Racing Victoria handicapper will get to work on finalising Melbourne Cup weights
With Melbourne Cup entries now closed, David Hegan can get to work on finalising how a lot weight every horse will carry on this 12 months’s $8.5 million Group 1 at Flemington.
And Racing Victoria’s chief handicapper mentioned competitors for spots might be tougher than every other of the post-Covid years.
Complete entries of 123 could be down 9 on final 12 months, however worldwide nominations are up from 15 to twenty, together with Grosvenor Sq., Illinois, Jan Brueghel, Harbour Wind, Delius and Magical Zoe, which makes Hegan assume these on the restrict weight may wrestle to achieve a begin.
“If we do get one or two extra of these internationals, it could simply imply that the bar (is raised) and also you may need to be off the minimal this 12 months to get a run,” Hegan mentioned.
“Meaning The Archer and The Bart Cummings develop into important after which, after The Bart Cummings, the Moonee Valley Cup, Geelong Cup and even the Bendigo Cup are nearly going to develop into win-and-you’re-in races.
“They’re going to be stuffed with horses attempting to get that final spot with out The Archer being there on Derby Day.”
Additionally among the many worldwide entries for the November 5 occasion is Vauban, who ran 14th as $5.50 favorite final 12 months.
The Willie Mullins-trained gelding carried 55kg final 12 months, off a greatest win within the Group 3 Ballyroan Stakes, and he was final seen profitable the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup at York however Hegan mentioned his kind and the energy of the nominations means his 2024 weight gained’t differ tremendously.
“On rankings now, he’s working mainly the place we had him final 12 months, so we simply should make the evaluation of how a lot weight can we put in for his run final 12 months in comparison with his final begin win within the Lonsdale Cup,” Hegan mentioned.
“However that was a Group 2 win, in comparison with final 12 months his finest was Group 3, so you may say perhaps he’s improved half-a-kilo.
“You’ll be able to most likely count on him to be round an analogous mark working to related rankings.”
The topweight is more likely to be With out A Struggle, who gained final 12 months’s version with 56.5kg, and Hegan mentioned he could be drawing on the horse who preceded him as a information for his weight.
“Gold Journey carried 57.5 to win, however the weights have been raised 1kg that 12 months, so I assessed that as carrying 56.5kg to win for the aim of historic look-back,” Hegan mentioned.
“He progressed 2kg within the weights – he went from 56.5kg off a real scale to 58.5kg – so you may most likely count on one thing related with With out A Struggle.”
Hegan will announce the weights for this 12 months’s Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, September 17.
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