Much controversy surrounded Danny O’Brien-trained Vigor and whether the Racing Victoria committee would use its discretion to include the runner into the field despite being below the 24th spot on the elimination. After O’Brien chose not to run Vigor in the Mackinnon Stakes, the gelding, 25th on the order of elimination, was denied a start after the RVC officials chose not to use their powers to elevate him into the field.

Zipping’s fall in the barriers before the Mackinnon Stakes on Saturday left the Lloyd Willimas trained runner out of Cup contention, and with other big names including Efficient and Kirkless withdrawn from the race, lesser-raced acceptors includingGallions Reach (barrier 6) and Capecover (barrier 19) were able to remain in the 24 horse field.

Mark Kavangh’s Shocking burst into Melbourne Cup contention when he defeated the Group 3 Lexus Stakes field in impressive fashion, pushing out Bart Cumming’s additional Melbourne Cup hopefuls Dandaad and Navla Escort from the final field. Shocking drew barrier 22.

Cummings will still be represented next Tuesday by three runners, defending Cup champion Viewed, Roman Emperor and Allez Wonder, in barriers 9, 15 and 13 respectively.

The third-placegetter Viewed was terrific in the Mackinnon – giving Cummings the best possible trial for the two-miler on Tuesday as he went beautifully to the line.

The Cups Kings’ son, Anthony Cummings, also has a starter for the Melbourne Cup with Zavite drawing barrier 3.

Luca Cumani will get another chance after training the runners-up in the last two Cups with his entry Basaltico just making it into the field, due to start in barrier 10.

Following the field and barrier announcement, Alcopop, who drew gate 12, remains the favourite for the Flemington feature at $5.00.

2009 Melbourne Cup Final Field:

The withdrawal of the three-year-old colt from today’s Classic is another slap in the face for trainer Mark Kavangh who has had a horror Spring Carnival. Kavangh made the decision to withdraw Shamoline Warrior after the horse developed a lung infection and displayed a highly elevated temperature last night.

A field of 10 runners will now contest the Group 1 feature and the betting markets have been thrown into disarray. The reshuffle by bookies leaves the Michael Moroney-trained Kiwi galloper Monaco Consul ($4) and Danny O’Brien’s promising colt Rockferry ($3.80) now battling for favouritism.

Kavanagh’s last chance of success on Derby Day now lies with Shocking in the Group 3 $250 000 Lexus Stakes (2500m).

The scratching follows the retirements of Kavanagh’s Maldivian and top mare Cats Whisker due to injury and the defeat of his champion Whobegotyou as the short-priced favourite in the Cox Plate.

Meanwhile Efficient and Kirklees have both been scratched from next Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup.

Kirklees’ trainer, Saeed bin Suroor made the decision at Sandown this morning as he was not satisfied with the condition of the six year old.

Kirklees will now return to Dubai to prepare for the international carnival in March.

At 9am this morning, Efficient’s owner Lloyd Williams also gave the shocking news that the 2007 Cup winner will not be running in Tuesday’s race as the gelding had not responded positively to treatment for an injury.

Earlier this week, Racing Victoria had dispatched three veterinarians to Williams’ training facility after speculation that not all was well with Efficient.

However Williams will still have two possible runners in the $5.5 million race with C’est La Guerre and Zipping, depending on how the eight year old runs in today’s Mackinnon Stakes.

With Efficient and Kirklees out of the Melbourne Cup, Danny O’Brien’s five year old Vigor will skip the Mackinnon Stakes to focus on his Melbourne Cup campaign.

O’Brien is gambling that his Caulfield Cup placegetter will make his way into the Cup with the hope that more horses will drop out of contention before tonight’s final field is announced.

The seven year old worked with the blinkers during this morning’s track work at Sandown and it will be decided on Friday whether he will race with them on Tuesday.

Head trainer Saaed Bin Suroor is scheduled to arrive in Melbourne on Thursday or Friday to oversee the final days of preparation for his two runners.

With Kirklees as the stable’s best runner in the event and number three horse on the ballot order, the six year olds trainers are not worrying about his recent seventh place in the Caulfield Cup.

Kirklees will be ridden by the stable’s number one jockey Frankie Dettori who will arrive in Melbourne on Friday in an attempt to win his first Melbourne Cup after 11 previous attempts.

Crime Scene will be ridden by last year’s Caulfield Cup winner Kerrin McEvoy who rode All The Good.

Although Crime Scene ran a disappointing sixth place in the Geelong Cup, McEvoy and Godolphin foreman Tommy Strang are still optimistic with the horse ranking in as number 16 on the ballot order for the Cup.

On the other hand, trainer Luca Cumani is struggling to get a horse in contention for the Melbourne Cup with both of his runners still outside the top 24 on the ballot order.

