Melbourne’s famed spring racing carnival is gaining momentum and steps up another notch this weekend with a quality program on offer at Flemington for Turnbull Stakes Day.

There was a tinge of emptiness among racing lovers as the spring racing carnival kicked off this year, with Australia’s pin-up horses from the last 12-18 months retired due to injury or the lucrative dollars on offer in the breeding barn.

• From Caviar to boiled lollies: where are the stars this spring?
• Tinkler horse empire back on the market

Or, in Black Caviar’s case, to preserve one of the great winning streaks in racing history.

The list of recent drawcards departed from the track include Melbourne Cup winner Fiorente, star mare Atlantic Jewel, Caulfield Guineas winner All Too Hard, and last year’s Cox Plate winner Shamus Award.

But such is the cycle of racing that the void won’t last long and new stars are ready to pounce.

The three-year-old year old spring classic races are generally taken out by fledgling horses at the beginning of the racing season.

In recent memory three-year-old’s like Weekend Hussler, Whobegotyou, Atlantic Jewel and So You Think began their spring campaigns as relative unknowns and finished as rising turf stars.

Shamus Award entered last year’s Cox Plate as a maiden, and trotted off with Australasia’s weight-for-age championship and a stud career on the horizon.

Lloyd Williams’ galloper Fawkner started last spring as a 1400m Group 3 specialist, then went on to win the Caulfield Cup. He’s now vying for favouritism in this year’s Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup.

So the question beckons – which horses are going to stamp their mark on the turf this year?

Here’s The New Daily‘s look at five local horses we believe are destined to have a huge impact this spring.

Hallowed Crown

This three-year-old colt scored a scintillating win in the Golden Rose in Sydney recently and is plotting the same same course as last year’s winner Zoustar, who went on to take out the Coolmore Stakes.

He might be the feel-good story of Melbourne Cup week and provide Bart Cummings and grandson James’ training partnership with some stellar wins.

Target races

Roman Consul Stakes 1200m – Randwick, October 4
Coolmore Stud Stakes 1200m – Flemington, November 1
Patinack Farm Stakes – 1200m Flemington. November 8

Shooting To Win

Trained by Peter Snowden, Shooting To Win looks primed for a tilt at the Caulfield Guineas after a dominant win in Sydney in the Stan Fox Stakes.

If he keeps stepping up then the Cox Plate might well be within his reach.

Target races

Caulfield Guineas 1600m – Caulfield October 11
Cox Plate 2040m Moonee Valley – October 25

Rising Romance

Last Autumn, Rising Romance produced a slashing second in the NZ Derby followed by a win in the AJC Oaks, showing that she excels once she gets to 2000m and beyond.

The Caulfield Cup looks her likely target but she is still in the betting mix for the Cox Plate.

Target races

Craven Plate 2000m Randwick – October 4
Caulfield Cup 2400m Caulfield – October 18
Cox Plate 2040m Moonee Valley – October 25

Terravista

This gun sprinter has built up an imposing record (8 wins from 11 starts), and he might just usurp newly crowned Australian Racehorse of the Year Lankan Rupee and tough campaigner Buffering in the weight-for-age sprint races later this spring.

Target races

Manikato Stakes 1200m Moonee Valley – October 24
Patinack Farm Stakes 1200m Flemington – November 8

Who Shot Thebarman

If nothing else he will surely prove popular among racegoers for his name alone.

The word from New Zealand in the Autumn was that he could be a special horse, and his last start win at Flemington where he fired on all cylinders pointed to an explosive spring on the cards.

Target Races

The Bart Cummings 2500m Flemington – October 4
Caulfield Cup 2400m Caulfield – October 18
Melbourne Cup 3200m Flemington – November 4