Admire Rakti is going to have to defy history to replicate the efforts of fellow Japanese horse Delta Blues, who won the Melbourne Cup in 2006.
Admire Rakti was originally only going to carry 56 kilograms, but has been slugged with the top weight in the 2014 Melbourne Cup after handicappers were unable to find a stand-out horse.
The last time a horse was able to carry the top weight and win a Melbourne Cup was the mighty Makybe Diva, who carried 58 kilograms in her third Melbourne Cup.
Before that, the last time a horse won the Melbourne Cup carrying 58 kilos or more was in 1975 when Think Big won its second successive Melbourne Cup. That alone shows just how hard it has been along the stretch for horses to carry this weight.
Last year’s top weight Dunaden finished 8.7 lengths behind winner Fiorente, so it’s going to be a big ask for Admire Rakti to win.
I usually like to look for a horse that is around the 52 to 56 kilogram mark. Fiorente was right up in my calculations last year carrying 55 kilograms. Voleuse De Coeurs was one I was going to be looking at but she looks set to miss the spring following an infection in her coffin joint.
La Amistad has come in really well with just 52 kilograms, the Hawkes stable have already come out and said she is no Makybe Diva, and if she does run in the Melbourne Cup she needs a dead track as that is where her best performances have come from.
Melbourne Cup favourite The Offer comes in at 56.5 kilograms. The Gai Waterhouse-trained Sydney Cup winner needed around the 54.5 mark if it was going to be a chance in this year’s Cup.
Pale Mimosa is really well set-up to win with 55 kilograms, and the same goes for the Queen’s horse Estimate, who will carry 55.5 kilograms. Precedence, who may be Bart Cummings’ last shot at glory, comes in with 54.5 kilograms but might be out of his depth.
I’m interested to see how Tupac Amaru goes in the Gold Cup field. The Godolphin stayer finished second behind Criterion in the Group 1 Australian Derby (2400m) at Royal Randwick on April 12, before he finished a credible sixth in the Group 1 Sydney Cup (3200m) a week later, but he has failed to fire in his two starts this preparation. He only has to carry 53 kilograms if he makes the final field, which is a great weight to be at for the race.
Who Shot the Barman, who was highlighted in Phil’s piece yesterday, was massive when winning with 60 kilograms over 2000m last Saturday at Flemington. He loved the conditions at Flemington, and carrying just 54.5 kilograms makes him a red-hot go in this year’s field.
With just over two months to the big day on the 4th of November, there is still plenty to happen, but some of the pieces are already in place.
Have you ever tried your skills in a Racing daily fantasy competition? Put your best picks to the test for one day and see if you can scoop the pot with Draftstars. Looking for great odds on racing and sport? PlayUp is your best bet. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.
Without a Fight completed the rare Caulfield Cup-Melbourne Cup double on Tuesday as star jockey Mark Zahra went back-to-back in the big one after…
The race that stops the nation is upon us again. Every horse in the Melbourne Cup has reasons they can win, and reasons they…
Those who want to have a really big collect on Australia’s greatest race, without risking too much, have to look at the exotic bets.
While most of the attention is on Ciaron Maher and David Eustace's Gold Trip, there's no reason why stablemate Future History cannot upstage him.
Champion jockey Damien Oliver is quietly confident his Melbourne Cup mount Alenquer will be passed fit to give him a farewell ride in the…
Melbourne Cup day is here again, and it’s never anything less than exciting. The Cup itself will of course be full of drama and…
