RACING New South Wales announced Wednesday yet another raft of prize money increases, most significantly, introducing a A$2 million Melbourne Cup day feature at Randwick called The Big Dance.

To be held directly after the Melbourne Cup, The Big Dance will be held over 1,600 metres and be restricted to horses contesting one of 25 selected NSW Country Cups.

Joining it on Sydney’s spring calendar will be a second $2 million race, restricted to five-year-olds, held over 1,800 metres and titled The Five Diamonds, and it will be held on the final day of the Melbourne Cup Carnival at Rosehill.

Strategically, Randwick’s Group 1 Spring Champion Stakes for three-year-olds over 2,000 metres, is now also worth $2 million but has been moved to sit a week before the A$2 million Victoria Derby potentially costing that race some of Sydney’s best three-year-olds. Overall, the $27 million boost sees metropolitan Saturday races lifted to a minimum of $150,000, metropolitan midweek to $55,000, Provincial to $40,000 and country New South Wales to $25,000.

ONCE a ‘second level’ sale, the Inglis Classic Yearling sale looks anything but. While not at the stratospheric heights of the Magic Millions Gold Coast or Inglis Easter, sale yearlings now have access to a $2 million juvenile race (Inglis Millenium) as the Classic Sale hit record prices over the past weekend.

Ten years ago the Inglis Classic averaged A$33,382 with a median of $29,000 from 355 yearlings sold. Fast forward to this weekend and 548 yearlings sold at a clearance rate of 91%, averaging $122,178 with the Median at $100,000.

Overall the sale, at a time when the median house prices in major Australian cities is over $1 million, grossed $66,953,500. Both days realised a record price for the sale with the $825,000 for the Extreme Choice colt out of To Dubawi Go the sales record on day two.

“Of the top 13 lots of the sale, they were offered by 12 different vendors and purchased by 12 different buyers or partnerships which is such a fabulous indicator of the strength of the sale,” observed Inglis Bloodstock chief executive Sebastian Hutch.

TOMMY Sherry is in a good vein of form landing a double at Randwick on Saturday.

Aboard the $12 chance King Ratel for Bryce Heys, the pair blew the start, missing it by three. Settled at the tail, Sherry brought King Ratel from last on the bend to angle wide and run down the leaders with an impressive sprint.

Backing up in the next race, Sherry was again on Shadow Crush, the pair having combined for a 22nd January Randwick win. Last on the bend, albeit in a smaller field, Sherry plotted an almost identical path on Shadow Crush to that of King Ratel.

Swooping on the leaders the win was taken in style for Sherry’s boss Mark Newnham.

FATHER and son team Tony and Calvin McEvoy scooped the pool at Randwick on Saturday, landing the A$2 million Inglis Millennium restricted to two-year-olds purchased through an Inglis sale ring.

Xtravagant Star, a A$150,000 buy from last year’s Melbourne Premier, won in style easing away over the closing stages to salute by nearly two lengths in the 1,100 metre sprint from the Pierro filly Paris Dior and the Sebring colt Sejardan.

“These are the races you dream of winning, I mean let’s be honest, $2 million is a lot of money to be racing for and Inglis does such a fabulous job with their race series, so to win the feature race with this quality filly, it’s a fantastic thrill,” said McEvoy of the Xtravagant filly.

Melbourne

“We’ll decide next whether to go back to Melbourne with her for the Blue Diamond or keep on the Sydney path toward the (Golden) Slipper. I mean it’s a nice problem to have.”

The win also highlighted the return to Australia for South African-born jockey Chad Schofield who has been riding for a number of seasons in Hong Kong.

“I hit the front a long way from home so for a Melbourne two-year-old filly it was a good effort, she was strong to the line,” said Schofield.

“It’s nice to win a feature race like this and hopefully it can help me build momentum going forward.”