Cima De Triomphe is entered in this Saturday’s Mackinnon Stakes and needs to finish in the top three to assure him of a Melbourne Cup start, however it is seems doubtful that the five year old will end up racing in the 3200m event.

Cumani’s other contender is Basaltico yet the trainer has made an odd decision to not run the six year old in Saturday’s The Lexus Stakes which would have guaranteed the horse a spot in the Cup if he won.

Currently ranked 27th, Basaltico will instead wait in hope that other horses above him will drop out of contention.

With Racing Victoria still to announce the official order of entry, many of the big names are still fighting for their spot on the field.

Lee Freedman-trained Speed Gifted, coming off a devastating second last in last Saturday’s Cox Plate, is still in the race after connections paid up for The Metropolitan winner.

Irish import Changinofthguard, who was an uncertainty for the Melbourne Cup last week after developing a foot abscess that has since burst, has also met the third declaration stage with trainer David Hayes paying the fee. Hayes will announce on Wednesday whether he will run the four-year-old stallion in Melbourne Cup or take a start in the Group 1 Mackinnon Stakes (2000m) on Derby Day this Saturday instead.

If neither Freedman nor Hayes chose to run their entries, the Melbourne Cup will become a battle of the masters between the legendary trainer Bart Cummings and the prominent owner Lloyd Williams.

The Cups King, aiming at his incredible 13^th Melbourne Cup victory and also attempting to become only the third trainer in history to win the Caulfield Cup/Cox Plate/Melbourne Cup treble, has three assured runners for the November showdown. Reigning Caulfield and Melbourne Cup champion Viewed, this year’s Caulfield Cup runner-up Roman Emperor and Toorka Handicap victor Allez Wonder are the three certainties for Cummings, who has also paid up for his lower ranked hopefuls, Think Money, Dandaad and Naval Escort. To meet the qualifications and make the 24 horse field all three need a win in this Saturday’s Group 3 Lexus (SAAB) Stakes (2500m).

Williams has 2007 Melbourne Cup winner Efficient, current equal favourite for this year’s race with Viewed and five-year-old Alcopop following the declarations. Cox Plate runner-up Zipping and C’est Le Guerre have also met third declaration stage by Williams.

Despite a shaky spring, Godolphin stable has paid up for both its international gallopers, Kirklees and Crime Scene. Kirklees failed to place in the Caulfield Cup while Crime Scene had a lacklustre run in the Geelong Cup earlier this season. However, the famous stable is hoping to make a spring comeback in the Melbourne Cup.

Frankie Dettori, ranked the number one jockey in the world, will add a certain fire to Kirklees Flemington run as the hoop is yet to win a Melbourne Cup despite 11 previous rides and is sure to be hungry for success this time round. While Kerrin McEvoy has booked the mount on Kirklee’s stablemate Crime Scene.

Other overseas raiders still in contention for Australia’s favourite race include Luca Cumani’s Basaltico and Cima De Triomphe. Cumani is another eager to finally bag a coveted Cup win after being runner-up for the past two years with Purple Moon and Bauer. Cima De Triomphe, however, is still unqualified for the race, the five-year-old needing to finish within the top three in this Saturday’s Mackinnon Stakes to ensure a start.

Controversial Chechan president Ramzan Kadyrov’s horse Mouilyan is also still in contention after its South African trainer Herman Brown paid up as did English trainer Ian Williams for Munsef.

Damien Oliver, Victoria’s number one hoop, is set to ride English import Warringah.

Horses out of Melbourne Cup contention after the third declaration stage include Whoebegotyou, the Cox Plate favourite finished a disappointing sixth on Saturday and will now be spelled. Vision And Power, Light Vision, Red Ruler and Ready To Lift have all also been dropped, despite Red Ruler and Ready to Lift having been quite high up in the order of entry. Gerald Ryan-trained Ready To Lift’s Melbourne Cup chances ended after the mare failed to place in the Moonee Valley Cup.

The Geelong Cup is considered one of the major trials for the Melbourne Cup and Crime Scene was always going to do it tough as he carried the top weight. It was his first race start since a devastating last place in the Glorious Stakes in July.

Although failing to place, Crime Scene showed jockey Kerrin McEvoy that he had the staying ability to keep on pace for the one-and-a-half miles to finish just over two lengths behind Leica Ding. His run suggests the tough two-mile Melbourne Cup will suit him and Godolphin were satisfied with his effort on Wednesday.

Crime Scene, currently at odds of $41 for the Melbourne Cup, will join stablemate Kirklees ($31) on the field at Flemington.
Meanwhile Luca Cumani-trained Basaltico has a 50-50 chance to start in the Melbourne Cup after a dreadful run in his Geelong Cup prep-race.

The British raider finished more than 20 lengths back from the winner in a luckless seventh place, after needing a victory in the 2406m race to assure a start in the famous Flemington race.

