The best Melbourne Cup Tips on the ‘race that stops a nation’ every year are those based on the form and statistics of the 24-horse Melbourne Cup field.

It’s not only the Group 1 $8 million Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m) to enjoy a punt on at Flemington on the first Tuesday of November. Punters are treated to a full program of 10 Melbourne Cup Day races so make it a full day of racing and betting action.

2021 Melbourne Cup Tips

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The Favourite: #2 Incentivise ($2.40 at time of publish) 

This horse is something special. He put the writing on the wall with the 12-length romp home in Brisbane’s Group 3 Tatt’s Cup in the winter and proved that was no fluke this prep winning three straight Group 1 races. He has been improving each run and was simply outstanding in the Caulfield Cup producing a bullish 3.5 length win from barrier 18. Brett Prebble is going just as good as this Peter Moody-trained star and the duo will need to produce a similar effort after drawing barrier 16. Moody knows what it feels like to be in the history books (Black Caviar!) and after Tuesday, it looks more than likely that this horse will too. BACK DON’T SACK!

The Danger: #1 Twilight Payment ($11 at time of publish) 

COVID and bad luck sees just two internationals make a bid at the ‘Loving Trophy’ this year and one of those is the reigning champion Twilight Payment. True he carries the 58kg top weight and will need to stay out of trouble early from barrier two, but this is far from a vintage edition of the Melbourne Cup. He has his third start in the event so is well-accustomed to Flemington and his lead-up form in Europe this time in has been excellent. Stays all day and has been carrying some big weights back home for some pretty big efforts. He led all-the-way to win last year and it takes a pretty special stayer to do that in a 24-horse two-mile race. Will Jye McNeil look to do the same this year? He’s from the right ownership team (Lloyd Williams chasing an eighth victory) but needs to make history as the first official nine-year-old Melbourne Cup winner. He’s a danger to do just that. BACK-TO-BACK IF INCENTIVISE FLOPS!

The Each Way Value: #21 Tralee Rose ($15 at time of publish) 

The Melbourne Cup history books are definitely against her winning, but nothing says this talented staying mare cannot run a place at a price come Tuesday. Symon Wilde’s five-year-old is the right age and pedigree to produce a huge run, she’s a daughter of Tavistock and they’re flying in the staying domain. Her Flemington record is outstanding (4:2-2-0) and she’s won up to 2800m. Her only two-mile test to date was in the Group 2 Adelaide Cup and she was far from disgraced running fourth at Morphettville with 55.5kg despite jumping odds-on favourite. She gets in on just 51kg on Tuesday and is drawn well in barrier 12. Has not finished out of the money this campaign and won the Geelong Cup as the punters’ pick last time out. Dean Holland stays on and she’s a better chance than her current price suggests. Rain comes? She can handle that too. CAN SURPRISE AT A PRICE!

The Best Roughie: #12 Persan ($26 at time of publish) 

Take out Incentivise and this is by far one of the weakest….we mean open!….Melbourne Cup fields in a long time. Enormous value to be had if you don’t think the favourite will win. Persan at 25/1 is one of those longer-priced chances that could catch a few of these napping. The record in the Victorian staying races of the Maher/Eustace stable is well documented and this horse has a good strike-rate at HQ (10:4-1-1). Fourth-up and fit, he was eye-catching at the same odds when third to Incentivise in the Caulfield Cup. Carried 53kg there and is in on the same weight for the rematch over further. Luke Currie rides from a favourable barrier 11 draw, the second most successful gate in recent history. He ran 2.4 lengths back fifth in the race last year and seems a forgotten threat 12 months on going just as well. EACH WAY ALL THE WAY!

Melbourne Cup tips range from the stayer experts think will become the Melbourne Cup winner, to exotic Melbourne Cup tips predicting the first four over the line at Flemington on the first Tuesday of November.

Every year the team at Races.com.au team provide our readers with our exclusive, insider Melbourne Cup picks and best bets.

