It’s always a tough race to pick, and it was a fantastic run and ride by Knight’s Choice and jockey Robbie Dolan to get there. I’m pleased that the horse I said couldn’t win based on my settings in the ANZ Analyser, the well-fancied Buckaroo didn’t win. The lay bet there made up a bit of the mess that was the rest of my tips…although it has to be said Zardozi was looking good about 300m out.
1st: Knight’s Choice. Some extraordinary prices too. Betfair SP: $268.01 | VOP: $91 | Tote: $63.50
2nd: Warp Speed
3rd: Okita Sushi
4th: Zardozi – my outsider tip
5th: Absurde
6th: Circle Of Fire
7th: Fancy Man
8th: Land Legend
9th: Buckaroo – the one I said couldn’t win
10th: Kovalica
11th: Vauban – my 2nd selection
12th: Onesmoothoperator – my top tip
13th: Valiant King
14th: Sea King
15th: Interpretation
16th: Sharp N Smart
17th: Trust In You
18th: Mostly Cloudy
19th: Manzoice
20th: Positivity
21st: The Map – didn’t meet Analyser backing criteria
22nd: Saint George
23rd: Just Fine
I’ve put together my tips and some race broadcast information for you in this video, and a summary below.
My top tip is 13. Onesmoothoperator. Having won the Geelong Cup very nicely at the last start and being in good form, I like the chances of this horse very much. The distance does concern me a bit, being 800m longer than the Geelong Cup, but the 3200m distance of the Melbourne Cup is a bit of a question mark for every runner so I’m not too worried about it.
I also like 1. Vauban which is a proven quality horse, but is carrying an awful lot of weight this time around so I fancy this one to run a place but would be surprised if it wins, and 14. Zardozi is my outside chance as a strong performer over long distances, but it has been well over 200 days since the last win so it’s not a certainty by any means.
My favourite ANZ Analyser system didn’t quite find anything to back which is hardly surprising in such a large field with such wildly different forms. The closest it came to making a selection was 23. The Map which met the criteria for the jockey/trainer combination being very good and is not liked by Sky Racing’s ratings which is good sign, but fell a fair bit short on form ratings.
The ANZ Analyser did pick a horse to lay. 2. Buckaroo which is the top of the Sky Racing ratings. It’s a lay as long as it is paying $4 or more. Currently it’s at $7 so it meets the lay criteria.
Broadcast details
TV and streaming
Another year, another change in broadcast rights. TAB Corp bought the master rights this time around in an effort to limit the amount of advertising their gambling rivals could air during the telecast. The deal makes Sky Racing the host broadcaster and the world feed producer, but also required them to involve one of the major free to air networks.
Nine is the primary free to air broadcaster this year and for the next few years. Note that Seven is running Sydney races and it would be easy enough to accidentally tune into their horse racing coverage and miss the race, so be sure not to tune in to Seven for the Cup by mistake. Of course Nine, as the main free to air broadcaster, is a bit more interested in the fashions than the sport, so if you want more analysis of the racing you might want to look elsewhere.
Sky Racing has coverage on Sky 1. This is available on Foxtel, Kayo, the TAB website and app, the apps of most of the corporate bookmakers, and on the screens of just about every pub and club in the country.
Racing.com, the channel owned by Racing Victoria has been granted limited broadcast rights. They are allowed to air the race on their free to air channel (68 or 78 depending on your location) as it is a relatively low bitrate SD service, and via their website in HD. They have to black out the race on their Foxtel, Kayo and 7plus services however as these are seen as being in direct competition with Sky and Nine’s services.
International broadcasts (the race is at 4am UTC):
The racing.com stream (requires free registration) might work overseas in some locations
New Zealand: Trackside 1 (5pm NZ time)
UK: Sky Sports Racing (4am UK time)
USA: FanDuel TV (11pm ET)
An interesting thing about FanDuel TV is that in addition to a TV channel it has a stream which seems to not be geoblocked. So this is probably an option globally.
Radio
If you can’t get to a screen but still want to follow the race, the radio is a good option.
