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A very handy selection of race fillies and mares have been nominated for the inaugural Arrowfield Queen of the West (Fillies and Mares Benchmark 74 Handicap – 1200m) at Dubbo on Saturday 6th May.

Headlining the 17 nominations for the $40,000 event include a host of prime-time country feature sprint race fillies and mares, multiple metropolitan and provincial winners, and a former New Zealand Group-1 performer.

Dubbo Turf Club's General Manager, Sam Fitzgerald said the Club is very pleased with the nominations for the first-time feature.

Canterbury Park winner Dollar Magic (Reece Jones) - is an Arrowfield Queen of the West nomination. Image by Bradley Photographers

“We are fortunate to attract nominations of some very nice fillies and mares for the inaugural Arrowfield Queen of the West,” Fitzgerald said.

“Bedtime Stories, Dollar Magic and Tidal Impact are all city winners, Majority is one of the most consistent gallopers racing in western New South Wales and Auntie Monnie has won some handy sprint features in the hunter and in the Northern Rivers.

“The horse that adds a level of intrigue is Irish Red, which joins the Luke Pepper stable from New Zealand, having performed in the [Group 1] New Zealand 1000 Guineas and a handful of other black type races.”

The winning connections of the Queen of the West receive a nomination to Castelvecchio, the dual Group 1 winner and third year stallion standing at Arrowfield Stud.

“We are thrilled to welcome Arrowfield Stud as the headline sponsor for the first ever Queen of the West," Fitzgerald said.

“Arrowfield has generously provided a nomination to Champagne Stakes, Rosehill Guineas and Inglis Millennium winner Castelvecchio, which provides a high-level attraction beyond the $40,000 prizemoney.”

Dubbo Turf Club has attracted 153 nominations for the Arrowfield Queen of the West and the Mercedes-Benz Dubbo Ladies Day program, which will be the Club’s first meeting following a nine-week spell.

“We had a busy autumn, winter and spring in 2022 and with a few race date changes earlier this year, we have had a spell from racing which has allowed us to undertake our winter track renovations.

“We received just under 40 mils of of rain over the weekend but the favourable week ahead and our high-performing drainage will have us racing on a good track on Saturday.”

Acceptances for the Arrowfield Queen of the West and the Mercedes-Benz Dubbo Ladies Day program will be taken at 9am on Thursday (4th May).

View the nominations with full form & race replays for Dubbo here