Wednesday’s disappointment was yet another blow to the spring campaign of the English trainer, as Cumani’s major Melbourne Cup hopeful Cima De Triomphe finished 13th in the Caulfield Cup only five days earlier. Cima De Triomphe needed to place within the top eight to be guaranteed a start in the world’s richest handicap at Flemington next month.

Basaltico is sitting as a $61 chance in the ante-post betting markets for the Melbourne Cup.

CIMA DE TRIOMPHE

Current Odds: $8.50

Barrier: 11

Weight: 55.5kg

Jockey: Damien Oliver

Trainer: Luca Cumani

Breeding: by Galileo (IRE) from Sopran Londa (IRE)

Age: 5

Prizemoney: $1 055 046

Career: 14-5-0-2

This five-year-old grey galloper is causing a stir in the betting markets, an equal favourite with many punters and bookmakers. He has raced well last year with an Italian Derby win and has been performing well this season as well. Impressed many with his victory in the Group 3 Gerard Stakes (2000m) at Sandown in England and placed a solid fourth in both the Eclipse Stakes and Arlington Million, beaten both times by tough competitors Sea The Stars and Gio Ponti. There are slight concerns about his gate and tactical speed circulating and his lack of experience on the track, but if the pace of the race is fast he will be hard to beat with his long, big stride best suited to an all-out gallop. Prefers a good to soft track, so the dead (4) track rating at Caulfield tomorrow might be a bit hard. But with a weight of 55.5kg, 3.5kg under weight-for-age, he has excellent form.

PREDATORY PRICER

Current Odds: $8.50

Barrier: 16

Weight: 53.5kg

Jockey: Steven King

Trainer: Paul Murray

Owner: Meringo Stud

Breeding: by Street Cry (IRE) from Shady Stream

Age: 4

Prizemoney: $778 650

Career: 16-4-2-3

This Chestnut horse drew very poorly in the barrier announcement this week knocking him from clear favourite in the betting markets; drawing gate 16, which hasn’t produced a winner since Tristarc in 1985. Still a strong talent despite not having a Group 1 win to his name as yet after a string of unlucky runs in events like the AJC Australian Derby, Underwood and Turnbull Stakes. He did impress with a win in the JJ Liston Stakes and his preparation has seen him run in all the traditional lead-up races to the Caulfield Cup so he’s had the right experience and a solid lead-up. No horse since Sydeston (1990) however, has won the JJ Liston Stakes – Caulfield Cup double.

In the last day some bookmakers have reinstalled him as the favourite with odds as short as $7, ahead of the highly fancied international raiders.

DAFFODIL

Current Odds: $8.50

Barrier: 4

Weight: 51.5kg

Jockey: Chris Munce

Trainer: Kevin Gray

Owner: G.J. Chittick

Breeding: by No Excuse Needed (GB) from Spring (NZ)

Age: 4

Prizemoney: $734 124

Career: 20-7-4-1

This four-year-old bay Kiwi mare has certainly made an impact on the betting markets for the Caulfield Cup. She is a dual Group 1 winner and has proved her staying ability in the AJC Australian Oaks at Randwick. Also impressing at the Group 1 Windsor Park Plate with a great last-to-first victory. Her age is right, with four-year-olds boasting a great record in the race. How Now was the last AJC Australian Oaks winner to also win the Caulfield Cup in 1976, but if any entry is to break this 30 year drought it’s Daffodil. She’s nicely placed, but again the dead (4) track at Caulfield may prove a problem after her best success was on a boggy track. Seemingly lightly weighted with 51.5kg, if Daffodil wins this will actually be the most amount of weight carried to victory by a four-year-old mare, heavier than what Ethereal (50kg), Arctic Scent (49kg), Let’s Elope (49.5kg), Imposera (51kg) and Tristarc (50.5kg) all carried when they won the Caulfield Cup.

KIRKLEES

Current Odds: $9

Barrier: 7

Weight: 56kg

Jockey: Kerrin McEvoy

Trainer: Saeed bin Suroor

Owner: Godolphin Stud

Breeding: by Jade Robbery (USA) from Moyesii (USA)

Age: 6

Prizemoney: $ 748 482

Career: 17-8-2-4

This international raider is still the favourite with many of the leading bookmakers after drawing ideally with barrier 7. Owned by the illustrious Godolphin Stud who won the race last year with All The Good and ridded by Kerrin McEvoy who rode All The Good to victory, this six-year-old bay has it all in their favour. Kirklees is in excellent for and has Group 1 success to his name. This top European stayer has won all three of his starts this preparation. Although international stayers have only won the Caulfield Cup twice, Kirklees may just make it a hat trick. Along with Cima De Triomphe, they are the first international Group 1 winners to compete in the race.

