The 2012 Melbourne Cup will take place on Tuesday 6th November 2012 at Flemington Racecourse at 3:00pm local time.
Juicy futures markets on the ‘race that stops a nation’, the Melbourne Cup 2012, are already open and getting plenty of action at bookies around the country as the early countdown to the first Tuesday of November beings.
Run as Flemington Race 7 on Tuesday…
The 2012 Melbourne Cup Field will be announced on the Saturday before the race, 3rd November 2012.
The Melbourne Cup 2012 field of 24 horses will feature some of the best staying horses from around the world. 2011 Melbourne Cup winner Dunaden is already in the running to defend their title in the Melbourne Cup 2012.
For the latest information see 2012 Melbourne Cup Field.
The 2012 Melbourne Cup will be Race 7 at Flemington on Melbourne Cup Day, Tuesday 1 November, and have a start time of 3:00pm (local time).
| Race No. | Start Time * | Race Name |
|---|---|---|
| Race 1 | 10.20 am | Emirates Airline Plate (Listed) |
| Race 2 | 11.00 am | TAB Sportsbet Handicap |
| Race 3 | 11.45 am | The Lavazza Long Black |
| Race 4 | 12.30 pm | Herald Sun Stakes (Group 3) |
| Race 5 | 1.15 pm | Schweppes Tonic 1000 |
| Race 6 | 2.00 pm | Lexus Hybrid Plate (Listed) |
| Race 7 | 3.00 pm | Emirates Melbourne Cup (Group 1) |
| Race 8 | 3.55 pm | Johnnie Walker Stakes (Listed) |
| Race 9 | 4.35 pm | MSS Security Sprint (Listed) |
| Race 10 | 5.15 pm | 7News Plate |
* Note race times and race order are subject to change. Times are local time Melbourne, Victoria
2012 Melbourne Cup - 152nd running of the Cup
The Emirates Melbourne Cup 2012 is the most important race on the Australian horse racing calendar. It isn’t called “The Race That Stops A Nation” for nothing – Australia really does come to a halt for an afternoon to watch the Melbourne Cup.
Held each year on the first Tuesday of November, the Melbourne Cup is a real test of staying power. The race has a distance of 3200 metres, far longer than any other major event in the Spring Racing Carnival, so it is certainly not a race that is easy to prepare for. This unusually punishing distance may be why Australians hold the Melbourne Cup so dear, as the winner must race harder than ever before to stay ahead of the pack in the final stretch.
Melbourne Cup history has been fascinating since the very first race in 1861, when Archer took the Melbourne Cup in a field of 17 horses. While Archer has the honour of being the first (and second) Melbourne Cup winner, he also retains the slowest time to date at 3:52.00. For years this was blamed on Archer travelling to the race by foot, but it has since been established that the legendary horse was transported by steam ship, so the Cup just wasn’t as competitive in the early days.
Commemorative stamp for the 100th Melbounre Cup in 1960 depiciting Archer, winner of the first Melbourne Cup.
It didn’t take long for the Melbourne Cup to become one of the most popular races in Australia, and many of the race’s longest standing traditions began to form in the 1870s. For instance, the race began to be run on a Tuesday in 1875, and the first golden cup design of a Melbourne Cup trophy was used in 1876.
Throughout the early Melbourne Cup years, Etienne de Mestre was the most prominent trainer, with 5 of his horses winning from 1861 to 1878. However, he had a fierce rival in John Tait, who managed to train a Melbourne Cup winner 4 times in that same period.
The Melbourne Cup continued to grow throughout the late 1800s, and it was well established as the most important race in Australia by the time Mark Twain visited in 1895 and documented the unique character of the event. By this point, none could contest how central the race had become to Australian culture – possibly the first Australian tradition that no one could deny.
In more than a century after, with the 2010 Melbourne Cup marking the 150th running of the race, there have been many legendary horses that have contested the Cup. The most famous may be Phar Lap, who won in 1930, but other legends are Rain Lover, Think Big, Kingston Rule, Let’s Elope, Rogan Josh, and three-time winner Makybe Diva. Trainer Bart Cummings also belongs in any list of Melbourne Cup legends, as he has a dozen Melbourne Cup wins under his belt.
