng Zhang added, “There's no doubt at all that the Inglis China Australia Cup will create a big demand of Inglis graduates exported to China for racing and breeding purposes. Even more importantly, by having Inglis already signed on for their support again for next year's running of the race, they have created their own brand in the Thoroughbred industry in China as a great contributor to the development of horse racing in our country.”
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