Group I race | |
Location | Hastings Racecourse Hawke's Bay, New Zealand |
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Inaugurated | 1976 |
Race type | Thoroughbred - Flat racing |
Website | www |
Race information | |
Distance | 1400m (7 furlongs) |
Surface | Turf |
Track | Left-handed |
Qualification | Three-year-olds and up |
Weight | Weight for Age |
Purse | NZ$400,000 (2024) |
The Tarzino Trophy also known as the Challenge Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race run at Hastings Racecourse in Hawke's Bay and is New Zealand's first Group One race of the season. It is run over a distance of 1400m in September.
The race is the first of the Hawkes Bay Triple Crown events and is followed by:
The race's timing, weight-for-age conditions and the reliably dry weather of the region at that time of the year combine to ensure that the race sees one of the strongest fields assembled in any race all season as a number of horses heading towards a campaign in Australia choose it as a starting point.