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A host of potential last minute Melbourne Cup hopefuls will face off in the 2025 Ladbrokes Bendigo Cup field on Wednesday with markets led by John O’Shea & Tom Charlton‘s class mare Quietness.

Fourteen gallopers are engaged in this week’s Group 3 $500,000 Ladbrokes Bendigo Cup (2400m) and it is Bated Breath six-year-old Quietness sitting top of the markets at $3.70 and firming through Ladbrokes.com.au despite her wide barrier 13 draw.

Already boasting two wins from her four 2400m assignments to date, she comes off a string of top four runs including her latest when fourth beaten 3.6 lengths by Wootton Verni in the Group 3 Coongy Cup (2000m) at Caulfield a fortnight ago.

Having been badly held up in the straight, Quietness finished strongly once clear, suggesting she’s ready to peak over the longer trip.

She sticks on the same 54kg weight allocation and should relish the rise back up to her pet distance with Caulfield Cup winning jockey Jamie Melham a good replacement for Craig Williams in the saddle.

Quietness currently sits 38th on the latest order of entry for the Group 1 $10 million Melbourne Cup (3200m) on November 4 so needs a win on Wednesday to earn a spot in the 24-horse starting lineup for the world’s richest handicap.

She must run top three to meet eligibility requirements for the big one and connections are confident she’ll be in the money.

The danger occupying the second line of Bendigo Cup betting this year at $4.60 is the Chris Waller trained God’s Window rising in grade.

The five-year-old Dubawi gelding has his fourth start in Australia and presents fit chasing his maiden win down under for the Waller stable.

Yet to win over further than 1709m, Waller is throwing the import in the deep end on the back of his lead-up second in a BM88 event over 2000m at Rosehill on October 11.

He was only a half-length beaten that day with 59.5kg and Jye McNeil engaged for the ride from a favourable gate five.

Waller, who won his sixth Cox Plate last weekend at The Valley with the mighty Via Sistina going back-to-back, is after his maiden Bendigo Cup victory.

Rival horseman Ciaron Maher meanwhile has prepared two of the past three Bendigo Cup winners and will saddle-up four chances in the race this year led by Sayedaty Sadaty ($6.50).

The five-year-old was third in the Group 3 Archer Stakes two starts back before his 12th with excuses from a wide alley behind subsequent Caulfield Cup third placegetter Valiant King in the Group 3 The Bart Cummings (2500m).

Back slightly in trip and another who looks well weighted with a 3kg drop to 54kg, the galloper will be ridden by Harry Coffey from barrier three.

He too is sweating on a spot in the 2025 Melbourne Cup field currently 35th on the order of entry and needing a significant prize money boost via a win on Wednesday to potentially make the cut.

Maher’s other Bendigo Cup runners are Interpretation ($20) starting from the outside barrier, Strawberry Rock ($35) to be ridden by Ms Celine Gaudray who partners the Geelong Cup champion Torranzino in the Melbourne Cup next week, and outside hope Earl Of Tyrone ($61).

Phillip Stokes meanwhile saddles-up the early market mover Taramansour ($8) with the veteran nine-year-old out to improve on his lead-up eighth in the Group 2 Herbert Power Stakes.

Bjorn Baker’s Sydney Cup champ Arapaho is at $10 Bendigo Cup odds carrying the 61kg topweight from the inside alley after his disappointing 15th in the Group 1 The Metropolitan (2400m) at Randwick on Epsom Day.

The nine-year-old sits 8th in the Melbourne Cup order of entry, drops notably in grade and brings strong Sydney form, including a placing in the Winx Stakes behind Via Sistina earlier this prep making him a genuine winning chance even with the hefty weight allocation.

With Melbourne Cup spots up for grabs and a wide-open field, the Bendigo Cup shapes as one of the most intriguing lead-up races of the spring.

Tactical rides and track conditions will be key, and a win here could be career-defining as the first Tuesday of November approaches.

The 2025 Ladbrokes Bendigo Cup is set to run as Race 7 at 4:20pm (AEDT) on Wednesday’s mid-week Victorian race card.

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