{"id":648941,"date":"2026-11-02T17:36:16","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T17:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/648941\/"},"modified":"2026-11-02T17:36:16","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T17:36:16","slug":"melbourne-cup-2026-field-sweepstake-odds-tips-history-ahead-of-the-race-that-stops-a-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/648941\/","title":{"rendered":"Melbourne Cup 2026: Field, sweepstake, odds, tips, history ahead of \u2018the race that stops a nation\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Weight: 57.5kg <\/p>\n

Barrier: 3<\/p>\n

Form: 19: 4:2:5<\/p>\n

2. Trustyourinstinct (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Joseph O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Jockey: James McDonald <\/p>\n

Weight: 57kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 18<\/p>\n

Form: 25: 9-6-3<\/p>\n

3. Knight\u2019s Choice (Australia) <\/p>\n

Trainer: John Symons and Sheila Laxon<\/p>\n

Jockey: Robbie Dolan<\/p>\n

Weight: 56.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 2<\/p>\n

Form: 31: 6-3-3<\/p>\n

\"MoreMore than $12.7 million is up for grabs in total at the 2026 Melbourne Cup. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

4. Middle Earth (GB)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Mark Zahra<\/p>\n

Weight: 56.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 1<\/p>\n

Form: 26: 6-2-3<\/p>\n

5. Vauban (France)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott<\/p>\n

Jockey: Jordan Childs<\/p>\n

Weight: 56.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 22<\/p>\n

Form: 33: 10-5-6<\/p>\n

6. Enfjaar (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Roger Varian<\/p>\n

Jockey: Ray Dawson<\/p>\n

Weight: 56kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 8<\/p>\n

Form: 17: 5-2-3<\/p>\n

7. Royal Supremacy (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Ben Allen<\/p>\n

Weight: 56kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 21<\/p>\n

Form: 22: 7-3-4<\/p>\n

8. Wine Dark Sea (GB) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Harry Charlton<\/p>\n

Jockey: Damian Lane<\/p>\n

Weight: 56kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 23<\/p>\n

Form: 11: 4-2-0<\/p>\n

9. Asterix (NZ) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Chris Waller<\/p>\n

Jockey: Jye McNeil<\/p>\n

Weight: 55kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 6<\/p>\n

Form: 33: 8-1-2<\/p>\n

\"JockeyJockey Jamie Melham rode Half Yours to victory in the 2025 Melbourne Cup. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

10. Goodie Two Shoes (Ireland)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Joseph O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Jockey: Wayne Lordan<\/p>\n

Weight: 55kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 19<\/p>\n

Form: 23: 8-2-5<\/p>\n

11. Juja Kibo (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Sam Clipperton<\/p>\n

Weight: 55kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 14<\/p>\n

Form: 20: 6-3-6<\/p>\n

12. Hopewell Rock (Ireland)<\/p>\n

Trainer: George Boughey<\/p>\n

Jockey: Zac Lloyd<\/p>\n

Weight: 54.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 15<\/p>\n

Form: 10: 3-3-2<\/p>\n

13. Onesmoothoperator (US)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Tim Fitzsimmons<\/p>\n

Jockey: Declan Bates<\/p>\n

Weight: 54.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 13<\/p>\n

Form: 51: 6-11-6<\/p>\n

14. Soul Of Spain (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Chris Waller<\/p>\n

Jockey: Tommy Berry<\/p>\n

Weight: 54.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 5<\/p>\n

Form: 26: 5-6-6<\/p>\n

15. Zahrann (Ireland)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Ben Melham<\/p>\n

Weight: 54.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 11<\/p>\n

Form: 12: 4-2-1<\/p>\n

16. So You Are (Australia)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Bjorn Baker<\/p>\n

Jockey: Rachel King<\/p>\n

Weight: 54kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 7<\/p>\n

Form: 28: 8-6-6<\/p>\n

17. Future History (GB) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Gregory Hickman<\/p>\n

Jockey: Jamie Melham<\/p>\n

Weight: 53.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 12<\/p>\n

Form: 47: 10-6-6<\/p>\n

18. James J Braddock (Ireland) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Joseph O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Jockey: Craig Williams<\/p>\n

Weight: 53.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 24<\/p>\n

Form: 7: 2-1-1<\/p>\n

19. Kizlyar (Ireland)<\/p>\n

Trainer: Joseph O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Jockey: Beau Mertens<\/p>\n

Weight: 53.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 20<\/p>\n

Form: 11: 3-2-2<\/p>\n

20. Point Of Law (GB) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Ethan Brown<\/p>\n

Weight: 53kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 9<\/p>\n

Form: 5: 3-1-0<\/p>\n

\"AA total of $12.7m is up for grabs at this year’s Melbourne Cup. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

21. Strictly Business (Australia) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Thomas Carberry<\/p>\n

Jockey: Dean Yendall<\/p>\n

Weight: 53kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 4<\/p>\n

Form: 11: 2-2-0<\/p>\n

22. Mr Monaco (GB) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Jabez Johnstone<\/p>\n

Weight: 52.5kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 16<\/p>\n

Form: 20: 6-2-2<\/p>\n

23. Zakouma (Australia) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Grahame Begg<\/p>\n

Jockey: William Pike<\/p>\n

Weight: 52kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 10<\/p>\n

Form: 18: 5-2-1<\/p>\n

24. Shockletz (NZ) <\/p>\n

Trainer: Ciaron Maher<\/p>\n

Jockey: Harry Coffey<\/p>\n

Weight: 51kg<\/p>\n

Barrier: 10<\/p>\n

Form: 20: 7-3-1<\/p>\n

Melbourne Cup favourite<\/p>\n

Point of Law heads into the race as favourite and has drawn barrier nine and will be ridden by jockey Ethan Brown who has won 15% and placed in 38% of his races over the past 12 months. The 3-year-old stallion won the Geelong Cup on October 21 and was sired by Frankel who went unbeaten in its 14-race career.<\/p>\n