The National Racing Service comprising Sky Sports Radio, RSN, RadioTAB and TABradio has stations in just about every town in the country. You can find your local frequency via the Sky website for most of the country or for Western Australia on the TABradio website. These can also be streamed in Australia and overseas via those websites.
Nine Radio is taking the official call with Matt Hill on 2GB Sydney, 3AW Melbourne, 4BC Brisbane and 6PR Perth. Nine is also the syndication partner for the official call and is providing it to dozens of commercial stations across the country, so there’s probably at least one where you are.
SEN has its own coverage with a call by Gerard Whateley on almost all of the SEN and SEN Track stations. A list of stations can be found here. They can also be streamed via their website and app.
And ABC Radio has coverage on many ABC Local Radio stations, plus ABC Sport on DAB+, the ABC website and the ABC Listen app.
Ultimately, if you scan the dial shortly before the race you’ll almost certainly find at least one or two stations covering the race.
It is a wonderful day on the Australian sporting calendar. I wish you every success with it!
Unlike previous deals though, this one is a bit different. To the casual viewer it probably won’t be noticeably different as the coverage will probably be very similar to what viewers have seen on Ten and Seven. The difference is more behind the scenes where Sky Racing is actually the main rights holder, not Nine, and Sky gets to dictate terms for some of Nine’s content. Sky actually won the rights for this year’s cup onwards last year on the condition that they on-sell free to air rights, due to the fact the Melbourne Cup is on the anti-siphoning list and free to air television must legally be given the opportunity to air the event, and the Victoria Racing Club wanted to ensure the event remained prominent on free to air television.
Sky Racing is owned by Tabcorp, which in turn owns and operates the TAB brand in all states and territories except Western Australia. Tabcorp’s main incentive in buying the broadcasting rights to the event is in limiting the advertising of their rival betting outlets during Melbourne Cup broadcasts which, year-in-year-out, remain the horse racing broadcast with the largest audience of people who don’t regularly follow horse racing and probably take recommendations from the advertising as to where to place a bet. In the betting industry, obviously it is in Tabcorp’s interest to maintain and grow their market share, as it is for any operator, however they do make some money out of their rivals as many of their rivals offer products based on TAB totaliser pricing and TAB offers those rivals certain discounts to put money into the totaliser pool, which helps TAB maintain liquidity in the betting markets. That’s a whole other topic but the point is that Tabcorp won’t want to completely lock out their rivals from advertising, just limit them a bit.
This was one of the sticking points in Tabcorp’s negotiations with the free to air networks. Tabcorp insisted on some limits on non-Tabcorp betting advertising as well as less focus on “the colour” of the event such as fashions on the field and more focus on the racing itself and the betting markets. This is a problem for the free to air networks because casual Melbourne Cup viewers tend to like to see “the colour” of the event and watch for longer when it is shown, while the TV networks see horse racing as an advertising cash cow due to the fact it is one of the few events where almost all of the gambling advertising restrictions which apply to television cease to apply. Limiting the amount of gambling advertising during the event limits its appeal to the bean-counters who run TV networks these days.
This led to Ten and Seven withdrawing their bids for the event. Ten barely made any money on the last few years (probably due to producing very little else these days, thus increasing the production costs overhead on producing these four days of coverage) and Seven have horse racing from around the country every Saturday with existing betting partners and broadcast style, so changing that for a few days is simply not worth the hassle. Nine became the free to air broadcaster almost by default.
How much Nine are paying is unclear, but undoubtedly with all of the other sports they have at the moment, they see it as an opportunity to promote all of their other sports and other programs to viewers. The wording out of the Nine and VRC press releases is vague, but it seems that the compromise reached on gambling advertising is that TAB will be the only betting outlet mentioned during coverage and the only one whose odds will be displayed on screen, but other betting outlets will be allowed some advertising during commercial breaks…I would hazard a guess that TAB will get at least 50% of the commercial break gambling spots though.
