THE HISTORY OF THE
LEXUS MELBOURNE CUP
T he Lexus Melbourne Cup has been the race that stops a nation® for more than 150 years, captivating a fledgling colony when first run in 1861. Contested as a handicap over two miles (3200 metres) the race attracts the finest stayers from Australia, New Zealand and around the world. Champions including Archer, Carbine, Phar Lap, Peter Pan, Rain Lover, Think Big, Let’s Elope, Subzero, Might And Power and Makybe Diva have transcended racing to become part of Australia’s national lexicon. The Melbourne Cup is the only race in the world to have inspired multiple feature films, including Phar Lap , The Cup and Ride Like A Girl . It has also captured the imagination of internationally renowned writers such as Banjo Paterson to Mark Twain. As a handicap, with each horse allocated weight according to its ability and race record, the Melbourne Cup reflects Australia’s egalitarian spirit: anyone with the right horse can dream of winning the Cup. Archer won not only the first Melbourne Cup, but the second as well. He was denied the chance of a third after his acceptance paperwork was not lodged in time, prompting the New South Wales contingent to boycott the race and leaving just seven runners in the 1863 Melbourne Cup, the smallest ever field. Around 4000 racegoers attended the inaugural running in 1861, with crowds estimated to have reached 100,000 by 1880. The record attendance of 122,000 came in 2005, when Makybe Diva claimed a historic third Melbourne Cup. The first Cup was run on a Thursday before moving to a Tuesday in 1875, the second Tuesday in November, before settling on the first Tuesday in November. There was a one-off final Tuesday in October, as well as several Saturday editions during both World Wars, but the race has been staged on the first Tuesday in November every year since the end of World War II in 1945. The first trophy was a gold watch, along with 710 gold sovereigns, presented to Etienne de Mestre, owner-trainer of Archer, in 1861. Prizemoney surpassed £10,000 for Carbine’s 1890 Cup win, but it was not until 1919 that the trophy took on the iconic shape we know today. Artilleryman, the 1919 winner, was the first recipient of the three-handled ‘loving cup’, with the handles representing the jockey, trainer and owner. The race surpassed $100,000 in prizemoney in 1971 and broke the $1 million barrier in 1985. Now worth $10.2 million, the Lexus Melbourne Cup has gone from strength to strength, paying $100,000 all the way down to 24th place. Many great jockeys have claimed the two-mile feature. Bobbie Lewis and Harry White share the record for most Melbourne Cup victories, with four apiece; White’s tally included back-to-back wins aboard the Bart Cummings-trained, Think Big, in 1974 and 1975. In recent years, three jockeys have left their own mark on the Cup. Champion Damien Oliver won three over an 18-year span, none more emotional than his victory aboard Media Puzzle in 2002 just days after the tragic death of his brother Jason in a riding accident. Glen Boss also has three, all thanks to the wonder mare Makybe Diva, the only horse to win three Melbourne Cups. Kerrin McEvoy, the boy from Streaky Bay
Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software