If you want to learn more about the legends of the Melbourne Cup, please visit our dedicated Melbourne Cup history section.
In a race with as much history as the Melbourne Cup, you can bet that some fascinating records have been set. Here are some of the most interesting Melbourne Cup facts and statistics:
For more, please visit our Melbourne Cup facts and statistics page.
Australia is a nation of punters, and that is no more apparent than in the enthusiasm for Melbourne Cup betting. While it is said we’ll bet on two raindrops trickling down a window, Aussies prefer betting on the Melbourne Cup when possible.
The most unique aspect of Melbourne Cup betting is that it isn’t just about the money. No one argues that it feels sweet to win a few hundred on your Melbourne Cup pick, but simply getting the winner right will hardly impress anyone.
If you bet on the favourite, you’ll just be one among thousands of punters. The real Melbourne Cup betting challenge – the one that gets respect – is accurately picking the various exotic Melbourne Cup bets.
For a full guide on betting and exotic bets, please visit our extensive Melbourne Cup betting section.
While it isn’t the hardest Melbourne Cup betting challenge, picking the Melbourne Cup trifecta is symbolic of real betting prowess. It requires that you pick the first three Melbourne Cup finishers in exact order, only paying out if you get the order correct.
Most punters know that picking a Melbourne Cup trifecta exactly is a bit too hard, and they make boxed trifecta bets instead. While this costs a bit more, it covers every combination of chosen runners and even allows punters to choose more than 3 horses for the combinations. This can be especially helpful for getting the Melbourne Cup trifecta right when the field is filled with quality horses.
To learn more about picking and placing a winning trifecta or box trifecta, please visit our Melbourne Cup trifecta page.
Of all the exotic Melbourne Cup betting options, the quinella is the simplest, though still impressive to pick accurately. In a Melbourne Cup quinella, you must choose the first two finishers of the race, but the order they finish in does not matter.
This flexibility can be very helpful when there are two strong favourites in the race, as a Melbourne Cup quinella saves you from having to decide between two great horses when the statistics suggest it is an even race.
To learn all about making a winning quinella, please visit our Melbourne Cup quinella page.
The Melbourne Cup exacta is a bit harder than the quinella, as it requires you to choose the first two finishers in exact order. It may seem odd that this is a popular Melbourne Cup betting option given the flexibility of the quinella, but a winning Melbourne Cup exacta pays out significantly better than a quinella.
As with the other less flexible exotic Melbourne Cup bets, many punters place a box exacta to cover multiple combinations of the first two finishers. This allows you to get the flexibility of the quinella at a higher cost, but with the massive payout of a Melbourne Cup exacta.
For more on placing a winning exacta, please read our Melbourne Cup exacta page.
The ultimate Melbourne Cup betting challenge is to correctly pick the Melbourne Cup First Four, and boy can it pay well. In a Melbourne Cup First Four bet, you must choose the first four finishers in correct order. It goes without saying that most punters go with a boxed Melbourne Cup First Four if they take on the challenge at all.
While a Melbourne Cup First Four bet pays off just extravagantly in years when the favourite wins, it will pay life changing sums of money any time a couple of outside chances finish in front. Forget 100 to 1 payouts – a correctly chosen Melbourne Cup First Four bet can payout hundreds of thousands of dollars per dollar wagered!
It is all too common for people to place their Melbourne Cup bets at a TAB, but it is much more convenient to do it online at sites like Sportsbet. When you wager with an online betting site, you can benefit from special deals and place all your bets from the convenience of your keyboard. Also, online bookies offer early odds on the Melbourne Cup months out from the race, at very lucrative odds. You can bet on the Melbourne Cup right now by joining Luxbet!
To learn more about placing a First Four bet, visit our Melbourne Cup First Four page.