We’ve come a long way since the days when Seven (and before them Ten) had absolute exclusivity over TV broadcasts of the Melbourne Cup. There was even a time there when Sky Racing could only show the race as a replay and nobody was allowed to stream the race live. If you weren’t near a TV, radio was the only option. Choice of where to watch has grown and that continues to be the case with the new deal, while radio continues to be pretty much a free-for-all with most stations running coverage of some sort.
Nine has the rights on free to air TV and will be able to stream on 9Now. They will broadcast all four days of the Melbourne Cup carnival live and free in HD. It seems they may be required to geoblock the 9Now streams to block viewers from outside Australia.
Sky Racing has the rights on subscription television (Foxtel and Kayo) and through pubs and clubs, as well as exclusive rights to international distribution and exclusive rights to distribute the race (via the Sky coverage) to the streams provided on the websites and apps of the various betting outlets. In previous years, Sky’s coverage has been quite limited, showing the race itself but otherwise mainly showing full-screen graphics of odds in the minutes leading up to the race while a handful of studio hosts pontificate on the outcome (my Melbourne Cup tips don’t give me bragging rights by any means, but I’m sure my strike rate on Cup Day is higher than Sky’s “expert” David Gately!). Presumably Sky will have an expanded presence this year, and possibly even utilise their Sky Thoroughbred Central channel which tends to focus on one or two meetings in more detail, compared to Sky 1 and Sky 2 which rapidly jump from the end of one race to the start of the next race all day and night.
Racing.com’s position in all of this is a mystery. This channel (available free to air and via streaming, and recently upgraded to HD on Foxtel) is a joint venture between Seven and Racing Victoria (not the Victoria Racing Club which owns the four days of the Melbourne Cup carnival at Flemington). Since inception, Racing.com has had broadcast rights to every race in Victoria (having since added South Australia and Hong Kong, plus occasional other events) so when Seven had Melbourne Cup rights there was no issue with Racing.com continuing its more analytical coverage (compared to Seven’s coverage of “the colour” of the event) in parallel to Seven. When Ten got the rights, they allowed Racing.com to continue coverage on the proviso that none of Seven’s regular horse racing hosts were involved. Nine might not be so charitable considering Seven and Nine being closer rivals than Seven and Ten were, plus Racing.com is effectively a competitor to Sky Racing and has strong ties with a few Tabcorp rivals.
I have generally found Racing.com’s Melbourne Cup coverage to be superior to that of Seven and Ten for someone who actually follows the sport, so it will be a shame if they are unable to continue to cover the Melbourne Cup. That said, Seven have some high grade Sydney racing to compete with the Melbourne Cup carnival and there’s plenty of Victorian and South Australian racing on the same days as the Melbourne Cup carnival so I’m sure Racing.com will find something to cover.
Radio is interesting. There seems to be no real change here with who will cover the race. The racing stations continuing coverage as normal; Nine Radio remain the official distribution partner for the official VRC race call by Matt Hill (the same one you hear on TV); SEN has Gerard Whateley call the race across their national network; ABC Radio has its own call broadcast nationally; and various other stations around the country either buy access from Nine Radio or have their own commentary. The bit that is interesting is that Nine Radio (2GB, 3AW, 4BC and 6PR) now have TV coverage of their own to promote so it will be interesting to see how much extra coverage these stations provide this year compared to previous years where the coverage was limited to a few minutes before and after and a couple crosses throughout the day. Nine Radio tends to heavily promote whatever their TV arm is doing so I’m sure this will be no exception.
In terms of coverage of the race itself, behind the scenes it’s actually the Victoria Racing Club which runs the production, funded by their broadcast partners, so race coverage itself probably won’t look any different to most viewers regardless of where they are watching. Different advertisers and a few more Nine personalities as talking heads, but otherwise the same as every year. And undoubtedly the fact that Seven has racing every other week of the year and shows Sydney races on Melbourne Cup day will lead to a few people watching the wrong channel and complaining that the big race wasn’t shown, as happens every year.
For me, I’ll probably end up watching the Sky Racing coverage and hope they’re actually hosting from the track and not their chromakey studio in Sydney, unless by some miracle Racing.com is allowed to broadcast.
