The Listed Queensland Flame is set to provide the Sunshine State with its qualifier into the inaugural running of the $1.145 million TAB Phoenix.
Earlier today, Racing Queensland announced the Flame (520m) would be run on the first major night of the TAB Golden Greys Summer Racing Carnival at Albion Park on December 2, offering $37,500 in its own right and a berth in the new million-dollar feature to the winner.
A maximum of four heats will be staged at the Brisbane Greyhound Racing Club on November 25, with entrants required to be trained in Queensland.
RQ will offer exemptions into the Flame Final, announcing that any Queensland-trained finalist in the Group 1 Melbourne Cup Final, which will be held at the Sandown Greyhound Racing Club on Friday, November 26, will be granted an automatic entry.
In addition, there will be automatic entry for any Queensland-trained greyhound that wins the $113,000 Group 2 Ipswich Cup on November 11, should they choose to nominate.
RQ CEO Brendan Parnell said the Flame will provide a unique opportunity for a Queensland star to compete against the nation’s top chasers.
“The Queensland Flame provides our best greyhounds with the chance to compete on the national stage through the Phoenix,” Mr Parnell said.
“The race will set the stage as the perfect opening event for the highly anticipated TAB Golden Greys Summer Racing Carnival, which continues to go from strength-to-strength.
“We look forward to the inaugural running of the Queensland Flame, and thank the collaborative efforts of the Brisbane Greyhound Racing Club for their assistance in being able to deliver this innovative product.”
The Queensland Flame will also include a unique ownership and community partnership element, where competition entrants will have the chance to be an ‘owner for a day’ representing each of the eight greyhounds in the Final.
The winning owner will then have the opportunity to travel to Melbourne to attend the Phoenix Final, with up to $20,000 on offer if the Queensland slot holder is successful in the race.
Similarly, eight community partners will also be selected for the Final of the Flame, with another $20,000 on offer if Queensland’s greyhound triumphs in Melbourne.
Last month, RQ was announced as one of eight slot holders in the million-dollar Victorian greyhound feature, which will be staged at The Meadows on December 18 and includes $750,000 to the winner.
The final field for TAB The Phoenix will be confirmed on Friday, December 10 before the box draw is held on Sunday, December 12.
The Melbourne Greyhound Racing Association recently confirmed that dispensation had been approved for a unique box draw, with two authorised representatives from each slot holder tasked with selecting the box they deem most suitable for their greyhound.