An interesting statistic that can affect betting is the 2012 Melbourne Cup barrier draw. While theoretically the distance of the race should make the Melbourne Cup barrier draw meaningless to the overall result, there have historically been a few barriers that have done particularly well and barriers that have performed poorly.
Of course, a few hundred races isn’t nearly enough of a sample to determine whether there is any bias in the Melbourne Cup barrier draw, and a horse race isn’t a perfect experiment. Nevertheless, experience has taught punters to pay heed to the barriers, as most Melbourne Cup winners have come out of the first 12 barriers, with barrier 11 particularly lucky. Barrier 18 appears to be the kiss of death, with no Melbourne Cup winners having come from this barrier.
To find out all about how the barrier draw can affect your betting, be sure to read our Melbourne Cup barrier draw page.
The Melbourne Cup odds are not just drawn from thin air. They are initially posted based on statistical information on each of the runners and then adjusted to balance out the sides of the betting.
When looking for the best Melbourne Cup odds, it is best to start early when the first nominations for the race come out. Online betting sites like Luxbet put out early odds on the Melbourne Cup soon after, and you can sometimes pick up very strong contenders at double-digit odds.
If you prefer to leave your betting until later, then you can boost the lower Melbourne Cup odds you receive by taking exotic bets. The highest Melbourne Cup odds always entail an element of risk, but you will feel much better getting paid $1000 for a winning $5 bet than you would getting paid $6.50 just betting on a short Melbourne Cup favourite.
For more information on analysing the odds as well as the latest odds on the Melbourne Cup, please visit our dedicated Melbourne Cup odds page.
The Melbourne Cup field is now restricted to 24 horses with no emergencies, but the race receives many more nominations in the lead up to the event. The final Melbourne Cup field for each year is released on the Saturday evening before the race, and punters wait impatiently for this information each year as it allows them to lock in their final bets.
The horses that make up the Melbourne Cup field are decided based on a few different conditions, and lesser horses are balloted out based on prize money earned in the last two years, performance in specific lead up races, and handicap weight. Winners of a few select races are exempt from being balloted out, and these races include:
Horses jump from the barriers at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne.
Many of these are overseas races, and the balloting exemptions provided by wins in these events have drawn many incredible foreign race horses to the Melbourne Cup field in recent years.
For the current race field and more on how it is decided, please visit our Melbourne Cup field page.
Everyone looks for good Melbourne Cup tips in the lead up to the race, but few people know good places to get them from.
One myth about Melbourne Cup tips is that you should never take them from bookies. It’s based on a notion that bookies benefit more from people losing, which isn’t the case – they make money by balancing the odds to profit regardless of the outcome.
Sometimes the best Melbourne Cup tips are offered in the bonus sections of online betting sites like Luxbet. You can also formulate your own Melbourne Cup tips by looking through the detailed Melbourne Cup form guide on offer at your favourite betting site, which are usually much better than those found in a newspaper.
To read our best tips, please visit our dedicated Melbourne Cup tips page.
While the big Melbourne Cup form guide you find in newspapers has become somewhat enticing with all its colour and focus on pleasant visual design, it isn’t that useful to punters. You are much better off with the Melbourne Cup form guide provided by an online betting site, for many reasons.
An online Melbourne Cup form guide has practically unlimited space for each horse. This allows online betting sites to include detailed accounts of a horse’s performance in all their recent races, which save you from having to learn the short hand used in less spacious form guides.
Additionally, you can place a bet with the same site you are reading the Melbourne Cup form guide at, which is incredibly convenient. Physical betting agencies are crowded with eager punters on Melbourne Cup Day, but that can all be avoided by using an online bookie.
For more info on using a form guide to improve your betting, please visit our Melbourne Cup form guide page.
Horses race to the finish line.
More often than not, the exact Melbourne Cup results are a complete surprise. Even in those years when the favourite finishes first, the placegetters and final finishers are never entirely expected.
