Lexus Melbourne Cup |
||
| Group 1 Handicap, Flemington 04:00 (UK time) A$ 8,560,000 3yo plus, 2m  |
||
|
||
1 Knight's Choice 90/1
2
Warp Speed 25/1
3
Okita Soushi 18/1
4
Zardozi 13/1
23 ran NR: Athabascan
Distances: shd, ¾l, ½l Time: 3m 19.53s
Incredibly tight finish in the Melbourne Cup as Knight's Choice and @ZRKD denied Japan's Warp Speed in a photo!#MelbourneCup #ワープスピード @netkeiba pic.twitter.com/b0aacmyyfh
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) November 5, 2024
Ladies and gents, what a cracker of a race we had at Flemington! Knight’s Choice has taken home the Lexus Melbourne Cup gold, leaving the European raiders in the dust.
Britain and Ireland came in strong with Harry Eustace’s Bendigo Cup winner Sea King, Brian Ellison’s Geelong Cup hero Onesmoothoperator, and Willie Mullins’ dynamic duo, Vauban and Absurde, all hot favourites. But none of them could land a blow!
It was a nail-biter to the finish as Knight’s Choice and Japanese runner Warp Speed battled it out in the final strides. Irish jockey Robbie Dolan, riding Knight’s Choice, just edged out Warp Speed to claim victory. Trained by the dynamic duo of John Symons and Sheila Laxon, this win marks Laxon’s second Melbourne Cup triumph, having saddled Ethereal to victory back in 2001.
Absurde was the best of the European bunch, finishing fifth, improving on last year’s seventh place. Vauban came in 11th, Onesmoothoperator 12th, and Sea King 14th out of the 23 runners.
Robbie Dolan, who made headlines on The Voice in 2022, was over the moon. “Pinch me, I think I’m dreaming! It’s incredible, I can’t believe it,” he told Channel Nine. “I’ve never ridden in this race before, but I feel like I’ve ridden in it 10 times in my head. It panned out exactly as I thought it would. Sheila and John were so confident in this horse, and I’m glad we proved the doubters wrong.”
Dolan’s father, Bobby, who worked for Dermot Weld in Ireland, surprised his son by arriving in Australia just before the race. “I woke up Sunday morning, and he was standing in my kitchen – I couldn’t believe it. Win, lose or draw, it was a great day, but to win it with him here, as well as my partner and daughter, I’m going to cry again!” Dolan added.
Sheila Laxon, celebrating her second Melbourne Cup win, said, “It’s fantastic. We’ve got some fabulous owners and had lots of help from everyone at Macedon Lodge and back home. The most special moment for me is sharing this with my son John and daughter Lucy and their children.”
John Symons chimed in, “This is the pinnacle of all pinnacles, we’ve just won the Melbourne Cup.”
Knight’s Choice was a huge outsider, with Warp Speed also a longshot after a disappointing run in the Caulfield Cup. Stable spokesman Kosi Kawakami said, “It was a great run, and we knew we could turn the form around. We’re very proud of him, but with that little margin, we just desperately wanted to win this race.”
Ex-Joseph O’Brien runner Okita Soushi finished third, three-quarters of a length back, with jockey Jamie Kah saying, “Fantastic run. Couldn’t have asked for anything more from the horse. Got me a bit excited at the 200-metre mark. I thought he was going to hang on, but he’s just a genuine one-pace horse. Couldn’t ask for anything more of him.”
Lexus Melbourne Cup (Group 1 Handicap)
A$ 8,560,000
3yo plus, 2m (3200 Metres)
23 ran
Going: Good to Firm
POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (6) Knight's Choice 5 8-2 John Symons & Sheila Laxon Robbie Dolan 90/1
2 (3) shd Warp Speed 5 8-8 Noboru Takagi Akira Sugawara 25/1
3 (10) ¾ Okita Soushi 6 8-0 2ex Ciaron Maher Jamie Kah 18/1
4 (4) ½ Zardozi 4 8-0 James Cummings Andrea Atzeni 13/1
5 (7) ½ Absurde 6 8-4 W P Mullins Kerrin McEvoy 9/1
6 (24) 1 Circle Of Fire 4 8-8 Ciaron Maher Mark Zahra 20/1
7 (19) shd Fancy Man 6 7-12 Annabel Neasham & Rob Archibald Ronnie Stewart 80/1
8 (18) ½ Land Legend 4 8-5 2ex Chris Waller Zac Purton 14/1
9 (21) hd Buckaroo 5 8-8 Chris Waller Joao Moreira 5/1F
10 (17) ¾ Kovalica 5 8-6 Chris Waller Damian Lane 25/1
11 (11) ¾ Vauban 6 8-10 W P Mullins William Buick 7/1
12 (12) ½ Onesmoothoperator 6 8-0 2ex Brian Ellison Craig A Williams 6/1
