The Everest won by front-running sprinter Redzel
The richest prize in turf racing — the winner’s share of a purse close to $8 million — went to Redzel, first across in the inaugural TAB Everest in front of a standing room-only crowd at Australia’s Royal Randwick.
On the other side of the world, horses hit the wire at 1:17 a.m. ET with Redzel a 7-1 shot in the United States’ wagering pool.
The Everest compares directly to the United States’ Pegasus World Cup. Owners paid $600,000 for spots in the race, supporting the purse with the promise of a return on wagering, sponsorship and media rights, among other revenue sources.
Only the Pegasus (projected at $16 million) and Dubai World Cup ($10 million) offer larger purses. Both those races are contested on dirt.
Redzel won it by running on the front end of the 1,200 meters, or about six furlongs, and held off a late effort by the in-form Vega Magic for second. Brave Smash finished third.
"So excited to be a part of it -- such a huge buzz," said winning jockey Kerrin McEvoy. "The wife's here. The kids are hopefully yelling at the screen at home. But yeah, it's a huge buzz.
"This horse had drawn a great gate. There were so many scenarios going through our heads as to how it would work out. Couldn't have worked out any better."
Known as the "grey flash," Chautauqua ran on late, but a beginning that left him last of 12 did in the horse recognized as the world's best sprinter. He finished fourth while the favored filly, She Will Reign, missed the board with no room to run along Randwick's rail.
Redzel returned $16.50 on a $2 bet in the U.S.
The Everest’s inaugural running didn’t include Australia’s most well-known horse overall. The great Winx will put her 21-race winning streak on the line later this month in the Oct. 28 Cox Plate, a Group 1 race the mare also won in 2016. Her stable, Chris Waller racing, instead placed Deploy in Saturday’s race.
By Jonathan Lintner