Melbourne Cup

[K~2]

The Melbourne Cup is on November 4 (Australian)

I'll have to admit, other than knowing that it's 'the race that stops the nation', I've never paid much attention to the Melbourne Cup. :o

That said, this year, a filly out of a half sister to my stallion is one of the many Europeans 'invading' this year, and my interest has been piqued. It makes me grateful for the internet, and the ability to follow the news on the race from halfway across the world. :D

Anyways, here is the field:

MELBOURNE CUP FIELD

1 - SEPTIMUS - Johnny Murtagh - 58.5kg - $4.50
2 - MASTER O'REILLY - Vlad Duric 55kg - $21
3 - HONOLULU - Colm O'Donoghue - 54.5kg - $26
4 - C'EST LA GUERRE - Brett Prebble - 54kg - $18
5 - NOM DU JEU - Jeff Lloyd - 54kg - $9
6 - YELLOWSTONE - Johnny Egan - 54kg - $81
7 - ZIPPING - Danny Nikolic - 54kg - $18
8 - MAD RUSH - Damien Oliver - 53.5kg - $5
9 - ICE CHARIOT - Michael Rodd - 53kg - $81
10 - VIEWED - Blake Shinn - 53kg - $31
11 - LITTORIO - Steven King - 52.5kg - $31
12 - BAUER - Corey Brown - 52kg - $21
13 - BOUNDLESS - Greg Childs - 52kg - $101
14 - GALLOPIN - James Winks - 52kg - $41
15 - GUYNO - Brad Rawiller - 52kg - $151
16 - ZARITA - Dwayne Dunn - 52kg - $71
17 - NEWPORT - Chris Symons - 51.5kg - $71
18 - PROFOUND BEAUTY - Glen Boss - 51.5kg - $9
19 - RED LORD - Nicholas Hall - 51.5kg - $151
20 - VAREVEES - Craig Williams - 51.5kg - $101
21 - PRIZE LADY - Mark Sweeney - 51kg - $151
22 - ALESSANDRO VOLTA - Wayne Lordan - 50.5kg - $51
23 - BARBARICUS - Stephen Baster - 50.5kg - $21
24 - MOATIZE - Clare Lindop - 50kg - $41

There have been reports that race favorite/high weight Septimus may be scratched if the ground continues to be as firm as it has been for the Victoria Derby meeting.

[Glimmerglass]

If I saw the promo correctly, TVG will air the whole day's racing live including The Cup ;)

[K~2]

If I saw the promo correctly, TVG will air the whole day's racing live including The Cup ;)

I was a little worried I might not get to see it. In Canada, HPItv International will be featuring full-card coverage of the Melbourne Cup on Monday, November 3, starting at approximately 4:30 pm Eastern, and HPItv the individual races will appear starting closer to the first post time, currently scheduled for 6:30 pm Eastern.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Probably the strongest group of European invaders to tackle the Cup, although their best chance had to be withdrawn a couple of days ago, Godolphin's All the Good, who had prepped nicely by winning the Caulfield Cup in Oz a couple of weeks ago, came up lame in track work. Still a decent field of Euro horses.
The best Aussie horse, last year's winner Efficient, also had to be withdrawn due to injury.

Septimus is by far the best lb for lb horse in the race, but this is a true handicap and he'll given away from 8lb to 18lb to the rest of the field. Aidan O'Brien has threatened to scratch Septimus if the ground comes up too firm, but I believe that was meant as warning to the course officials to make sure that if the expected rain over the next couple of days isn't suficient that they make sure to water the course. I believe they will accommodate. Makybe Diva's connections made similar rumblings before her third win in the Cup and they made sure the sprinklers were turned on the night before.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Yellowstone has been withdrawn, deemed unsufficiently recovered from a bruised hip he got when cast in his stall a couple of weeks ago.

The race goes off at 4pm on Tuesday, local time in Melbourne. That however translates to Monday night for some people.
GMT - 5am Tues
ET - 12am Tues
CT - 11pm Mon
PT - 9pm Mon

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Updated list of runners, with the weights converted for the Metric impaired..

