A programming clash with the AFL Grand Final has forced the switch of the key Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival feature for the third time.
Turnbull Stakes Day was moved in 2010 and 2011 to accommodate for the October AFL Grand Finals, the last of which saw Geelong Cats defeat Collingwood, and Racing Victoria were hit hard financially as a result.
The Turnbull Stakes, staged at Flemington Racecourse each October on Turnbull Stakes Day, is the first major race of the season and kicks the Melbourne Spring Carnival into top gear with a high-class field usually lining up.
Carrying a prize fund of in excess of $500,000, it is a set-weights race for four-year-olds and upwards and run over 2000m.
It is typically an early chance to see Melbourne Cup contenders as they return from spells and is one of the big races of the early part of the season along with the Caulfield Cup and the Cox Plate.
The race, first run in 1948 when won by Beau Gem, is named after former Victoria Racing Club chairman Richard Turnbull and was upgraded to become a Group 1 in 2006 following Makybe Diva's triumph 12 months earlier. It previously had been a handicap staged over a variety of distances.
Runners in the Turnbull Stakes tend to head onto the Group 1 Caulfield Stakes (2000m) a week later or the Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) two weeks later before the best stayers run in the Melbourne Cup in November.
The Turnbull Stakes has been a breeding ground for future winners of the Melbourne Cup (four), Caulfield Cup (four) and Cox Plate (eight).
In addition to Makybe Diva, other notable names on the role of honour include Rising Fast (1954), Galilee (1968), Super Impose (1989), Let's Elope (1991), Naturalism (1992), Sunline (2000), Northerly (2002), Efficient (2009) and Zipping (2010).
In 2014, the Kris Lees-trained Lucia Valentina showed a superior turn of foot to take out the time-honoured event from Peter Moody's imported pair, Lidari and Brambles.
Also taking place on Turnbull Stakes Day are the Group 2 Edward Manifold Stakes (1600m), the Group 2 Gilgai Stakes (1200m) and the Group 2 Blazer Stakes (1400m).