Hot on the heels of the Breeders’ Cup Festival at Del Mar, the international racing show continues. Next stop, Flemington Racecourse, for the richest handicap contest on the planet. Two miles is the trip for “The Race that Stops a Nation”, as a stamina-laden field assembles for a shot at the A$9.4 million Melbourne Cup.
Tuesday at 4 am is the ungodly time for UK fans looking to tune into the action. However, setting those alarm clocks a little early is worth the effort to take in one of the most thrilling racing spectacles on the planet. With the final field confirmed and the challengers allocated their starting stalls, the 2024 hero will come from the following list of runners and riders.
Lexus Melbourne Cup: Confirmed Field of Runners and Riders
| Number | Horse | Jockey | Trainers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vauban | William Buick | Willie Mullins |
| 2 | Buckaroo | Joao Moreira | Chris Waller |
| 3 | Circle Of Fire | Mark Zahra | Ciaron Maher |
| 4 | Warp Speed | Akira Sugawara | Noburu Takagi |
| 5 | Kovalica | Damian Lane | Willie Mullins |
| 6 | Sharp ‘N’ Smart | Michael Dee | Graeme & Deborah Rogerson |
| 7 | Just Fine | Jye McNeil | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott |
| 8 | Land Legend | Zac Purton | Chris Waller |
| 9 | Absurde | Kerrin McEvoy | Willie Mullins |
| 10 | Athabascan | NON-RUNNER | NON-RUNNER |
| 11 | Knight’s Choice | Robbie Dolan | John Symons & Sheila Laxon |
| 12 | Okita Sousi | Jamie Kah | Ciaron Maher |
| 13 | Onesmoothoperator | Craig Williams | Brian Ellison |
| 14 | Zardozi | Andrea Atzeni | James Cummings |
| 15 | Sea King | Hollie Doyle | Harry Eustace |
| 16 | Valiant King | Craig Newitt | Chris Waller |
| 17 | Fancy Man | Ronnie Stewart | Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald |
| 18 | Interpretation | Theodore Nugent | Ciaron Maher |
| 19 | Manzoice | Declan Bates | Chris Waller |
| 20 | Mostly Cloudy | Karis Teetan | Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young |
| 21 | Positivity | Winona Costin | Andrew Forsman |
| 22 | Saint George | Tyler Schiller | Ciaron Maher |
| 23 | The Map | Rachel King | Dan Clarken & Oopy Macgillivray |
| 24 | Trust In You | Mark Du Plessis | Bruce Wallace & Grant Cooksley |
Highlights
Sent off as the market leader in 2023, the Willie Mullins star Vauban produced a lifeless display to trail home in fourteenth. Adopting the mantra of “if at first, you don’t succeed…” Mullins and Vauban are back for another crack at the prize. Currently sitting second in most betting lists, the six-year-old brings rock-solid form to the race. Last sighted finishing best of the rest behind the seemingly unbeatable Kyprios in the Irish St Leger, he had previously claimed a second Group victory on the flat when landing the Lonsdale Cup at York under big race rider William Buick.
If not Vauban, Mullins may strike with the admirable Absurde. The mount of Kerrin McEvoy finished seven positions ahead of Vauban in 2023 and arguably arrives in even better form this time. In need of the run when returning from a break at the Curragh, he bounced right back to form with an easy success in the Listed Chester Stakes. That was a career-best effort on the level, and he looks to have sound claims of adding the Melbourne Cup to his big race wins in the Ebor Handicap and County Hurdle.
With the Aidan O’Brien-trained favourite, Jan Brueghel ruled out on veterinary grounds, the Irish challenge begins and ends with Mullins, but a pair of British-based runners also arrive with high hopes. Having landed the Eider Chase and Northumberland Plate, 2024 has already been quite the year for Yorkshire’s Brian Ellison. However, success for Onesmoothoperator in this event would put those triumphs in the shade. A smooth winner of the Geelong Cup last time out, he has come in for strong support in the market. And don’t discount the Harry Eustace runner, Sea King, who posted an impressive trial of his own when claiming the Bendigo Cup last time. A win for Sea King would represent a second Melbourne Cup in three years for the Eustace family, with brother David claiming the 2022 edition with Gold Trip.
Hailing from the yard of 2021 winner Chris Waller, Buckaroo is the shortest price of the home team. Formerly based with Joseph O’Brien in Ireland, this son of Fastnet Rock tuned up nicely with a second-place effort in the Caulfield Cup but has yet to race over further than 1m4f.
Okita Soushi represented Joseph O’Brien in the 2023 edition when putting in a fair performance to finish eighth, having made a mess of the start. Now based with Chris Waller, he has progressed with every outing this term, culminating in a Moonee Valley Gold Cup victory last time.
Others to note include the up-in-trip Zardozi, who goes for Andrea Atzeni and the blue of Godolphin; Chris Waller’s Land Legend, who finished ahead of Zardozi in the Great Metropolitan; and the ex-Aidan O’Brien Interpretation, who chased Onesmoothoperator home in the Geelong Cup.
