Redcraze (born 1950) was a champion

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse who raced both in Australia and

, winning major races in both countries. A chestnut son of the Hyperion stallion Red Mars from the mare Myarion he is considered one of the finest horses not to win a

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is a Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melb ...

, despite three attempts. Often asked to carry big weights in handicap races his big frame and amazing recuperative powers saw him race until he was seven. Originally trained by Syd Brown in New Zealand he was transferred to the stables of Tommy Smith in Australia as a late five-year-old. It was in the care of Tommy Smith that he realised his huge potential. Perhaps his greatest effort was when he ran second in the 1956 Melbourne Cup to the quality staying mare

Evening Peal Evening Peal was a notable Australian thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1956 Melbourne Cup, being ridden by George Podmore. Having run second in the Caulfield Cup to the New Zealand champion Redcraze she was sent out a 15/1 chance. Wit ...

. As Redcraze usually raced at the tail of the field he produced a big finish, coming from the rear and just failing to win by a half-neck. What made the performance amazing is that he was carrying a handicap of conceding to the winner. He was retired following an unplaced effort in the 1957 Melbourne Cup. His prize money at the time was an Australian record.

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Redcraze's pedigree and partial racing stats
1950 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 4-d Cox Plate winners Racehorses bred in New Zealand Racehorses trained in New Zealand Racehorses trained in Australia Australian Racing Hall of Fame horses Caulfield Cup winners