The Melbourne Cup has been won and run for 2015. Congratulations to the owners and connections of Prince Of Penzance on their victory. See below for dividends and the complete finishing order.
Photo finish showing the first 12 finishers in the 2015 Melbourne Cup. Image credit: Racing.com
The stewards have interviewed jockeys about interference near the end of the race, but this will not change the outcome of the race. Frankie Dettori has been suspended for one month and fined $20,000 for “careless riding causing interference” during his ride on 2nd place getter Max Dynamite. Jamie Spencer has also been suspended for 14 race meetings due to interference he caused at the 250m mark while riding Big Orange.
Meanwhile Red Cadeaux suffered a suspected fetlock injury to his left foreleg during the race and has been taken away for urgent veterinary assistance. The injury is not believed to be too bad, but may spell the retirement of the 10-year-old horse.
Last updated: 5:16pm
Full replay, and data such as sectional times and margins etc are available on Racing.com’s 2015 Melbourne Cup page. Note free registration is required in order to view replays. Replays only available in Australia.
Final results and dividends 1st: 19. Prince of Penzance
Win: Supertab $65.90 , NSW $87.60 , UBET $74.10
Place: Supertab $16.60 , NSW $21.60 , UBET $19.20 2nd: 8. Max Dynamite
Place: Supertab $4.20, NSW $4.30, UBET $4.10 3rd: 2. Criterion
Place: Supertab $5.30, NSW $5.50, UBET $5.20 4th: 10. Trip to Paris Quinella: Supertab $784.00, NSW $910.60, UBET $773.40 Exacta: Supertab $1,770.30, NSW $2,050.70, UBET $2,493.20 Trifecta: Supertab $20,010.30, NSW $26,045.00, UBET $10,678.30 First Four: Supertab $307,081.20, NSW $185,975.00, UBET $202,747.60 Double/Duet/Any Two
19 & 8 Supertab $238.40, NSW $287.70, UBET $303.60
19 & 2 Supertab $203.60, NSW $299.10, UBET $264.80
8 & 2 Supertab $38.20, NSW $37.60, UBET $33.80 Running Double Prince Of Penzance with the winner of Race 6 (5. Don’t Doubt Momma)
Supertab $646.80, NSW $588.40, UBET N/A
Complete finishing order:
1st: 19. Prince of Penzance
2nd: 8. Max Dynamite
3rd: 2. Criterion
4th: 10. Trip to Paris
5th: 5. Big Orange
6th: 24. Gust of Wind
7th: 23. Excess Knowledge
8th: 13. The Offer
9th: 16. Quest for More
10th: 4. Our Ivanhowe
11th: 11. Who Shot Thebarman
12th: 21. Sertorius
13th: 3. Fame Game
14th: 22. The United States
15th: 6. Hartnell
16th: 20. Bondi Beach
17th: 7. Hokko Brave
18th: 17. Almoonqith
19th: 18. Kingfisher
20th: 15. Preferment
21st: 14. Grand Marshal
22nd: 12. Sky Hunter
23rd (last): 1. Snow Sky
Did Not Finish: 9. Red Cadeaux
My Tips
Well, as usual my Melbourne Cup tips were an unmitigated disaster.
23. Excess Knowledge ran 7th
17. Almoonqith ran 18th
12. Sky Hunter ran 22nd
As Melbourne Cup day attracts a large number of people who have a bet on this day and not on any other day, the following information may be of use to some people.
Which prize amount on the TV did I win?
There are so many different prize amounts listed in the media because different states have different TABs, and they work with each other in some states to pool the prizes and not in other states. As a general rule, the TAB odds are valid for the following states:
Supertab (also listed as S-TAB and similar abbreviations): Victoria, ACT, Western Australia
NSW TAB: New South Wales
UBET (formerly known as TattsBet and still listed as such in some places): Queensland, South Australia, Northern Territory, Tasmania.
