No one thought the 50/1 shot could win another Caulfield Cup and defeat champ Kingston Town

Ming Dynasty was a notable Australian Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 1977 and 1980 Caulfield Cups over a long, distinguished career. He was sired by Planet Kingdom (AUS), his dam Chow Mein (AUS) was by Chris (GB). A unique looking dapple grey, Ming Dynasty had a dark mane and deep, dark grey legs, but possessed four white socks below the knees of each leg. Part owned and trained by the legendary Bart Cummings, from 76 career starts he won 17 races.

There is a disagreement regarding the ownership and who originally purchased the durable grey Ming Dynasty. One of the part owners, Ron Websdale, expressed his discontent with a claim made by Bart Cummings. To substantiate his ownership, Mr. Websdale possesses an affidavit as evidence, indicating that he acquired the gelding as a yearling for the sum of $4500. Bart fails to mention he invited Websdale out to the sales to buy a Wilkes colt but he went to $26,000, which was beyond his budget. The next one in was the grey. All Bart said was, 'buy this, it will go like the wind.' At that point Bart walked away from him. It started at $3000 and went to $3500 to $4000, and just had one bid, $4500. Sold.

As well as his two Caulfield Cups he also won two VRC Australian Cups (1978 and 1980), the 1978 AJC Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Metropolitan Handicap in the same year. As a young horse, the gelding had the benefit of Ron Dufficy riding him gallops. Renowned for his courage, Ming Dynasty came again under 59.5 kilograms to beat Melbourne Cup winner Arwon (49kg) in The Metrop at Randwick. Ming Dynasty was the dominant stayer in Australia in 1978, but he appeared past his best ahead of the 1980 Caulfield Cup and he started the race at extremely long odds. In 1977, Ming Dynasty was a four-year-old and certainly fitted the profile of a potential Caulfield Cup winner so started at just $10. The following year he ran fifth at $17 before finishing a distant 15th in 1979 at the odds of $67. Seemingly, his time in the sun was over. In typical fashion, Bart Cummings had the popular gelding trained to the second and perfectly primed to outstay the best talent around with Midge Didham aboard. As a seven-year-old in 1980 in the Caulfield Cup, starting at 50/1, the gelding carried 58 kg and beat Melbourne Cup winner, Hyperno, and champion Kingston Town to join an elite group to take two Caulfield Cups, the others being; 

Rising Fast (1954–55), Whittier (1922–25), Uncle Sam (1912–1914), Poseidon (1906–07), Hymettus (1898–1901) and Paris (1892–1894).

Ol' Ming had saved his best for his biggest test. Not quite a superstar of the turf, Ming Dynasty was one of the most durable and honest horses of the era. Apart from four Caulfield Cup runs, he also ran in three Cox Plates, three Australian Cups and two Melbourne Cups. When Ming retired they gave him a lap of honour at Randwick. Neville Voigt, who was to ride him, came out in Bart's colours. Websdale's wife went to the stewards and said, 'This horse isn't going out in any other colours than ours.' So he had to drive back to Watsons Bay where they lived at the time to pick up them up. The parade was held up for an hour.

Bart Cummings tells a delightful story about the horse in his Autobiography, “My Life”. Ming Dynasty, the former champion racehorse who became a clerk of the course horse at Randwick for many years, had wandered out of his box one day and gone missing. Concerned race club officials scurried to all corners of the racecourse trying to find the stayer. At nearby Leilani Lodge, Bart was oblivious to the drama unfolding around the horse he had part-owned and trained, when one of his stable staff said: "Boss, there's this strange, grey horse standing in a stall." The legendary trainer walked outside to investigate and found the quirky Ming Dynasty had walked back 'home' to his old box at Leilani Lodge, turned around and was waiting for someone to close the stable door. Then Cummings received a call from a worried race club official revealing Ming Dynasty, the retired former champ and dual winner of the Caulfield Cup, had gone "missing." Well, not quite.

"My old friend had returned"

RACE RECORD - 76: 17-12-9

EARNINGS - $547,425

Caulfield Cup (1977, 1980)

Queen Elizabeth Stakes (1978)

Metropolitan Handicap (1978)

Australian Cup (1978, 1980)

Ming Dynasty Quality Gr.3 3YO (Rosehill)