How much is the Melbourne Cup prizemoney?<\/p>\n

$12.7 million total prize pool. The winner earns $5.6 million.<\/p>\n

What time is the Melbourne Cup in New Zealand?<\/p>\n

5pm on Tuesday, November 3 at Flemington Track in Melbourne.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe Melbourne Cup held its first race back in 1861 and was declared a public holiday in 1877. Photo \/ Photosport<\/p>\n

How long is the Melbourne Cup?<\/p>\n

The race used to be two miles but was later shortened to 3200m (an 18.66m difference) after Australia switched to the metric system in 1972. The race is roughly one-and-a-half times around the Flemington track.<\/p>\n

Kingston Rule holds the record for the fastest time around the track, set by the American-bred horse in 1990 at 3m 16s and 3ms. The only other runner to finish the race under 3m and 17s was 2002 winner Media Puzzle, with a time of 3m 16s 97ms.<\/p>\n

How to watch the Melbourne Cup in New Zealand<\/p>\n

You can watch the 2026 Melbourne Cup on TVNZ+ or TV1.<\/p>\n

Melbourne Cup explained<\/p>\n

The 2026 Melbourne Cup, referred to as the \u201cRace that Stops a Nation\u201d, is one of Australia\u2019s most anticipated sports events. The Melbourne Cup held its first race back in 1861 and was declared a public holiday in 1877.<\/p>\n

The race has been competed each year aside from an intermission during the war years.<\/p>\n

The winning trophy contains 1.65kg of 18-carat gold estimated at over A$250,000. Each cup takes over 250 hours to complete. W.J. Sanders has produced each Melbourne Cup from 2016 to present.<\/p>\n

Male and female horses explained<\/p>\n

A filly is a female horse under 4 years of age. A colt is a male horse under the age of 4 that has not been castrated.<\/p>\n

A foal is a female or male horse under the age of 1. A female foal is known as a filly foal and a male is known as a colt foal.<\/p>\n

A mare is a horse that is 4 years or older and a stallion is a male horse 4 years or older.<\/p>\n

A gelding is a male horse of any age that has been castrated.<\/p>\n

New Zealand success at the Melbourne Cup<\/p>\n

1883: Martini Henry<\/p>\n

1890: Carbine<\/p>\n

1907: Apologue<\/p>\n

1916: Sasanof (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1929: Nightmarch (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1930: Phar Lap<\/p>\n

1936: Wotan (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1938: Catalogue (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1947: Hiraji<\/p>\n

1949: Foxzami<\/p>\n

1952: Dalray (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1954: Rising Fast (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1955: Toparoa<\/p>\n

1957: Straight Draw<\/p>\n

1959: Macdougal<\/p>\n

1960: Hi-Jinx (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1962: Even Stevens (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1964: Polo Prince (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1965: Light Fingers<\/p>\n

1966: Galilee<\/p>\n

1967: Red Handed<\/p>\n

1970: Baghdad Note (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1971: Silver Knight (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1974: Think Big<\/p>\n

1975: Think Big<\/p>\n

1976: Van der Hum (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1977: Gold and Black<\/p>\n

1978: Arwon<\/p>\n

1979: Hyperno<\/p>\n

1982: Gurner\u2019s Lane<\/p>\n

1983: Kiwi (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1985: What a Nuisance<\/p>\n

1987: Kensei<\/p>\n

1988: Empire Rose (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

1989: Tawrrific<\/p>\n

1991: Let\u2019s Elope<\/p>\n

1995: Doriemus<\/p>\n

1997: Might and Power<\/p>\n

1998: Jezabeel<\/p>\n

2000: Brew (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

2001: Ethereal (NZ-trained)<\/p>\n

2007: Efficient<\/p>\n

2015: Prince of Penzance<\/p>\n

2021: Verry Elleegant<\/p>\n

The previous five Melbourne Cup winners<\/p>\n

2025: Half Yours (Jockey: Jamie Melham)<\/p>\n

2024: Knight\u2019s Choice (Robbie Dolan)<\/p>\n

2023: Without A Fight (Mark Zahra)<\/p>\n

2022: Gold Trip (Mark Zahra)<\/p>\n

2021: Verry Elleegant (James McDonald)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Weight: 57.5kg Barrier: 3 Form: 19: 4:2:5 2. Trustyourinstinct (Ireland) Trainer: Joseph O\u2019Brien Jockey: James McDonald Weight: 57kg…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":648942,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[2246,1443,3017,192,10542,181,31178,19345,32786,191,1861,8454,6036,2190,123,13611,5971,111,139,69,6644,1118,7798,15556,213,75703,82548,1120,1361,223,3765,22974,73426,6923,1316],"class_list":["post-648941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-2246","tag-about","tag-ahead","tag-are","tag-cup","tag-details","tag-favourites","tag-field","tag-flemington","tag-here","tag-history","tag-including","tag-know","tag-long","tag-melbourne","tag-nation","tag-need","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-odds","tag-of","tag-race","tag-runs","tag-sports","tag-stops","tag-sweepstake","tag-takes","tag-that","tag-the","tag-tips","tag-track","tag-upon","tag-what","tag-when"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/648941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=648941"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/648941\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/648942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=648941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=648941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=648941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}