Melb Cup Horses
Since 1882, New Zealand–bred horses have won 40 Melbourne Cups, British-bred horses five, American-bred horses four, Irish-bred horses four, German-bred horses two. Horse Racing Melbourne Cup. 66 likes 1 talking about this. The Caulfield Cup: This winner in most cases goes on to race in the Melbourne Cup, but given only 11 horses in the history of both races have claimed the Caulfield/Melbourne Cup double, the past suggests it is extremely hard to win both races in any given year. In what would loom as a shock to many, in the period between 2010 and 2017, only one. Melbourne Cup This was posted by a friend who owns, breeds, and races horses in Australia. 'Racing authorities have launched an investigation after learning that an Asian crime syndicate is attempting to infiltrate Australian racing, reports heraldsun.com.au.
Australians are expected to sink over $300 million into the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, but what does the horse you have bet on say about you?
ESPN horse racing expert* Mike Wise has run the numbers, read the tea leaves and had a chat to a mate that swears blind that he partied with Tom Waterhouse on Hamilton Island once.
Forget the form guide. Below is the true insight into the 2019 Melbourne Cup field.
*Not a real expert.
1. CROSS COUNTER
Number one. You got one horse into the form guide and decided that dedicating too much thought to this was a waste of time. Cross Counter will be popular with people who like fries, margarita pizzas, Coca-Cola and other first-on-the-menu items.
2. MER DE GLACE
Congratulations, you've picked the bookies' favourite. You're probably also a Patriots fan.
3. MASTER OF REALITY
Don't be fooled by the name -- this is the fantasists pick. Why? This is Melbourne Cup number 17 for jockey Frankie Dettori, who is yet to ride a winner.
4. MIRAGE DANCER
Mirage Dancer's third-place finish in the Caulfield Cup had a distinct 'bronze is better than silver' vibe to it. Mediocrity, maybe a place, is this horse's destiny.
5. SOUTHERN FRANCE
Voted by its peers as 'the horse most likely to be scratched,' Southern France is perhaps the most nondescript, anonymous horse out there. Most likely a winner then.
6. HUNTING HORN
Ah yes the mating call of Flemington. Woo girls and frat boys (YIEW!) will be sounding their hunting horns to cheer on this Aidan O'Brien-trained bolter. Stay clear unless you plan on walking home from your Melbourne Cup festivities barefoot, carrying your shoes.
7. LATROBE
The only people backing Latrobe are alums, people from MALbourne, or those keen on taking down horse number 19. More on that later.
8. MUSTAJEER
Mustajeer not wearing mustard feels like a real missed opportunity. Instead, Damien Oliver will be donning the 'lucky' horseshoe. This will bring zero luck to Mustajeer or its fans -- 15th place at best.
9. ROSTROPOVICH
The results are in ... daytime TV fans are investing heavily in Rostropovich, of the Maury Povich stable. DNA tests will be needed later to prove that Rostropovich's dad really is Frankel.
10. TWILIGHT PAYMENT
Named after the reparations owed to society for the Twilight saga movies, Twilight Payment an excellent choice for a winner -- kudos to those who have picked it. A triumph here and the debt owed to us all for Breaking Dawn Pt. 2 will be forgiven.
12. FINCHE
Exactly like his namesake, Australia's ODI cricket captain Aaron Finch, Finche is a boom or bust type horse. Those that have backed this horse can expect a duck or to be kissing the badge at the end of the race. Flip a coin.
12. PRINCE OF ARRAN
Eagle-eyed punters will have noticed that this horse ran in last year's Melbourne Cup under the name 'A Prince of Arran.' Losing a whole A should be a weight off this horse's shoulders but, then again, do horses have shoulders?
13. RAYMOND TUSK
Isn't Raymond Tusk some sort of eccentric billionaire that dabbles in philanthropy and round-the-world air balloon races? He's mad as a hatter, but that won't help him in a running race against actual horses. Our pick: dead last but enjoying every minute of it.
14. DOWNDRAFT
Kitted out in Parra colours, Downdraft clearly peaked in the early 80s -- just like anyone who fancies this horse as a winner.
15. MAGIC WAND
Those in the know say that Magic Wand will start the Melbourne Cup well before fading -- which is, of course, complete nonsense. If there's one certainty that this column can offer, it's that Magic Wand will stay completely opaque throughout the whole race.
16. NEUFBOSC
Always a fan of the underdog, thrill-seekers will have sought out the horse with the longest odds: Neufbosc. Unfortunately, this cheese-eating surrender monkey has no chance of staging an upset.
17. SOUND
Sound's name just lends itself to too many corny headlines. Stay clear unless you really, really like dad jokes.
18. SURPRISE BABY
Described as a 'lightly raced stayer' by most outlets, which is basically real-estate speak for a real fixer-upper. Either way, Surprise Baby is a work in progress -- a 'glad to be part of the day' type.