Number(Draw) Horse --- Age -- Wgt --Trainer -- Rider
1 (10) --- Septimus (IRE) --- 5 --- 128 --- A P O'Brien --- J P Murtagh
2 (6) --- Master O'Reilly (AUS) --- 6 --- 121 --- Danny O'brien --- V Duric
3 (24) --- Honolulu (IRE) --- 4 --- 120 --- A P O'Brien --- C O'Donoghue
4 (5) --- C'est La Guerre (NZ) --- 4 --- 119 --- J D Sadler --- B Prebble
5 (1) --- Nom Du Jeu (NZ) --- 4 --- 119 --- M Baker --- J Lloyd
6 (12) --- Yellowstone (IRE) --- 4 --- 119 --- Jane Chapple-Hyam --- Scratched
7 (16) --- Zipping (AUS) --- 6 --- 119 --- John D Sadler --- D Nikolic
8 (4) --- Mad Rush (USA) --- 4 --- 117 --- L M Cumani --- D M Oliver
9 (22) --- Ice Chariot (AUS) --- 5 --- 116 --- Mr R Maund --- M Rodd
10 (9) --- Viewed (AUS) --- 5 --- 116 --- B Cummings --- B Shinn
11 (17) --- Littorio (AUS) --- 4 --- 115 --- Nigel Blackiston --- S King
12 (13) --- Bauer (IRE) --- 5 --- 114 --- L M Cumani --- C Brown
13 (20) --- Boundless (NZ) --- 4 --- 114 --- S Mckee --- G Childs
14 (21) --- Gallopin (NZ) --- 5 --- 114 --- Danny O'brien --- J Winks
15 (8) --- Guyno (NZ) --- 5 --- 114 --- L Luciani --- C Newitt
16 (7) --- Zarita (NZ) --- 4 --- 114 --- P T Hyland --- Scratched
17 (15) --- Newport (AUS) --- 6 --- 113 --- P Perry --- C Symons
18 (2) --- Profound Beauty (IRE) --- 4 --- 113 --- D K Weld --- G Boss
19 (14) --- Red Lord (AUS) --- 5 --- 113 --- A J Cummings --- N Hall
20 (23) --- Varevees --- 5 --- 113 --- R Gibson --- C Williams
21 (18) --- Prize Lady (NZ) --- 5 --- 112 --- G D Sanders --- M C Sweeney
22 (11) --- Alessandro Volta (GB) --- 3 --- 111 --- A P O'Brien --- W Lordan
23 (3) --- Barbaricus (AUS) --- 4 --- 111 --- Danny O'brien --- S Baster
24 (19) --- Moatize (AUS) --- 4 --- 110 --- B Cummings --- C Lindop

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Septimus will run

Speaking early Tuesday morning Melbourne time, O'Brien said: "We walked the track yesterday and again this morning. It's quick ground, there is no doubt about that, but we've discussed the situation and decided to let Septimus take his chance.

"Obviously, we would prefer if it doesn't get any faster before the Cup is run. They've done their best here but it will be faster ground than Septimus has raced on before."

With no rain forecast the likelyhood is that the ground will dry out further by Melbourne Cuptime (4am British and Irish time).



Btw, here's a cool picture of Septimus (http://www.racingpost.co.uk/images/graphics/septimus_heffernan_curragh.jpg) from the Racing Post.

[Glimmerglass]

Watching the TVG live feed for the Melbourne Cup - this is how race coverage should be done for the Breeders' Cup! The quick interviews with the jocks concerning their mounts in the lockeroom, for example, is honest and immediate insight as to what to expect. ABC/ESPN just fails to capture that ...

[Glimmerglass]

For those who haven't checked out equidaily.com, that site has many neat items:

LIVE on-line video coverage (click on the 'watch live racing') (http://www.horseracing.bigpond.com/)

Today's PP - the Cup is race 7A - note the scratches cited in the above post (http://www.tvg.com/forms/australia110308.pdf)

FOX Sports (of Oz) has their NYPost-esq color chart with picks/comments (http://media.foxsports.com.au/images/2008_MelbourneCup_wallchart.pdf)

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Yellowstone has been withdrawn, deemed unsufficiently recovered from a bruised hip he got when cast in his stall a couple of weeks ago.

