The BTC Cup is a Gr 1 Australian weight-for-age horserace that
is contested in May every year over 1200m at Doomben Racecourse in
Brisbane. In 2008, the BTC Cup offered a purse of AUD$400,000.
Inaugurated in 1983, the BTC Cup is the first Gr 1 race of the
annual Brisbane winter racing carnival.
As a weight-for-age race, the BTC Cup attracts talented fields
containing many talented gallopers of different age groups from
Brisbane and from other Australian states. As part of the winter
racing carnival, the race usually draws large crowds, and offers
trainers the chance to showcase their top runners.
Since its inception, the BTC Cup has yielded many fine winners, some
of them going on to win other auspicious races in Australia. As
such, many trainers treat the BTC Cup as a prep race for the 1350m
Doomben 10,000 (Gr 1), which is considered to be Brisbane Turf
Club's top sprint race.
The 2008 winner of the BTC Cup, Apache Cat, is one such horse that
went on to win the Doomben 10,000 in fine style. Sired by Lion
Cavern out of Tennesssee Blaze, Apache Cat has been a force to be
reckoned with throughout his career. Trained by Greg Eurell, the
chestnut gelding has notched up seven Gr 1 wins.
These include the Cadbury Guineas in 2006, the Lightning Stakes in
2008, the Australia Stakes in 2008 and 2009, and the T J Smith
Stakes in 2008, over and above his BTC Cup and Doomben 10,000
triumphs. |
