Dubbo Gold Cup 2026
Part One — Kenny and Jane Head West
Presenter - Kenny
The old white-and-tan LandCruiser was pointed west again, Kenny behind the wheel and Jane beside him.
Dubbo was their first stop, but it wouldn’t be their last.
Once the Gold Cup was over, they were continuing north to Coonamble, where Kenny’s old mate Rob had offered them a place to stay on his enormous property until the next Cup meeting.
“Two Cups in one trip,” Kenny said. “Makes sense.”
Jane looked across at him.
“So does Rob know we’re staying for two weeks?”
“He does now.”
“And does he know I’m coming?”
Kenny paused.
“He’ll be delighted.”
Jane shook her head. It was going to be that sort of trip.
Where the Roads Meet
Dubbo has long been one of the great meeting places of western New South Wales—a regional city built around the Macquarie River and the roads stretching away towards every corner of the west.
There is history behind the walls of Old Dubbo Gaol, families arriving from across the country to visit Taronga Western Plains Zoo, and a steady stream of travellers passing through on their way somewhere else.
But on the final Sunday in September, many of those roads lead to the racecourse.
Dubbo Turf Club sits at the heart of racing in western New South Wales. Its Gold Cup attracts horses, trainers, owners and racegoers from across the region—and plenty from farther afield.
This year’s Dubbo City and Gilgandra Toyota Gold Cup Day brings a ten-race program and $555,000 in prizemoney.
For Kenny, though, Cup weekend was beginning the night before.
A Date at the Calcutta
The Castlereagh Hotel was hosting the traditional Dubbo Gold Cup Calcutta on Saturday evening, and Kenny had every intention of being there.
A Calcutta can reveal plenty.
The horses people are prepared to buy. The confidence behind certain runners. A quiet word from someone who might know more than they are letting on.
Kenny called it research.
Jane called it listening to strangers in a pub.
Either way, they were going.
By late afternoon, the LandCruiser was parked, the bags were inside and Kenny had exchanged the driving shirt for something he considered respectable.
Jane looked him over.
“You’re not wearing the St George scarf.”
“It’s the Dubbo Gold Cup, Jane. There are standards.”
Tomorrow they would head to the racecourse for one of western New South Wales’ biggest racing days.
Tonight, Kenny and Jane were off to the Castlereagh—and Kenny was hoping to find the first clue in his search for lobsters rather than fish and chips.
After Dubbo, Rob and the long road to Coonamble were waiting.
But first, there was a Gold Cup to find.
Part 2
Kenny’s Calcutta Mail
By Sunday morning, Jane had made one important discovery.
Kenny really did know people at the Calcutta.
They had barely stepped inside the Castlereagh Hotel before a hand went up from one table, someone called his name from another and a chair was being pulled out for him across the room.
There were familiar faces from race meetings throughout western New South Wales—owners, regular racegoers and a few blokes who seemed to have an opinion on every horse that had ever looked through a bridle.
Jane watched another man greet Kenny like a long-lost brother.
“I thought you were listening to strangers in a pub,” she said.
“Not many strangers here,” Kenny replied.
Nobody handed him a certainty—and Kenny never expected one. What the Calcutta provided was something more useful: plenty of argument, a little local knowledge and a good indication of which horses had captured people’s attention.
Tom Vegas had strong support around the room. Puntin’s narrow defeat at Rosehill had been noticed, while more than one seasoned racegoer believed Montpelier’s recent Tuncurry run was better than it appeared on paper.
By the end of the evening, Kenny had heard a case made for almost every runner.
Jane called it twelve different ways to lose money.
Kenny called it a complete form analysis.
How the Cup Shapes Up
With The Mona Lisa and Navy Steel scratched, twelve runners remain for the 1600-metre Dubbo Gold Cup.
Stay Silent, Spicy Lu, Puntin and Yiasou can all race prominently, so there should be enough speed to make this a genuinely run mile.
Puntin deserves his position near the head of the market. Carrying 54.5 kilograms and drawn in barrier four, he was only caught late over 1500 metres at Rosehill and should appreciate the extra distance. The unanswered jockey booking at the time of publication is the only reason Kenny has kept the favourite in the danger file.
Tom Vegas receives his opportunity from barrier three. He charged home for a narrow second in the Panorama at Bathurst, carries only 54 kilograms and now reaches the mile third-up. He should enjoy an economical run—and the confidence around him at the Calcutta was difficult to ignore.
