WA’s richest provincial race confirmed with $350,000 The Bluff Knoll the latest slot race to come to life

Albany will be home to regional WA’s richest race after confirmation this week that a slot race worth $350,000 will be run in March next year. News of a slot race bound for country WA was dropped in April with the Albany Racing Club working with Racing and Wagering WA to bring the idea to life. The Bluff Knoll will be contested on March 10, 2024 and will boast $350,000 in prize money. The slot race will be run over 1099m, the height of Bluff Knoll — which is the highest peak in the Stirling Range National Park. Thirteen spots in the race will be sold at $20,000 to slot holders who then choose their horses to run in the rich feature race at Percy Spencer Racecourse. It will be the richest feature outside the metropolitan area and follows the success of the $15m The Everest at Randwick and $4m The Quokka at Ascot. Albany Racing Club president Ken Thomas said the slot racing getting the official tick of approval was a big moment for the industry. “This is a great thing for Great Southern racing to have an event like this, a marquee event,” Thomas said. “It will be the highest prize money event in regional WA and we are very excited to be a part of it. “It’s a good indication of what we can do in the Great Southern, we’ve got such great areas for people to visit whether it’s areas like Bluff Knoll or coming for a day at the races, Albany and the Great Southern has a lot to offer people. “I would say this is huge for us here, the first year is going to be big already and we’ve got a lot of interest in it and we see this as something that will only get bigger and bigger.” The race will be worth $150,000 to the winner while second will collect $60,000 and third place will get $30,000. Fourth is worth $20,000 and fifth place $15,000 while sixth to 10th will get $10,000 and the last three runners win $6000. ARC general manager Mark Bayliss said plans were to elevate the race prize money to $500,000. He said there would be VIP and corporate areas on course for the historic event and the race will be a big boost for tourism in the region. “We are looking at having a sprint race for people to run in on the day to add to the fun,” Bayliss said. “There will be corporate marquees and the like, we want to make this a big gala event.” The initial concept, including the race name and distance, came from ARC vice-patron Toby Barrie. Leading Albany trainer Roy Rogers said it was “a really good concept”. “I’ve already got a couple of horses like Kia Ora Star and Halatorion who the race would suit,” Rogers said. “It will be great to have a horse go in it and we’ll see horses of real quality here racing that we normally wouldn’t get the chance to see.”