My early pick for the Melbourne Cup is Cyclades.

Set for the Cup, proven at the distance and all track conditions. Top jock will aboard.

Nicely weighted at 51.5kg.

Nice run at Flemington last Saturday, was squeezed badly when the field jumped and clipped heels, putting him back to a clear last.

To make matters worse, the leader took off in front, breaking the field up and leaving Cyclades stuck behind the tailenders some 25 lengths off the pace.

When Lance O'Sullivan finally found some space, Cyclades worked home well to finish fifth.


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[ This Message was edited by: Rogan Josh on 2002-09-10 13:05 ]

Rain Gauge for me.

Untried over distance this time last year he proved himself more then capable winning the Moonee Valley Gold Cup and finishing a brilliant 6th in The Cup.

Last prep finished 3rd behind Old Comrade and Northerly in Australian Cup.

Sure to be better for experience , had 3 runs back this time in with very encouraging efforts over shorter journeys especially last race finishing a very good 5th in Craiglee.

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Good luck and good punting.

And remember a profit a day keeps the Girlfriend/Wife away.

My early selection is Mr Prudent.

Recent 3200m form good with a nose 2nd in the Sydney Cup (good track) with 55.5kg and a close 6th (1.7 lens) in the Morphettville Cup (slow track) with 56.5kg.

Drops to 52kg in the Cup.

Currently tossing up between Vinnie Roe, Media Puzzle and Mutakarrim.

What can I say, I'm Irish! :grin:

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Ta me go maith

I agree with Testa.
Rain Gauge for me. Has demonstrated excellent speed and acceleration and shown on more than one occassion that he is up to G1 standard at WFA. Has also proven he goes ok at the distance with a good run in last years cup.

He's a a 5YO now and should be hitting his career peak this prep. The experience of last year and all the factors mentioned above give him pretty good credentials to take out the big race.

Gee it's so hard when we still have the unknown, will Universal Prince run? I don't think he will, unless he flops in the next couple of starts, which I doubt he will! I just hope my early bets stay sound. I mean, when you think of it, Melbourne Cup runners don't normally come back. So it is a big risk for the owners and trainers to potentially break it's heart, or end up with a niggling injury from the race that they seem to carry around for the rest of there career. Anyway, I like these guys as good solid chances.

Magical Miss
Vinnie Roe
Universal Prince
Rain Gauge
Cyclades

Vinnie Roe is wrapped up in hype - but well deserved. There is no doubt that the horse is exceptional. The factor that worries me is that his next run will be in the Melbourne Cup. In other words the horse has to travel all this way, then will go into quarantine (probably at Sandown), then will not have any proper hitout before the Cup. So nearly 2 months break before running 3200m in a hard and tough race.
Having said that, it's been done before - and other overseas visitors have run bold placings. I think VR will run shorter than it's real price due to hype and reputation.

Thought this was an interesting artical re Vinnie Roe and Pugin. Reading between the lines, it would seem the connections are trying to secure a better price about Vinnie. What do you think?

Monday, 16 September 2002:

The latest turn in the Melbourne Cup plans of the giant Godolphin stable confirms its stated desire to win Australia's greatest race.

It also confuses the issue like never before.

Godolphin, which races around 2,000 horses worldwide, has provided the runner-up in two of the past three Cups, each time with a horse that had been given little or no chance.

First it was Central Park in 1999 who ran in place of his talented stablemate Kayf Tara who was scratched in the week before the race.

Central Park started at 50-1 and was nosed out by Rogan Josh.

Last year Give The Slip ran at 30-1 for Godolphin and came within three-quarters of a length of beating Ethereal.

Until last weekend, Godolphin had one certain Melbourne Cup runner, Beekeeper, and one possible, Hatha Anna.

But after seeing the Melbourne Cup favourite Vinnie Roe confirm his position at the head of betting by winning the Irish St Ledger at The Curragh on Saturday, Godolphin stepped in and bought the horse that chased him home.

Godolphin's 11th-hour acquisition is Pugin, a four-year-old son of Darshaan trained until Saturday by John Oxx who ran Enzeli in the Cup in 2000.

Oxx said from Ireland he didn't rate Pugin, who is handicapped on 53.5kg in the Cup, in quite the same class as Enzeli, who carried 57kg into 15th place two years ago.

"Enzeli was the better horse, but he didn't handle the firm ground in Australia at all," Oxx said.

"That would be one of the things Pugin has in his favour, he is quite happy on top of the ground.

"The other thing he has going for him is his natural speed."

Pugin has won three races, two of them over 2000m and the other over 2400m, from his nine starts.

On a very firm track on Saturday he fought on strongly to be beaten 1-1/2 lengths by Vinnie Roe who he will meet 5.5kg better in the Cup.

Beekeeper, another horse Godolphin purchased in the past year with the Melbourne Cup in mind, confirmed his Cup claim only 24 hours earlier, returning from injury to win over 2100m at Doncaster.

The third Godolphin Cup runner is Hatha Anna, a winner at Flemington last spring but a disappointment in three starts in England this season.

Which, on past form, probably makes him the one to look out for on Cup day.

While Godolphin may now have three Melbourne Cup runners, Vinnie Roe's trainer Dermot Weld is set to have two following the encouraging effort at the Curragh on Sunday of Media Puzzle.

Media Puzzle joined Vinnie Rowe in quarantine after finishing third in a 3200m handicap.

Godolphin also confirmed today that Grandera, the winner of the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on September 7, was almost certain to run in the WS Cox Plate with Frankie Dettori to ride.

Less encouraging, though is the news from Japan that plans to run international star Eishin Preston in the Moonee Valley feature appear to have stalled.