Leading online bookmakers now have Cima De Triomphe, Predatory Pricer and Daffodil all sitting as equal favourites for the $2.5million race at $8.50. Predatory Pricer was early favourite before the barriers were decided, but drawing horribly with gate 16 has seen him drift from $6.50.

Following closely behind is Godolphin-owned Kirklees at $9. Kirklees had odds as long as $14 this morning, but ideally drawing barrier seven has seen him firm to as low as $8, with some betting agencies like TAB Sportsbet naming him as the new favourite.

The likely hood of emergencies Newport and Miss Darcey taking place in the race is slim and so Kirklees may start from position six. Gate six has spurred the last two victors, Master O’Reilly and All The Good.

Jockey Kerrin McEvory, who won last year’s Caulfield Cup aboard Goldolphin’s All The Good, has picked up the ride on Kirklees hoping to secure back-to-back success for the esteemed stable.

Prior to the draw, Vigor was sitting as second favourite, but drew poorly with the extreme outside barrier 22 easing his odds from $7 to $11.

Over the last two decades, only four horses have claimed victory from outside gate 11 in the Caulfield Cup so a good draw is imperative.

Legendary trainer Bart Cummings has three horses entered in the Caulfield Cup and the draw has favoured all. Allez Wonder, who won the Toorak Handicap last week, drew alongside stablemate Roman Emperor in barriers six and five. Cummings other runner, last year’s Melbourne Cup victor Viewed drew gate 15.

Two of the fancied international runners, Kirklees ($13) and Cima De Triomphe ($8) have increased their stocks drawing ideal gates seven and 11. Cima De Triomphe is now third favourite for the race with the bookies and punters and is trainer Luca Cumani’s best chance of Caulfield Cup success this year.

Bellow is the barrier draw for all 18 horses in the final field and the four emergencies.

BMW Caulfield Cup
Group 1
2400m
$2.5million
Saturday 17th October, 2009

Champion jockey Damien Oliver has been named as the jockey to ride the Cox Plate favourite Whobegotyou next month.

Oliver, most famously remembered for his heartfelt victory in honour of his late brother upon Media Puzzle in the 2002 Melbourne Cup, was confirmed by trainer Mark Kavanagh as Whobegotyou’s rider in the $3 million feature race. The pairing has had recent success, as Oliver rode Whobegotyou to victory in the Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes earlier on this month.

Oliver has won the Cox Plate on two previous occasions, on Dane Ripper in 1997 and Northerly in 2001. Whobegotyou is the clear favourite in the Cox Plate betting markets sitting as low as $3.60 for a win in the famous race.

Oliver has also picked up a ride in the coveted $2.5 million Caulfield Cup this year on Cima De Triomphe.

After Oliver was not able to get down to the 51kg needed to ride favourite Vigor, light-weight Craig Williams was secured as Vigor’s jockey by trainer Danny O’Brien.

Trained by Luca Cumani, Cima De Triomphe is one of four international horses who arrived in Melbourne over the weekend to prepare for the illustrious Spring Carnival. Vigor currently sits at around $6.50 with the bookmakers for the Caulfield Cup, while Cima De Triomphe is fifth place at $12.

Cumani’s other raider is Basalico, who accompanies Godolphin stayers Kirklees and Crime Scene. Basalico is yet to qualify for the Melbourne Cup and is expected to try and earn a start in the race via the Geelong Cup.

Kirklees and Crime Scene are both nominated for all three major races, the Cox Plate as well as the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups. They are now in the Sandown quarantine centre for the mandatory three weeks before contesting any spring events.

Kirklees, who has won his last three starts, is most likely to be aimed at the Caulfield Cup on October 17; hopefully following Goldolphin’s success after they won the Caulfield Cup last year with All The Good.

Crime Scene is targeted for the Melbourne Cup and is due to run in the Geelong Cup in the lead-up.

These international entries provide Luca Cumani and Godolphin with yet another, seemingly elusive, chance of Melbourne Cup victory. Cumani has trained the last two runners-up in the famous handicap event with Purple Moon in 2007 and Bauer in 2008. And the world-renowned Godolphin stables have been trying for a Cup victory for over a decade, twice producing second placegetters with Saeed Bin Suroor-trained Central Park in 1999 and Give The Slip in 2001.

All four international horses have joined Singapore star Jolie’s Shinju who arrived in august in preparation for the Cox Plate. The champion mare impressed everyone with a close third in the Dato Tan Chin Nam Stakes at Moonee Valley at her first start in Melbourne. However, Jolie’s Shinju’s Cox Plate hopes are now in distress. She failed to place in the JRA Cup last Friday night after suffering from heart irregularities.

A second flight to Melbourne from England is due on October 10 and is expected to carry other international Melbourne Cup entries Munsef, Warringah, Changingoftheguard, Mourilyan and Profound Beauty.