5/11/2002 edition

Melbourne Cup Tips

Interesting facts about the Melbourne Cup:

1. The Melbourne Cup was first run in 1861. Archer easily won that race over two miles in a time of 3:52.00s. In 1968 Rain Lover set  the two miles race record time of only 3:19.10s.

2. In 1972 the race was converted to the metric distance of 3200 metres which is  18.69 metres or 61.30 feet short of  two miles. There is no doubt that some of the metric winners would not have won had the race remained two miles or, as many people wanted at the time, been changed to 3218.7 metres.

3. The metric record of  3:16.30s was set by Kingston Rule in 1990. Brew, ridden by Kerrin McEvoy, won in the time of 3:18.68s. last year.

4. In 1985 the race reached $1 million dollars in prize money for the first time. What A Nuisance, ridden by Pat Hyland, won the $650,000 first prize.

5. Jim Cummings trained one Cup winner, Comic Court in 1950. In 1965 his son Bart trained  his first Melbourne Cup winner, the four year old mare Light Fingers. Bart Cummings holds the trainers' record having trained an incredible 11 winners. He last won the race in 1999 with Rogan Josh. However last year and this year Bart Cummings has missed out on getting a runner into the Cup field.

6. Last year, when Ethereal won the Melbourne Cup, Sheila Laxon was the first woman trainer to officially win the Melbourne Cup. However Catalogue who won the 1938 Cup was trained by Mrs. A. McDonald. Women then could not be registered as trainers. It was her husband who was the registered trainer.  
 
7. The two most successful Melbourne Cup jockeys are Bobbie Lewis and Harry White with four wins each.

Bobby Lewis won on The Victory 1902, Patrobas 1915, Artilleryman 1919 and Trivalve 1927. He finished second four times and third on Phar Lap in 1929. Had the race been run then under Quality Handicap conditions, like it is now,  which means a compressed weight scale, there is no doubt Phar Lap would have won very easily.

Harry White won on the Bart Cummings' trained Think Big in 1974 and 1975. Think Big did not win a race in between those two Melbourne Cup wins. Harry White also won on Arwon in 1978 and another  Bart Cummings' trained horse Hyperno in 1979. So Harry White also holds a unique record of two Melbourne Cup doubles! 
Continued next page

This edition of Punt to Win:
Melbourne Cup facts and figures
How does your Melbourne Cup horse rate?
Vinnie Roe, Jardines Lookout, Daliapour, Sandmason
Helene Vitality, Hatha Anna, Freemason, Maguire
Pugin, Rain Gauge, Beekeeper, County Tyrone
Hail, Media Puzzle, Mr. Prudent, Pentastic
Prized Gem, Victory Smile, Cyclades, Distinctly Secret
Grey Song, Thong Classic, Miss Meliss, Requiem
Punt to Win 1/11/2002
Punt to Win index

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