Also in the image is MRC chief executive Tanya Fullarton – who is standing at the front dressed in black and white – along with Kanga’s wife Steph, who is wearing sunglasses, and Nina O’Brien, the wife of Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Danny O’Brien.
While Danny O’Brien is not in the photo, he was a big part of the trackside celebrations. A close friend of Kanga, O’Brien trains Getta Good Feeling for Munz.
The day is seen as a return to the spotlight for Kanga, who had been lying low after quitting the MRC board three weeks earlier.
In this image, he is smiling like he never left.
Until last year’s Caulfield Cup carnival, Kanga’s influence on the MRC was profound.
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Within a year, he orchestrated unprecedented change. Munz backed him all the way.
Kanga toppled the MRC board, became chairman, saved Sandown racecourse from being sold to developers, stopped plans to build a $250 million grandstand at Caulfield Racecourse, moved the Caulfield mounting yard back to its original position and introduced cheaper beer.
He also took part in preliminary merger talks with the Victorian Racing Club at Munz’s Toorak home. The merger never happened.
Kanga became a media personality and people’s champion. He also courted controversy.
He was linked to the bulk-buying of MRC memberships for his family in the lead-up to an election, a situation the club said did not break any rules nor influence an election result.
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Kanga also oversaw the sacking of CEO Tom Reilly just three months after O’Reilly started in the role, a decision that led to an out-of-court settlement to prevent legal action for unfair dismissal.
But Kanga’s decision to resign followed questions from The Age about a link to unsavoury characters more than a decade in his past.
Reilly was replaced at the MRC by Fullarton, an associate of Munz. They sat on the board of the Thoroughbred Racehorse Owners Association together.
Now they will operate side-by-side at the MRC, a $1 billion sporting club that operates Caulfield, Sandown and Mornington racecourses.
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