Open to the Best 8 nominations + Reserves. Includes $100 unplaced.
Prize money: $25000 / $5500 / $3500
A new event on the calendar in 2019 was the four-dog Christmas Cheer, a Group 3 staying event over 720m at Wentworth Park.
The inaugural winner was the Jodie Lodie Lord-trained Just Terms, who repeated her defeat of Blue Moon Rising two weeks earlier in the Newcastle Cup at Ladbrokes Gardens.
Just Terms was fourth in the four-dog field early, but railed to the lead over pacemaker Blue Moon Rising on the home turn and won in a slick 42.35s.
In 2020, the Newcastle Cup again proved to be a good form race with the winner at Ladbrokes Gardens, the Robert Britton-trained Victorian Here's Tears, going on to take out the Christmas Cheer at Wentworth Park.
2020 Christmas Cheer - Winner Here's Tears trained by Robert Britton ( Handled By Chris Perry)
The 2021 Chirstmas Cheer saw one of the best staying fields assembled in NSW for some time, with Group 1 winner Stanley Road, recent Nowra track record breaker Super Estrella, Newcastle Cup winner and Gardens' track record breaker Cool Bourbski, and the up and coming Zipping Virginia.
While he is accustomed to coming from well back in the field, a jam of the leaders on the first turn saw Stanley Road rail through and lead entering the home straight the first time, and once in front that was the end of the section.
The Mark Gatt-trained stayer ended a fantastic year with yet another feature race win in the Cheer.
Stanley Road with trainer Mark Gatt
Stanley Road was airborne in 2021
In 2022, Cawbourne Magic confirmed his ranking as NSW's top stayer by backing up his Newcastle Cup win at The Gardens on December 9 with a powerhouse finishing effort to take out Saturday night's $25,000 to the winner 720m Ladbrokes Christmas Cheer.
Prolific Victorian winner Mepunga Ruby had no sooner wrenched the lead from French Vanilla near the home turn, than Cawbourne Magic charged down the outside to score by a half length in 42.29.
The winner, trained by Jodie Lord, was a distant fifth at the catching pen and still a long way off the lead when fourth on the back straight before surging into second spot at the top of the straight.
.JPG)