Montpelier must overcome barrier thirteen, but his unplaced Tuncurry performance was better than the finishing position suggests. Reece Jones takes the ride, the 1600 metres suits and he looks capable of making his Dubbo debut a winning one.
Spicy Lu is a stakes-placed mare who should improve sharply after needing her first-up run at Randwick, while Stay Silent adds blinkers and receives the valuable claim of young Bathurst Cup-winning rider Jacob Stiff.
Then there is our old friend Voracious. At around $21, the mare who has already given Race Day Co followers some memorable Country Cup moments cannot be dismissed lightly.
Lobsters or Fish and Chips
Kenny’s selection: Tom Vegas
Barrier three, 54 kilograms and ready for the mile third-up.
Kenny's other smokey selection: Puntin
The key to Puntin is which jockey Bjorn Baker books, keep an eye out.
The danger: Montpelier
His Tuncurry run contained more merit than the form book reveals.
One at odds: Voracious
A proven Country Cup performer at a price that makes her worth including.
Jane folded the field sheet.
“And if all that research comes to nothing?”
Kenny adjusted the Akubra.
“Fish and chips.”
But after everything he had heard at the Castlereagh, Kenny was already thinking lobsters.
Field and prices correct at the time of publication. Please check for late scratchings and market changes.
Part 3 — The Cup Review
Puntin Takes the Dubbo Cup
There had been plenty of talk around Dubbo about the favourite. Puntin had brought strong Sydney form west for the Bjorn Baker stable, Adam Farragher had made the trip to ride him, and from a good draw the plan looked fairly straightforward: get forward, find a rhythm and make them catch him.
Sometimes racing really can be that simple.
When the gates opened for the 2026 Dubbo Cup, Farragher wasted little time. Puntin showed his customary speed and worked across to take control, while Stay Silent moved forward around him and Tom Vegas settled into a lovely position behind the speed.
Down the side, Puntin was travelling. Not tearing away or fighting his rider, just rolling. And Farragher, the young Irishman in the saddle, looked perfectly happy to leave him there.
Catch Me If You Can
Approaching the turn, the race began to tighten. Stay Silent had done some work, Spicy Lou was still there, and Tom Vegas had enjoyed a beautiful passage and was waiting for his opportunity.
Then they straightened and Farragher asked Puntin to go. For a few precious seconds, the favourite skipped clear.
But Tom Vegas was coming.
Stride by stride he began eating into the margin and halfway down the straight, the Cup suddenly had a contest. The caller could see it, the crowd could see it, and you could almost feel the question travelling around Dubbo Racecourse:
Was Tom Vegas going to get him?
He got close. Very close. But Puntin had another answer.
Under Farragher, he kept finding. The stride stayed strong, the head stayed out, and every time Tom Vegas threatened to draw alongside, Puntin found just enough to keep him there.
Then the post arrived.
Puntin had won the Dubbo Cup.
Tom Vegas was gallant in second, while It’s A Knockout produced the big late run of the race, charging home from near the rear to grab third. Montpellier held fourth.
A Plan Comes Together
There was something particularly satisfying about this victory. Before the race, Puntin had been identified as a horse whose metropolitan form made him particularly dangerous here. He had been racing genuinely in Sydney and the expectation was that, from the good draw, he could put himself right on the speed and prove difficult to get past.
That is almost exactly how the Dubbo Cup unfolded.
Bjorn Baker’s team had identified Dubbo as the right race for him, Adam Farragher executed the plan, and Puntin did the rest.
For Farragher, the Irishman making his way in Australian racing, it was a lovely country Cup to add to the story. For Baker, it capped another successful weekend for a stable in tremendous form.
And for Puntin, there was something else waiting beyond the winning post. The Dubbo Cup carried eligibility for the Big Dance and Little Dance.
The road west had suddenly opened another road altogether:
The road to Randwick.
Meanwhile, Back at the Cruiser…
Kenny looked across at Jane.
“Well,” he said, folding the race book and slipping it under his arm, “the Irish bloke did alright.”
Jane smiled. “You were cheering for the horse.”
“I can do both.”
They wandered back through the Dubbo crowd, another Country Cup safely tucked away in the memory bank. There was no rush now. They had a couple of weeks before their next assignment and a bit more country to enjoy along the way.
Somewhere beyond Dubbo, the old LandCruiser was waiting, and further up the road was Coonamble.
The Irishman had won the Cup. Puntin had booked himself a dance ticket. And Kenny was already pointing the old Cruiser towards Coonamble.
Another Country Cup was over.
But the road trip wasn’t. 🏆☘️