Melbourne Cup bound gelding Surprise Baby (NZ) (Shocking) has received a one kilogram penalty for the rich two mile feature after his win the Gr.3 The Bart Cummings (2520m) at Flemington on Saturday.
The son of Shocking has received the same penalty for the Gr.1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) after his win on the weekend.
The victory by the Paul Preusker-trained five-year-old secured Surprise Baby a guaranteed start in the Gr.1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) five months after narrowly failing to land a ballot exemption when second in The Andrew Ramsden (2500m) at Flemington.
Surprise Baby rises from 52.5kg to 53.5kg in the Melbourne Cup, while the 1kg penalty takes his weight from 53kg to 54kg in the Caulfield Cup where he has moved from 41st to 29th in the Order of Entry.
“In determining the penalty, consideration was given to the dominant nature of Surprise Baby’s victory and his emerging staying talent, balanced against the fact that his win was over Supernova and Wolfe, who are both on the minimum weight in the Cups,” Racing Victoria Executive General Manager – Racing, Greg Carpenter said. “Almandin was penalised 1kg for his Bart Cummings victory before winning the Melbourne Cup with 52kg at his next start in 2016.”