One of the most incredible Melbourne Cup results in recent years happened in 2006 when two Japanese trained horses took the first two places. Trainer Sumii Katsuhiko had the pleasure of being the first Japanese trainer to produce a Melbourne Cup winner in Delta Blues and also picked up the quinella at the same time with his trainee Pop Rock.
Come back to this site as soon as the Melbourne Cup is over to find the latest Melbourne Cup results to help you settle your wooden spoon bets, and see where the rest of your picks placed in the end.
For all the Melbourne Cup results past and present, please visit our Melbourne Cup results and Melbourne Cup past winners sections.
Ever since the beginning of the race, Melbourne Cup fashion has been a major part of the festivities at Flemington. While the focus on fashion started with women, in recent years the male attendees have been getting into Melbourne Cup fashion as well. To savvy up on the latest fashions, be sure to check out our Melbourne Cup fashion section.
One of the unique aspects of Melbourne Cup fashion is the focus on hats. Melbourne Cup hats tend to be a bit more flamboyant than day-to-day headwear, and the real stylistas have their Melbourne Cup hats custom made to really make a statement. To learn more about getting your own unique hat, please visit our Melbourne Cup hats page.
The most authentic Melbourne Cup fashion statement you can make is to wear a fascinator, as Melbourne Cup fascinators are one of the most striking features of the fashion scene at the Flemington Spring Carnival. You’ll want to visit a professional milliner for fascinators that really stand out, so check out our Melbourne Cup fascinators page for suggestions.
Women’s race wear at the Melbourne Cup changes every year, and it pays to read up on the latest fashions before putting an outfit together. From the dress to the shoes to the hat or fascinator, our women’s race wear page tells you all you need to know to make a splash at this year’s Melbourne Cup.
Men’s race wear at the Melbourne Cup is a bit more timeless, but it is important to wear the right style and get your suit fitted properly. For tons of tips on men’s fashion for the Melbourne Cup, read our men’s race wear page.
The Melbourne Cup birdcage is the premium marquee area, where socialites and business leaders rub elbows while wearing the very best Melbourne Cup fashion. To learn more about the Melbourne Cup birdcage (and how you can get in) be sure to check out our dedicated page on the Melbourne Cup birdcage.
Possibly the most important part of the Fashions on the Field events is the presentation of the Melbourne Cup Design Award. Celebrating the achievements of Australia’s top race wear designers, you can learn more about the Melbourne Cup Design Award on our info page.
The Flemington Spring Fashion Lunch is a major showcase of Melbourne Cup fashions, with people around Australia holding their own fashion functions when they cannot make it to Flemington or a local racecourse. To learn more about it, visit our Flemington Spring Fashion Lunch page.
Aside from the celebrations at Flemington, many Melbourne Cup lunches and events are held around the country on Cup day. The biggest events are held at racecourses and Turf Clubs around Australia, but most people just have a catered lunch at work or turn up to the pub to watch the race. For more information on organising fun events, please visit our Melbourne Cup lunches and events page.
Aside from providing accommodation, many hotels in Melbourne also offer special events to entertain visitors to Melbourne. Visit our dedicated page on hotels in Melbourne to find out about special packages for staying near Flemington during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
If you are in Melbourne and looking for a good restaurant to celebrate your Melbourne Cup winnings at, then check out our guide to Melbourne Cup restaurants! Covering many different kinds of cuisine, our guide will see you eating in style.
It can be a bit tricky getting Melbourne Cup tickets, as the general admissions tend to sell out quickly once released. They also have conditions that you may not be aware of prior to purchase, as Flemington tends to keep ticketing for businesses restricted to marquees while general admissions are reserved for the public.
While getting Melbourne Cup tickets can sometimes seem like more of a challenge than picking the Melbourne Cup trifecta, it is easy enough if you simply know how the ticketing system works and which ticket types are restricted to VRC members. Please visit our Melbourne Cup tickets page to find out more!
Whatever you want to know about the Melbourne Cup and Melbourne Cup betting, you will be sure to find the information you need in one of our many Melbourne Cup pages. If you are simply looking for a place to bet on the Melbourne Cup, we recommend starting with Luxbet.
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