The race goes off at 4pm on Tuesday, local time in Melbourne. That however translates to Monday night for some people.
GMT - 5am Tues
ET - 12am Tues
CT - 11pm Mon
PT - 9pm Mon

Oops, mis posted those start times. Try...

GMT - 4am Tues
ET - 11pm Mon
CT - 10pm Mon
PT - 8pm Mon

In other words race goes off in 40 minutes or so.
Perfect day at Flemington, sunny, a bit blustery about 60f.

[Linny]

My friend just texted me a picture from atop the stands. Maybe I should make the "ex-friend!" he's having fun. If I could figure out how to get the pic onto the computer, I'd post it.

[spaghetti legs]

I'm meant to be at the races today... but I am SOOOO sick. I can't even get out of bed. waaa.

I really like Honolulu. He looks magnificent. I like Ice Chariot as a long shot too.

[Glimmerglass]

PP #8 Mad Rush (USA) at 7-1 is TVG's Simon Bray's pick (http://www.bloodhorse.com/articleindex/article.asp?id=25830)

[spaghetti legs]

Oddly enough there is no money for Septimus... If there'd be a sprinkle of rain this morning he'd be dead set favourite.

God Littorio is an enourmous horse. He's massive.

Bauer is purtey. Very solidly performing horse.

Mad Rush is the American Owned horse :P

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Jockeys up... 10 min to post.

English trained (by the Italian, Luca Cumani), American owned, Mad Rush is the favourite at the moment.

[spaghetti legs]

Allessandro Volta and Barbaricus both look eyecatching - fit and calm.

[Glimmerglass]

Mad Rush is the American Owned horse :P

Mad Rush is owned by The Honorable Earle I Mack (http://www.thoroughbrednews.co.nz/spring-racing/default.aspx?id=37469) a 70-yr old Florida businessman. Former US Ambassador to Finland (2004)

[Mack] has owned and/or bred more than 25 stakes winners, and currently owns about 75 thoroughbreds in the United States, England, France, Italy and Argentina. He breeds in Kentucky, USA, and Newmarket, England.

[spaghetti legs]

Horse number 24 Moatize is being ridden by the only female jockey in the race

[spaghetti legs]

well they're on the track and making their way towards the barriers!!! I'm so sad I couldn't be at the track today. Most people chuck a sickie so they can go and I am genuinely TOO sick to go.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

How often do you see a 22 horse field where 6 of the runners are trained by an O'Brien!!!........... (three by Aussie Danny O'Brien and three by Aidan O'Brien)

[Glimmerglass]

Horse number 24 Moatize is being ridden by the only female jockey in the race

Yep - 29-yr old Ms. Clare Lindop (http://www.virtualformguide.com/cgi-bin/tvf/displaystats.pl?jockey=clindop)

In her previous two starts, Lindop finished 19th on Debben in 2003 and last year was fifth behind Efficient on Dolphin Jo.

[Glimmerglass]

Did Mad Rush look a bit washed out or is it warm enough that all of the horses are sweating a bit?

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Allesandro Volta to be a long odds surprise.... great each way bet at the odds.

[spaghetti legs]

Mad rush was sweated up as he came off the trailer just over an hour ago.

it's only 16 degrees C today - he's sweating up with nerves but he is looking far more relaxed behind the gates now that he is away from the tens of thousands of spectators at the Flemington Track.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Mad Rush 11/2 fav
Septimus comes into 7/1 after drifting out earlier

[spaghetti legs]

Allesandro Volta to be a long odds surprise.... great each way bet at the odds.

I know.. I'd have him and Ice Chariot at each way bets. I still like Honolulu FTW.

They're starting to load already. Not being at the races is really making. me. sad.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Horses loading.... just moments to the race that stops a nation!