Moonee Valley racing manager Fred Fox said difficulties making quarantine arrangements that would fit in with Eishin Preston's racing program meant the horse that has won two Group One races in Hong Kong in the past year would almost certainly miss the race.

Interesting stuff there.

It would appear that there is a doubt whether Dermot Weld will bother to bring Vinnie Roe over because of the disadvantage of weight and advantage Pugin has in the race.

Not only that, there is now a question over Magical Miss on a Cup run. They may find something shorter unless she runs ON in the Turnbull on Sunday.

That is why I was reluctant to give a tip so early on as the field changes almost entirely overnight given some flops and other impressive runs.

I remember almost every year (with the exception of Might and Power), that the Cup constantly changes complexion from one moment to the next and you can only really make a judgement Cup week!

Melbourne Cup - 3rd declerations. I see Cyclades is still in the field.

1 VINNIE ROE (IRE) Dermot Weld 59
2 NORTHERLY Fred Kersley 58
3 SKY HEIGHTS (NZ) Colin Alderson 57
4 JARDINES LOOKOUT (IRE) Alan Jarvis 56
5 UNIVERSAL PRINCE Bede Murray 56
6 DALIAPOUR (IRE) Michael Stoute 55.5
7 SANDMASON (GB) Tony McEvoy 55.5
8 HELENE VITALITY (NZ) David Hayes 54.5
9 CARNEGIE EXPRESS (NZ) David Payne 54
10 HATHA ANNA (IRE) Saeed Bin Suroor 54
11 FIELDS OF OMAGH Tony McEvoy 53.5
12 FREEMASON John Hawkes 53.5
13 MAGUIRE (NZ) Jon Collins 53.5
14 PUGIN (IRE) John Oxx 53.5
15 RAIN GAUGE George Hanlon 53.5
16 BEEKEEPER (GB) Saeed Bin Suroor 53
17 DRESS CIRCLE (NZ) Gai Waterhouse 53
18 KAAPSTAD WAY (NZ) Chris Wood 53
19 COUNTY TYRONE Max Lees 52.5
20 HAIL (NZ) Bruce Marsh 52.5
21 HENDERSON BAY (NZ) Neville McBurney 52.5
22 HEY PRONTO (NZ) Gai Waterhouse 52.5
23 MAGICAL MISS Bart Cummings 52.5
24 MR. PRUDENT George Hanlon 52
25 NATIVE JAZZ (NZ) Myles Plumb 52
26 PENTASTIC David Hall 52
27 PRIZED GEM (NZ) Murray Baker 52
28 REPUBLIC LASS Guy Walter 52
29 VICTORY SMILE (NZ) Donna Logan 52 1.5
30 ARMSTRONG (NZ) Jeffery Lynds 51.5
31 CYCLADES (NZ) Cydne Evans 51.5
32 DISTINCTLY SECRET (NZ) Mark Walker 51.5
33 SOCIETY BEAU (NZ) Mark Walker 51.5
34 SPIRIT OF WESTBURY (NZ) Cliff Brown 51.5
35 GREY SONG Tommy Hughes 51
36 MAYTHEHORSEBEWITHU (NZ) Michael Moroney 51
37 MEDIA PUZZLE (USA) Dermot Weld 51
38 THONG CLASSIC Pat Carey 51
39 EAGLE RHYTHM (NZ) Leon Macdonald 50.5
40 THE A TRAIN (NZ) Cliff Brown 50.5
41 THE BIG ASK (NZ) Michael Moroney 50.5
42 BIG PAT Peter Tulloch 50
43 MON MEKKI Gerald Ryan 50
44 PANTANI (NZ) Robbie Laing 50
45 THE SECONDMORTGAGE (NZ) Michael Moroney 50
46 TULLY THUNDER Ross McDonald 50
47 WE'RE DANCING Gai Waterhouse 50
48 CAVALLO BRUNO (NZ) Keith Flynn 49.5
49 FIRETAINE (NZ) Stuart Webb 49.5
50 GILLESPIE (NZ) Jack Denham 49.5
51 INCLUSION (NZ) Gai Waterhouse 49.5
52 RUM George Hanlon 49.5
53 BELLONIC Tony Noonan 49
54 BONDI ICEBERG Tony Wildman 49
55 CRESCENT (NZ) Graeme Rogerson 49
56 FORLORNA (IRE) Sheila Laxon 49
57 GENTLE GENIUS Tony Wildman 49
58 GLOW BABY John Symons 49
59 GOLD LOTTEY Graeme Rogerson 49
60 HAWK EYE (NZ) Tony McEvoy 49
61 L'AVENIR Denis Walters 49
62 LE DESTINA Russell Cameron 49
63 LESTER THUNDERWING Ken Keys 49
64 LEXITAW John Symons 49
65 LIGHTUMA Tony McEvoy 49
66 LITTLE MISS QUICK (NZ) Leon Macdonald 49
67 MANANG (NZ) Lee Freedman 49
68 MISS MELISS (NZ) Bart Cummings 49
69 NATIONAL TREASURE (NZ) Gai Waterhouse 49
70 NAUDERS Danny J Bougoure 49
71 OLD TAWNY (NZ) Ronald Hutchinson 49
72 PRESIDENT HUGHES (NZ) Mark Oulaghan 49
73 REQUIEM Tony McEvoy 49
74 SCRUMPTIOUS (NZ) Bevan Laming 49
75 SOLDADO Tony McEvoy 49
76 TYROLEAN Bart Cummings 49
77 ZAMARIN Tony Vasil 49
78 PLATINUM SCISSORS Gai Waterhouse 46