To add confusion to the mix, UBET/TattsBet offers betting services to people outside its four TAB states. If you’re using a Tatts or UBET account but don’t live in one of those states, then their odds are irrelevant to you as you are using their bookmaker service and will need to consult UBET for the relevant odds.
If you are not betting through a TAB but through an online bookmaker, then you will need to consult them for details of your odds. Most online bookmakers offer a number of odds, some are “fixed” which means they don’t change from the time you place the bet, and others will be tied to one or more of the TAB odds. Take note of the type of odds you are choosing when you place your bet, and you’ll be in a good position to know what you won if your horse or horses finish in a winning position.
Which television coverage should I watch?
As noted earlier today, both Channel Seven and Racing.com (channels 78, 68, 522 on Foxtel, and online) have full coverage of the race. If you have the choice, I recommend the Racing.com coverage on the basis that they are spending less time playing with silly camera angles on cars which make it difficult to see the horses, and are not adding unnecessary audio from the side of the track of horse hoofs pounding on the ground, and so the commentary is clearer, which makes it easier for you to follow your horses.
What are all of these types of bets?
This varies from betting agency to betting agency, but in general:
Win: Prize paid if the horse wins the race
Place: Prize paid if the horse finishes in the first three
Quinella: Pays if the two horses finish first and second
Exacta: Pays if the two horses finish first and second. You must nominate which horse will run first and which will run second.
Trifecta: Pays if the three selected horses finish first, second, and third. You must nominate which horse will finish in which position.
Other bet types have various names with various outlets, and the rules vary slightly between betting outlet, so if in doubt you should consult your betting agency for further information.
Another year, another Melbourne Cup, although this year there are some interesting changes to the ways you can watch the Melbourne Cup which will be of great benefit to people who can not be near a television.
As usual, after the race I will provide complete results (including the complete finishing order) and the TAB dividends. It should be noted by prospective gamblers, given the number of people who may only bet on Melbourne Cup day and not be aware of all the ins and outs of horse racing, that bookmakers (which includes most of the online betting agencies) may offer different odds to those of the TABs…so the figures you see in the media may not match the odds on offer by your chosen betting outlet, and you should take this in to consideration before placing your bet.
My tips
My tips for the first three horses to pass the finishing post, in no particular order, are:
12. Sky Hunter
17. Almoonqith
23. Excess Knowledge
Scratchings
At the time of publishing there were no scratchings. If this changes during the day, I will update this post, but not until the afternoon.
Broadcast information
The race starts at 3pm Melbourne time (UTC +11).
The usual places on television and radio will be carrying the race, but with an extra television station and extra online viewing options to throw in to the mix. This makes the 2015 Melbourne Cup the most accessible Cup in history.
Television:
The Seven Network (through Channel Seven in capital cities; Seven Queensland in regional Queensland; Prime7 in regional NSW, ACT, and Victoria; GWN7 in regional Western Australia; Southern Cross Television pretty much everywhere else) remains the primary broadcast partner and will be running coverage pretty much all day, however this coverage is likely to be less focussed on racing this year and more focussed on the ancillary stuff such as fashions on the field and various associated social events. Seven will still cover the race and all of today’s other races at Flemington, but is likely to produce a broadcast aimed at more at the casual viewer than the fan of horse racing. This is because Seven has an agreement to air another racing channel.
Racing.com (channel 78 in metropolitan areas and most of regional Queensland, channel 68 in other regional areas, channel 522 of Foxtel, and also online…see below) is Victorian Racing’s own channel, broadcast through an agreement with the Seven Network and regional affiliates. The station offers a more thorough coverage of Victorian horse racing than that of Seven and is probably of more value and interest to people who are actually interested in horse racing, although it will also be a busy day for this channel as it will also be covering racing in Echuca, Wangaratta, Bairnsdale, Mildura, and Mansfield, however this won’t compromise coverage of the Melbourne Cup in any way as all of these other race meetings will take a prolonged break at 2:30pm. It is also worth noting that in most locations the Racing.com broadcast is at least a couple seconds ahead of the Seven broadcast, and in areas served by Prime7 and GWN7, Racing.com can be as much as 20 seconds ahead.