[spaghetti legs]

WHEEEEEE :) nothing beats the feeling.

Safe trip guys

[Drvmb1ggl3]

And they're offf!!!!!!1

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Coolmore horses running 1-2-3..... they'll get caught,

[spaghetti legs]

BART CUMMINGS HAS DONE IT

[Drvmb1ggl3]

What a finish!!!

[spaghetti legs]

10 VIEWED

12 BAUWER

4 C'EST LA GUERRE


Fantastic Race!!! Whaaa Hoo!!!

Bart Cummings IS DA MAN!!!

[Glimmerglass]

What a finish!!!

You said it! Wow! I really thought 'the little guy' on the outside would do it but lost by a 1/2 a whisker at the wire.

Was it Honolulu who pulled up at the back of the field at the final turn?

[spaghetti legs]

Ah Shoot... I didn't see anyone pull up.. with 400 to go I thought I saw someone being eased..?? Is that the same?

[Drvmb1ggl3]

You said it! Wow! I really thought 'the little guy' on the outside would do it but lost by a 1/2 a whisker at the wire.

Was it Honolulu who pulled up at the back of the field at the final turn?

No, horse that pulled up was wearing red silks. No sure who it was.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Honolulu was eased, but did finish.

[Glimmerglass]

Ah Shoot... I didn't see anyone pull up.. with 400 to go I thought I saw someone being eased..?? Is that the same?

Same - I should've said eased as the replay head-on in the stretch showed him still galloping in the stretch clearly in non-contention and distanced by the field.

[spaghetti legs]

Such a beautiful finish...

Jockey Blake Shinn is still nearly wetting himself :)


(ETA.. saw the head on then.. was carefully looking at the eased horse's stride.. wasn't 3 legged thank god)

[Drvmb1ggl3]

They just said that Bart Cummings is actually allergic to horses! Has to take medication to go to the stables every morning.
This is a man who just won his 12th Melbourne Cup victory and his 254th G1 win.

[spaghetti legs]

Mr. Cumming's is the MASTER!

Viewed looked MAGNIFICENT in the winner's circle.

[Glimmerglass]

Amazing that Viewed wins the Melbourne Cup on just 3 night's rest. He raced Nov 1st :)

[spaghetti legs]

I know.. I had actually written him off based on that very fact.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Amazing that Viewed wins the Melbourne Cup on just 3 night's rest. He raced Nov 1st :)

It's actually his 3rd G1 race in 16 days.

[spaghetti legs]

what a horse!

haha his owner's speech is cute.

[Glimmerglass]

Did you see the payoffs?

$2 win on Viewed = $186

$2 Exacta = $2,869.70

$2 Trifecta = $91,958.80!

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Is that the US pool? Amazing pay off on the tri.
He came in at 41/1 on the Aussie tote, the Ex was around $1100, and the tri $20k (think those are $1 bets).

[spaghetti legs]

Gallopin choked down and failed to finish. - Did not break down, but choked and couldn't breathe. Honolulu was eased - but finished in last place.

Corey Brown the Jockey who finished second is completely inconsolable.

the aussie pays were huuuuuuuuuuuge

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Gallopin was the horse that pulled up. They're saying he didn't break down, that he "choked down", which I think is Ozzie for swallowed his tongue. Can you translate Spaghetti Legs?

[K~2]

So I watched the race with blinkers clearly on, blocking all but Profound Beauty (who I thought ran a wonderful race for a filly a little light in races). :D

The winner ran a wonderful race. It really is a great race to watch!

It was entirely a fascinating program to watch. From the fashion stories, to the numerologist it was quite entertaining. Was interesting that the footage I was getting on HPI showed the stewards and followed the claim of interference in an earlier race, showing the viewers the jockey's claims.