Our expert team of tipsters will look over the full 2021 Melbourne Cup field and Melbourne Cup 2021 form guide on the 24 stayers engaged for the $8 million showdown to formulate our first four selections to back in the Melbourne Cup Quinella, Exacta, Trifecta and First Four markets at Australia’s leading bookmaker Ladbrokes.com.au.

Once the Melbourne Cup tips are out you will want to lock in your Melbourne Cup bets at the best prices, so head to the best bookie, and that’s Ladbrokes.com.au.

If you are keen to lock in your own Melbourne Cup predictions and selections in the generous futures Melbourne Cup odds open now at Ladbrokes.com.au, then read over our general Melbourne Cup tipping guide below to help you back a winner!

1.) Melbourne Cup Tips: Lead-Up Races

• From 2010 – 2016 the Geelong Cup provided two Melbourne Cup winners with French raiders Americain (2010) and Dunaden (2011) both completing the double
• Shocking (2009) was the last horse to win the Lexus Stakes and back-up to salute in the Melbourne Cup results
• Two Melbourne Cup winners between 2012 – 2016 came off a lead-up run in the Cox Plate with Green Moon (7th in 2012) and Fiorente (3d in 2013); Verry Elleegant (3rd in 2021) was the last Melbourne Cup winner out of the Cox Plate

There are several races that are considered good guides for Melbourne Cup performance. These include the:

• Lexus Stakes
• Moonee Valley Cup
• Cox Plate
• Caulfield Cup

You will get a lot of good Melbourne Cup tips based on how runners perform in this year’s lead up races. You should also track the odds for these races at sites like Ladbrokes.com.au or Odds.com.au

2.) Melbourne Cup Tips: The Favourite

• Fiorente ($7 in 2013) was the last Melbourne Cup favourite to salute
• The last time Melbourne Cup favourites went back-to-back was when Makybe Diva saluted in her second and record third Melbourne Cups in 2004 and 2005
• Longer-priced runners make the best Melbourne Cup tips with plenty of recent upsets including Prince Of Penzance who saluted at $101 in 2015!

There is no need to simply go with the crowd when betting on the 2021 Melbourne Cup, as outside chances have historically performed quite well. While you should stick to runners on the day that have a price below $20, the favourites aren’t always the way to go.

If you follow the same Melbourne Cup tips as everyone else this year and end up betting on the favourite, you can only expect a tiny payout if you win. Don’t you want a chance to win big? Well, find an unappreciated runner with good odds, and a win will be much more rewarding.

3.) Melbourne Cup Tips: Exotic Bets

Outside of just Melbourne Cup Win and Place Tips the exotic Melbourne Cup betting selections are a great way to clean-up.

Picking the Melbourne Cup trifecta does not just pay extremely well – it’s also something you can brag about for years! In 2003, a man accidentally won $2.6 million by correctly picking the Melbourne Cup trifecta when he entered his bet multiple times. That’s a huge payday AND a story that will buy you drinks for years to come. Don’t ignore those 2021 Melbourne Cup trifecta tips. In fact, seek them out more than you would tips for the winner.

4.) Melbourne Cup Tips: All-In Betting

Don’t wait to act on good 2021 Melbourne Cup tips – place your bet now! Fixed odds at sites like Ladbrokes.com.au are open right now in the futures betting section, so there is no reason you can’t bet as soon as you have your picks. The earlier you bet, the better the Melbourne Cup odds you can take advantage of. The later you bet, the shorter those odds and the smaller the potential payout.

5.) Melbourne Cup Tips: Bet Online

If you aren’t already betting online, then there is no better tip than to sign up for an account at trusted online bookie like Ladbrokes.com.au. Online betting is the way to go these days, as you can get better odds than your local TAB while benefiting from special promotional offers that help your betting dollar go further.

We strongly recommend starting an account with Ladbrokes.com.au, as the 2021 Melbourne Cup Tips we feature in our news section rely on the odds there. We think Ladbrokes.com.au offers a great experience for new punters as well as the old hands, so why not give Ladbrokes.com.au a try?