Online:
The big change this year is that live vision of the Melbourne Cup will be available online. Racing.com is undoubtedly the best place to go for this, however to access their stream you will need to register for a Racing+ account. This is free, but not something which you would want to do at the very last moment. Racing.com’s stream will be available worldwide. It is the only live stream of the Melbourne Cup which will be available outside Australia.
Channel Seven will also stream the Melbourne Cup live via 7live.com.au (where a Racing.com stream is available in addition to Seven’s coverage) and also via the Plus7 app. However these streams will only be available within Australia.
Various online bookmakers offer a relay of the Racing.com stream through their own apps and websites to account holders. These streams will only be available within Australia. These betting agencies include: tab.com.au, Sportsbet, Crownbet, Ladbrokes, Betstar.com.au, bookmaker.com.au.
Radio:
Very little has changed in regards to radio coverage this year. Many radio stations across Australia will take coverage of the race and some overseas will as well. I don’t have details for non-Australian radio stations, but the chances are that if you are outside Australia and have a station which regularly covers horse racing, it will probably cover this race too.
Inside Australia, your local racing station will definitely have full coverage of the race. The main racing stations are:
Melbourne: RSN 927AM
Sydney: Sky Sports Radio 1017AM
Canberra: Sky Sports Radio 1008AM. (Note: ACTTAB used to run 88.7 FM, however Tab Corp have bought and dropped the ACTTAB brand, and I can no longer receive a signal on 88.7FM, although it was never good in my part of town so might still be operational).
Brisbane: Radio TAB 1008AM
Adelaide: Radio TAB 1539AM
Darwin: Radio TAB 1242AM
Hobart: Radio TAB 1080AM
Perth: TAB Radio 1206AM
Of course you can also listen to the race online. The best station for this is undoubtedly RSN 927 in Melbourne as it is the originating station for the coverage which will be heard on other stations across Australia. They replaced their old Windows Media stream with an MP3 stream this year, which means it should work in pretty much every media player and every mobile device. Click the following link or copy and paste it in to your favourite media player: http://rsnshout.dyn.rsn.net.au:8000/rsn
This stream can also be accessed from RSN’s website rsn.net.au and from Racing.com.
2GB in Sydney also usually take the race and have a decent capacity for listeners on their stream, so if none of the above work for you, then http://www.2gb.com/listen-live will probably get you the race.
The above stations are all also available via phone apps such as Tunein Radio.
Replays of the race:
Racing.com will have the replay of the race, however it will only be available within Australia, and requires registration (the same registration as their live stream). Seven will undoubtedly replay the race many times during the day and Racing.com’s TV station and webstream will replay the race many times during the overnight replays over the next few days. The closing stages will be replayed by most television news bulletins in the 24 hours following the race.
Best of luck for the race today. I hope you have a good day and remember to have fun but only gamble what you can afford to lose. As usual I will be back this afternoon around race time with all of the results.
The 2014 Melbourne Cup has been run and won. Correct Weight has been declared. All TABs are now paying dividends. Listed dividends are final. The full finishing order is now posted below.
For those of you who are unsure of which TAB dividend is relevant to you, the simple guide is:
Super TAB: Victoria, ACT, Western Australia
NSW TAB: New South Wales
Tatts: Queensland, Tasmania, Northern Territory, South Australia
If you placed a bet through an outlet other than a TAB, you should refer to that outlet’s website for their prizes.
Scratched (did not start): 2. Cavalryman
Scratched (did not start): 6. Sea Moon
**My tips**
12. Who Shot Thebarman
I picked this horse to run first. It came in 3rd.
15. Precedence
I picked this horse for a place but it ran 6th.
20. Opinion
I picked this horse for a place, but it ran 11th.
Sad news after the race
Stewards at Flemington have confirmed some rather sad news. The favourite, Admire Rakti, broke down after running last and has died after returning to the stables. My thoughts and prayers go out to the people connected with this horse.