19. CONSTANTINOPLE
History buffs will be all over Constantinople. SMARTER history buffs will know to stay clear because the fall of Constantinople was because of the enlightenment, aka universities, aka horse No. 7. Simples.
20. IL PARADISO
This horse is likely named after a cocktail that has too much Malibu in it. Most people should stay well clear of backing Il Paradiso, unless super sweet, fake coconuts are your thing.
21. STEEL PRINCE
Savvy punters will know that despite all the 'information' in the 'form guide' this horse actually hails from Newcastle and the jockey is Joey Johns. Guaranteed to be a winner.
22. THE CHOSEN ONE
Melbourne Cup 2020 Odds
So you've picked The Chosen One as your chosen one? Could you be any more basic?
23. VOW AND DECLARE
Michael Jordan, David Beckham, LeBron James and ... Vow and Declare? Punters who backed horse 23 will be dancing like Shane Warne with a stump in his hand if this gelding gets up.
24. YOUNGSTAR
WHY ARE THERE SO MANY HORSES IN THIS RACE?!? Youngstar ran sixth last year and clearly has been wheeled out again to make up the numbers. A 'roughie' is the nice way to describe it.
Persan was involved in a terrifying crash that also brought down War Baron at Randwick last year. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)Source:Getty Images
The day that a nation said goodbye to Winx, another group of owners sensed they might be saying a far more painful farewell.
As Persan crashed to the turf in the first race on Queen Elizabeth Stakes day at Randwick last year, the owners immediately feared the horse would never race again – let alone end up in a Melbourne Cup.
But from that extraordinary day, Persan has taken his owners on a magic carpet ride.
After venturing to Victoria for new trainers Ciaron Maher and Dave Eustace this year, Persan’s road to the Melbourne Cup kicked off with third placing in a Wangaratta maiden in April.
Melbourne Cup Horses 2020 Tips
On the 10th start of his campaign, he scored a golden ticket into the Melbourne Cup by winning the Bart Cummings at Flemington.
James Bester, who bought Persan as a weanling in 2017 and has remained in the ownership during an extraordinary journey, recalls the fall.
“It was absolutely horrifying,” Bester said.
Persan falls at Randwick last year. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)Source:Getty Images
“I was watching it from home and I jumped up out of my chair when Persan got into third spot and was about to challenge and fight out the finish.
“He and his stablemate War Baron came together and the next thing he clipped the heels of the eventual winner in front of him and down he came, flat on his back.
“Right away I thought he had broken his leg.
“He was on the ground and I thought that was it for him.
“Then I thought there were 50,000 people there and it was in front of the winning post and it was race one on Winx’s farewell day. It could have ended awfully.”
Glyn Schofield, who rode Persan, attends to Andrew Adkins, who was on board War Baron, after they both fell. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)Source:Getty Images
Persan showed early signs of his toughness when the then two-year-old somehow emerged unscathed and raced just seven days later.
He stayed with David Payne in Sydney until late last year when he was almost sold to Singapore.
“A couple of the owners had decided to sell him to Singapore but they ran it past the other owners and some of the owners said no – they said they would match the Singapore offer,” Bester says.
“So two of the owners bought out the other owners but they were based in Melbourne and wanted the horse to race in Melbourne – that’s why he was sent to Ciaron Maher and Dave Eustace.”
Persan is now safely in the Melbourne Cup field but the first Tuesday in November was a long way from the minds of connections when the galloper turned up at Wangaratta trying to win his first race in April.
He finished third that day and the dream of the owners was then just to win a race – any race. That was accomplished the next month at Bendigo.
Still, the bar wasn’t set much higher for Persan.
“We just wanted to win a race and we all thought he was a handy horse based on various hints he had given along the way,” Bester says.
“It turns out he was just warming up in that Wangaratta maiden.”
Maher and Eustace always thought there was more to Persan than met the eye.
They were confident if he could get a spot in the Bart Cummings in October then he would put his best hoof forward and be able to snatch a Melbourne Cup slot.
That dream turned into reality in a dominant win.
“It’s been some ride with this horse,” Maher reflects.
“If you had told anyone you were going to run in the Melbourne Cup when you were lining up in a Wangaratta maiden they would have laughed at you.
“The horse was a bit nervous when he arrived after his fall but if you could have planned what has happened, you couldn’t plan it any better.
“The goal for us was to win a race and have the horse get some confidence and then build on that.
“The team has done a really good job spacing his runs and bringing him all the way through.
“There is always this preconceived idea that you need to do things certain ways – we have actually just trained the horse how we best think suits him to get all the way through.”
Melb Cup Horses Pictures
Maher and Eustace have a far more fancied Cup runner in Cox Plate winner Sir Dragonet, bought for big bucks from overseas. Rag and riches.
This article was originally published by punters.com.au and reproduced with permission