All and all it was definitely worth staying up past my bedtime! :lol:

[spaghetti legs]

the 3 Irish jocks are in trouble about the race they put forward - presumably how they smashed the race way too fast. - The flemington track does not ride like that. It blew up in their faces completely cos they got nothing out of it.

dorsal displacement of the soft palate (DDSP) is known as choking down, it is an upper airway problem common in racehorses and other types of performance horses. During exercise the palate shifts position and the horse can't breath sufficiently. The horse may open its mouth and slow down rapidly or stop to swallow. Sometimes, it may make a gurgling sound when the palate is displaced. Because DDSP disrupts airflow, horses with DDSP can't exercise adequately. The condition is a major problem for the racing industry.

[Drvmb1ggl3]

Stewards want to talk to the Irish jockeys about their tactics in the race. Must say it was a bit bizarre the riding from Murtagh and O'Donoghue.

[Crazyabouteventing]

Wow I though the grey was going to get up and win, that Flemington straight is a long way after two miles...great ride...

Here's the video up already...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq0JOPOGJ3c

Cheers

[cynthia387]

Melbourne Cup Day is Australia's most famous Tuesday in november.Cup Day has been a public holiday for Melbourne, and crowds have flocked to the track.The Melbourne Cup has long been known as an urban fashion parade. The race track was one of the few places in colonial Australia where high society and the lower classes came together socially.
-----------------------------------------------------
cynthia jacquline
Search Engine Optimization (http://www.drivenwide.com)

[Linny]

Here are two pictures coutesy of my former boss aka "The Czar of Racing" who was in attendence.
http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb31/Linny999/Melbourne%20Cup/

[texang73]

Check out the wire photo of just how close it was:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/horseracing/3378013/Melbourne-Cups-dramatic-finish-as-Viewed-beats-Bauer-by-a-nose-Horse-Racing.html

Wow, just wow. :cool:

[K~2]

Just came across this article about second-place Bauer and his possible disqualification:

From Sportal

Bauer in Cup Drama (http://sportal.com.au/horseracing-news-display/bauer-in-cup-drama-61433)
Melbourne Cup runner-up Bauer is facing disqualification from this year's race, according to News Limited reports.

The report said European stayer Bauer, trained by Luca Cumani, was being investigated for treatment given to the horse in the lead-up to the race, which he collected $835,000 for his second placing behind Viewed.

The investigation will focus on electro shockwave therapy - commonly known as an ultrasound - the horse allegedly received on the Thursday prior to the Melbourne Cup, the report said.


Bauer was then under the care of Cumani, whose daughter Francesca had supervised the horse prior to her father's arrival in Melbourne.

Under Australian racing rules horses cannot race within seven days of receiving such treatment, which is designed to help healing.

Horses, however, can race within a day of treatment in Europe.
Racing Victoria Limited, which has placed a gag on all employees, has confirmed an investigation was taking place but did not reveal further details.

Bauer's win in the Geelong Cup will not be part of the inquiry, which will continue on December 11 when Bauer's managing owner Terry Henderson returns from England.

Any disqualification will not affect betting payouts as correct weight has already been declared.

Should Bauer be disqualified, each horse behind him would climb a place, leaving C'est La Guerre and Master O'Reilly as the minor placegetters.

The owners of Nom Du Jeu and Profound Beauty would also collect extra prizemoney, while connections of Ice Chariot, which finished 11th, would receive an $115,000 cheque whereas previously they would not have received a cent.

Any disqualification would also place RVL in an unenviable position as the body had spent considerable time and money luring horses from Europe for the Cup.

Connections are concerned by the investigation but feel they have done nothing wrong.

"We had a slight issue with Bauer and he (the vet) recommended the treatment," Cumani told Sydney radio station 2KY.

"We were told it was OK and we have to rely on the vet's advice."

"This treatment is widely available in every racing country. It is only banned in England on race day so I wasn't aware there would be an issue."

"The vet was appointed by Racing Victoria to look after our horses, I thought everything was fine."

"I took it for granted that if he recommended it, it would be OK."

"I probably should have looked at the rules myself and I was not aware this physiotherapy was not allowed."

Trainer Joe Janiak was punished for similar naivety in December 2006 when Takeover Target was a raceday scratching from the Hong Kong Sprint after being found to have a prohibited substance in his system.
The substance is not banned in Australia.