Also, Peter Donegan on Seven has reported that Araldo has been injured after the race. He was frightened by something and kicked the fence, injuring a hind leg. He is being taken to a vet for assessment. Peter Donegan reports it looks like a severe injury. A further update on Araldo is that the injury is operable, and Araldo’s prospects look good. Update Wednesday 5 November 10:09am: Unfortunately Araldo had to be put down overnight. A very sad end to the great race this year. End update
Samuel
Updated: 5:07pm (except for further update noted above)
It’s Melbourne Cup day again. I gave the Melbourne Cup a miss on this blog last year, but I’m back this year and will provide my usual results service including the full finishing order of the horses after the race, which is often useful for the sweeps where a prize is offered for last place (or in some unusual sweeps, one of the other places in the middle of the field somewhere) and is also of some importance this year with some online betting outlets offering a prize for correctly picking the first ten horses in order, the odds of which are astronomically difficult and it deserves a larger prize than is being offered, but with a prize of over a million dollars on Melbourne Cup day, I can see why it would be tempting.
My tips
I’m not going to attempt to pick the first ten horse in order, but I will give you my top three.
I like horse number 12 “Who Shot Thebarman”. Not the most consistent recent form, but with a decent barrier (13) and ridden by Glen Boss, I think he stands a good chance. He has won previously over this distance which is also a plus, and his last two victories were at this track with this jockey, although as a six-year-old there are definitely some more young and spritely horses in the race, but I’m happy to select Who Shot Thebarman as my top pick.
The other two horses I like are number 15 “Precedence” who I don’t think can win but I can think can run a place, and number 20 “Opinion” who, like Who Shot Thebarman, is trained by C.J. Waller.
Scratchings (Updated 12:02pm)
The Melbourne Cup field is currently now down to 22 horses due to the early scratching of number 6 “Sea Moon”, and the subsequent scratching of number 2 “Cavalryman”.
Broadcast information
The Seven Network is the official television broadcaster of the race which starts at 3pm Melbourne time (2:30pm in South Australia, 2:00pm in Queensland, 1:30pm in the Northern Territory, and 12:00pm in Western Australia) and you can be sure it will be shown on a television in every TAB and most clubs and function venues in the country.
For those who can’t be near a television, many radio stations will be covering it. Your local racing station will definitely have full coverage and a bunch of other stations will be taking the coverage for at least the race, if not some of the pre-race and post-race coverage.
Melbourne: RSN 927AM
Sydney: Sky Sports Radio 1017AM
Canberra: Sky Sports Radio 1008AM and ACTTAB Radio 88.7 FM (limited broadcast range for the latter)
Brisbane: Radio TAB 1008AM
Adelaide: Radio TAB 1539AM
Darwin: Radio TAB 1242AM
Hobart: Radio TAB 1080AM
Perth: TAB Radio 1206AM
Of course you can also listen to the race online. The best station for this is undoubtedly RSN 927 in Melbourne as it is the originating station for the coverage which will be heard on other stations across Australia. They have a Windows Media stream which should work in most players. Click the following link or copy and paste it in to your favourite media player: http://www.rsn.net.au/ListenLive.asx
2GB in Sydney also usually take the race and have a decent capacity for listeners on their stream, so if none of the above work for you, then http://www.2gb.com/listen-live will probably get you the race.
The above stations are all also available via phone apps such as Tunein Radio.
If you’re having a bet today, then best of luck to you, and remember to gamble responsibly.
I’ll have all of the results this afternoon following the race.
Finishing order of all 24 horses
1st: 14. Green Moon
2nd: 11. Fiorente
3rd: 3. Jakkalberry
4th: 24. Kelinni
5th: 8. Mount Athos
6th: 13. Glencadam Gold
7th: 16. Mourayan
8th: 4. Red Cardeaux
9th: 21. Precedence
10th: 17. My Quest For Peace
11th: 2. Americain
12th: 7. Cavalryman
13th: 6. Voila Ici
14th: 1. Dunaden
15th: 18. Niwot
16th: 10. Lights Of Heaven
17th: 5. Winchester
18th: 9. Sanagas
19th: 15. Maluckyday
20th: 12. Galileo’s Choice
21st: 22. Unusual Suspect
22nd: 23. Zabeelionaire
23rd: 19. Tac De Boistron
Last: 10. Ethiopia
My Tips
Not too bad I suppose. First and last is an interesting result.