13 (22) shd Valiant King 4 7-13 Chris Waller Craig Newitt 90/1
14 (1) ½ Sea King 5 7-13 1ex Harry Eustace Hollie Doyle 11/1
15 (14) 1¾ Interpretation 6 7-12 Ciaron Maher Teodore Nugent 20/1
16 (15) 1¾ Sharp 'N' Smart 5 8-6 Graeme & Deborah Rogerson Michael Dee 501
17 (5) ½ Trust In You 6 7-12 Bruce Wallace & Grant Cooksley Mark Du Plessis 70/1
18 (16) 1 Mostly Cloudy 5 7-12 Trent Busuttin & Natalie Young Karis Teetan 90/1
19 (8) 2¼ Manzoice 5 7-12 Chris Waller Declan Bates 100/1
20 (20) ½ Positivity 4 7-12 Andrew Forsman Winona Costin 100/1
21 (23) ½ The Map 6 7-12 Dan Clarken & Oopy Macgillivray Rachel King 70/1
22 (9) 1¼ Saint George 4 7-12 Ciaron Maher Tyler Schiller 25/1
23 (13) 10 Just Fine 6 8-5 1ex Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott Jye McNeil 30/1
NR 10 (2) Athabascan 5 8-3 John O'Shea & Tom Charlton NON RUNNER
Recent Melbourne Cup Winners
| Year | Winner | Second | Third | Time |
| 2023 | Without A Fight | Soulcombe | Sheraz | 3:18.37 |
| 2022 | Gold Trip | Emissary | High Emocean | 3:24.04 |
| 2021 | Verry Elleegant | Incentivise | Spanish Mission | 3:17.43 |
| 2020 | Twilight Payment | Tiger Moth | Prince Of Arran | 3:17.34 |
| 2019 | Vow And Declare | Prince Of Arran | Il Paradiso | 3:24.76 |
| 2018 | Cross Counter | Marmelo | Prince Of Arran | 3:21.17 |
| 2017 | Rekindling | Johannes Vermeer | Max Dynamite | 3:21.19 |
| 2016 | Almandin | Heartbreak City | Hartnell | 3:20.58 |
| 2015 | Prince Of Penzance | Max Dynamite | Criterion | 3:22.15 |
| 2014 | Protectionist | Red Cadeaux | Who Shot Thebarman | 3:17.71 |
| 2013 | Fiorente | Red Cadeaux | Mount Athos | 3:20.30 |
| 2012 | Green Moon | Fiorente | Jakkalberry | 3:20.45 |
| 2011 | Dunaden | Red Cadeaux | Lucas Cranach | 3:20.84 |
| 2010 | Americain | Maluckyday | So You Think | 3:26.87 |
| 2009 | Shocking | Crime Scene | Mourilyan | 3:23.87 |
| 2008 | Viewed | Bauer | C’est La Guerre | 3:20.40 |
| 2007 | Efficient | Purple Moon | Mahler | 3:23.34 |
| 2006 | Delta Blues | Pop Rock | Maybe Better | 3:21.50 |
| 2005 | Makybe Diva | On A Jeune | Xcellent | 3:19.17 |
| 2004 | Makybe Diva | Vinnie Roe | Zazzman | 3:28.55 |
| 2003 | Makybe Diva | She’s Archie | Jardine’s Lookout | 3:19.90 |
| 2002 | Media Puzzle | Mr Prudent | Beekeeper | 3:16.97 |
| 2001 | Ethereal | Give The Slip | Persian Punch | 3:21.08 |
| 2000 | Brew | Yippyio | Second Coming | 3:18.68 |
| 1999 | Rogan Josh | Central Park | Lahar | 3:19.64 |
| 1998 | Jezabeel | Champagne | Persian Punch | 3:18.59 |
| 1997 | Might And Power | Doriemus | Markham | 3:18.33 |
| 1996 | Saintly | Count Chivas | Skybeau | 3:18.80 |
| 1995 | Doriemus | Nothin’ Leica Dane | Vintage Crop | 3:27.60 |
| 1994 | Jeune | Paris Lane | Oompala | 3:19.80 |
| 1993 | Vintage Crop | Te Akau Nick | Mercator | 3:23.40 |
| 1992 | Subzero | Veandercross | Castletown | 3:24.70 |
| 1991 | Let’s Elope | Shiva’s Revenge | Magnolia Hall | 3:18.90 |
| 1990 | Kingston Rule | The Phantom | Mr Brooker | 3:16.30 |
| 1989 | Tawrrific | Super Impose | Kudz | 3:17.10 |
| 1988 | Empire Rose | Natksi | Na Botto | 3:18.90 |
| 1987 | Kensei | Empire Rose | Rosedale | 3:22.00 |
| 1986 | At Talaq | Rising Fear | Sea Legend | 3:21.70 |
| 1985 | What A Nuisance | Koiro Corrie May | Tripsacum | 3:23.00 |
| 1984 | Black Night | Chagemar | Mapperley Heights | 3:18.90 |
| 1983 | Kiwi | Noble Comment | Mr Jazz | 3:18.90 |
| 1982 | Gurner’s Lane | Kingston Town | Noble Comment | 3:21.20 |
| 1981 | Just A Dash | El Laurena | Flashing Light | 3:21.20 |
| 1980 | Beldale Ball | My Blue Denim | Lover Bandit | 3:19.80 |
| 1979 | Hyperno | Salamander | Red Nose | 3:21.80 |
| 1978 | Arwon | Dandaleith | Karu | 3:24.30 |
| 1977 | Gold And Black | Reckless | Hyperno | 3:18.40 |
| 1976 | Van Der Hum | Gold And Black | Kythera | 3:34.10 |
| 1975 | Think Big | Holiday Waggon | Medici | 3:29.60 |
| 1974 | Think Big | Leilani | Captain Peri | 3:23.10 |
| 1973 | Gala Supreme | Glengowan | Daneson | 3:19.50 |
| 1972 | Piping Lane | Magnifique | Gunsynd | 3:19.30 |
| 1971 | Silver Knight | Igloo | Tails | 3:19.50 |
| 1970 | Baghdad Note | Vansittart | Clear Prince | 3:19.70 |
