Two of Australia's top races have been postponed until next week after a torrential storm flooded Flemington racecourse within 20 minutes.Jockeys agreed they were lucky that one of the three Group One races of the day, the Newmarket Handicap with 19 runners, was run without incident just minutes before the hail storm struck with three races remaining on the program.The other Group One features, the Australian Guineas (1600m) and the Australian Cup (2000m), were consecutive races after the Newmar

Two of Australia's top races have been postponed until next week after a torrential storm flooded Flemington racecourse within 20 minutes.

Jockeys agreed they were lucky that one of the three Group One races of the day, the Newmarket Handicap with 19 runners, was run without incident just minutes before the hail storm struck with three races remaining on the program.

The other Group One features, the Australian Guineas (1600m) and the Australian Cup (2000m), were consecutive races after the Newmarket but the deluge was so severe that stewards called off the meeting more than an hour after the Guineas' scheduled starting time.

The storm was likened to the infamous deluge which flooded Flemington before the running of the 1976 Melbourne Cup won by Van Der Hum, except there was no hail that year.

The weather bureau on Saturday reported that 19mm of rain fell in 18 minutes before the storm front struck.

Racegoers ran to higher ground as the water flooded all parts of the track while horses took fright in the stabling area of the course with several breaking free.

Chief steward Terry Bailey said Victoria Racing Club officials as well as jockeys were consulted before his panel formally declared the track unsafe for racing.

"We thought that in the best interests of everyone and people's safety that we come back next week," Bailey said.

Champion jockey Damien Oliver said there was 25mm of ice on the track and another 50mm of water.

Fellow jockey Dwayne Dunn said the flooding brought back memories of his days riding in Malaysia.

"I have never seen a track this wet with the surface water being so high except for Penang when I was there and they had 26 inches for the week," Dunn said.

Dunn, who rode ninth-placed Duporth in the Newmarket Handicap, said it was scary to see lightning signalling the impending storm as 19 horses charged up the 1200 metre straight course.

"There was lightning, and thunder was getting close, and when coming down the straight there were three or four lightning strikes," Dunn said.

"Under normal circumstances anywhere else, if it hadn't been that race, I think they would have come back to the mounting yard."

Bailey admitted that it was a concern there was lightning when the Newmarket was run.

"We are fortunate that it worked out all right," he said.

Bailey said club vets rang up stewards to relay their fears for the safety of the horses who had taken fright in the storm.

King Pulse, who ran fourth in the Newmarket, broke away on the way back to the stalls area and fell twice suffering suspected internal injuries as well as lacerations and bruising.

VRC chief executive Dale Monteith said the Australian Guineas and Australian Cup would be run next Saturday at Flemington's family day meeting.

"There is no option but to run them next week," Monteith said.

"It is either that or don't run the races altogether and there is no way we are not going to run the Australian Cup or the Australian Guineas."

He said the club supported the decision to call off Saturday's meeting and agreed that the Newmarket could have been a disaster had the storm hit five minutes earlier.

"We are lucky as it would have caused a huge amount of carnage for jockeys and horses with that hail storm coming down in their faces," Monteith said.

"You only have to walk out on the track to see how bad it is. There is no way I would race on that."

Trainer Mick Price, who had favourite Heart Of Dreams and Miss Maren in the Australian Cup, said both horses would run next week.

"It doesn't worry me," Price said. "I didn't have anything else planned for them."

Peter Snowden who had odd-on favourite Denman in the Australian Guineas was relieved the race was postponed.

"You don't want to race on that track," he said.