I picked:
14. Green Moon (Finished 1st)
2. Americain (Finished 11th)
10. Ethiopia (Finished last)
Obviously I didn’t win the quinella or the trifecta, but with those odds the win and place paid reasonably well. I hope your tips went well.
After picking the winner in 2010 and returning to my normal form of not selecting a horse in the top three last year, this year I’m at it again. My tips this year are:
2. Americain
10. Ethiopia
14. Green Moon
I don’t have to work during the race this year and thus will be able to bring you my usual coverage of the results and the complete finishing order.
If you have a tip in the race, I wish you all the best of luck.
The race will be broadcast nationally on television on the Seven Network, and many local radio stations will also be covering the race, however if you can’t be near a TV or a radio, there are a couple webstreams which might be of use. RSN (previously Sport 927) in Melbourne’s webstream can be found here, and Sky Racing Radio (formerly 2KY) can be found here. ACTTAB Radio in Canberra relays RSN, their webstream is here. Alternatively a search in your preferred mobile app such as TuneIn Radio for any of those stations should get you to the correct webstream.
It’s that day of the year again…alas this year I won’t be able to provide as full a coverage as I have in previous years due to my own work commitments, however I will keep you updated as much as I can throughout the afternoon, including the full finishing order of every horse.
My tips for today’s big race (The Emirates Melbourne Cup at 3pm Eastern Daylight Saving Time):
2. Jukebox Jury
8. Fox Hunt
11. Precedence
I see that there is also some racing in Bunbury, Western Australia today, so as a bonus tip:
Bunbury Race 2 (The Instant Waste Management Maiden at 4:28pm Eastern Daylight Saving Time)
2. Satellite City
3. I’m No Eagle
The Melbourne Cup will be, as usual, live on the Seven Network across Australia, however if you can’t get to a television, there are plenty of radio stations covering the race, both on the air and online. You could twiddle your radio dial at 3pm to find a station which is covering the race, or if you want some webstream links, Sky Sports Radio (formerly 2KY) can be heard at http://www.skyracing.com.au/media/playerv2.php (requires Flash Player). Sport 927 in Melbourne have a Windows Media webstream at http://www.radiosportnat.com.au/sport927.asx. 2GB in Sydney are covering the race in Windows Media, MP3 (compatible with most players such as Quicktime, Real Player, VLC etc) and via their website. 2CC Canberra are also covering the race in Windows Media format.
Quinella: $52.00
Exacta: $122.80
Duet (8-24): $17.20
Duet (8-3): $6.50
Duet (24-3): $6.60
Running double with winner of previous race Palomares: $73.70
Running double with winner of following race Tagus: $170.20
Trifecta: $306.60
Quaddie/First Four: $7,451.60
All dividends are Supertab/Victorian TAB dividends. Most agencies base their dividends on Supertab, however the dividends of other agencies may differ.
The Finishing Order
1st: 8. Americain
2nd: 24. Maluckyday
3rd: 3. So You Think
4th: 4. Zipping
5th: 12. Harris Tweed
6th: 19. Holberg
7th: 13. Manighar
8th: 20. Precedence
9th: 5. Illustrious Blue
10th: 6. Mr Medici
11th: 23. Once Were Wild
12th: 9. Tokai Trick
13th: 7. Shoot Out
14th: 15. Monaco Consul
15th: 14. Master O’Reilly
16th: 2. Campanologist
17th: 16. Profound Beauty
18th: 1. Shocking
19th: 21. Red Ruler
20th: 10. Buccellati
21st: 22. Linton
Last: 17. Zavite
Did not finish: 11. Descarado
Scratched: 18. Bauer
I hope you did well today. I’m pleased to note that I, for the first time since Jeune won the Cup in 1994, picked a Cup winner.
