History and statistics of the 2024 Melbourne Cup

The famous one Melbourne Cup race – which will be held for the 164th time on Tuesday – has a rich and time-honored history dating back to 1861.

This is where we dive into history of the Melbourne Cup and discover some important things Melbourne Cup statistics about the iconic two-mile handicap.

The Group 1 $8.56 million Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m) runs every year on the first Tuesday in November and the 2024 Melbourne Cup Field features 24 stayers from all over the world.

Before we crown the crown 2024 Melbourne Cup Winner Just after 3pm (AEDT) on Tuesday, let’s take a look at the latest training session and Melbourne Cup jockey records in the most famous Australian breed to help guide you Tips for the Melbourne Cup and selections!

History and statistics of the Melbourne Cup

Melbourne Cup Winners:

• The The Melbourne Cup was first held in 1861 by the then Victorian Turf Club.
• Archer was the first winner of the Melbourne Cup Mormon defeated the first runner-up of the Melbourne Cup, Mormon, by a full six lengths!
• The first Melbourne Cup winner won £1,420, a trophy and a gold watch. The 2024 Melbourne Cup winner will receive $4.4 million!
• Archer was back in 1862 for a successful title defense in the Melbourne Cup and became the first double winner of the Melbourne Cup. Mormon came second again, beaten even further by a huge margin of eight lengths!
• Reigning champion Without A Fight (2023) is not in the 2024 Melbourne Cup field but the horses that took part in last year’s race back for a second shot are: Interpretation (6th), Absurd (7th), Okita Soushi (11e), and Vauban (14th).
• Sagittarius from 1862 Melbourne Cup winning margin of eight lengths remains a record he shares with 1968 Melbourne Cup champion Rain Lover.
• The metric Melbourne Cup race record is held by Kingston Rule who won in 3 minutes and 16.30 seconds in 1990.
• The oldest winners of the Melbourne Cup in history are the eight-year Toryboy (1865), Catalog (1938) and Twilight Payment (2020).
• There are none eight-year-olds in this year’s Melbourne Cup field.
• The last three-year-old winner of the Melbourne Cup was Skipton (1941). Technically Cross Counter (2018) and Rekindling (2017) were three-year-olds, but won as four-year-olds in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Makybe Diva (2003, 2004, 2005) is the only one three-time Melbourne Cup winner in history.
• The longest priced winners of the Melbourne Cup in history starting at 100-1 are The Pearl (1871), Wotan (1936), Old Rowley (1940) and Prince Of Penzance (2015).
• The triple-digit roughness in the 2024 Melbourne Cup betting odds at the time of publication Are No. 17 Fancy Man ($101), No. 20 Partly cloudy ($101), No. 21 Positivity ($101), and No. 24 Trust in you ($101).
• The winners of the Melbourne Cup with the shortest prize in history were Archer 2-1 (1862), Tim Whiffler 5-2 (1867), Revenue 7-4 (1901), Phar Lap 8-11 (1930), Even Stevens 3-1 (1962), Let’s Elope 3 – 1 (1991), and Makybe Diva at 5-2 in 2004.
• The first northern hemisphere trained winner of the Melbourne Cup Vintage Crop (1993) was trained in Ireland by Dermot Weld and ridden to victory by Mick Kinane.
• The internationally trained horses in the 2024 Melbourne Cup field Are No. 1 Vauban (Willie Mullins), No. 9 Absurd (Willie Mullins), No. 4 Warp speed (Noboru Takagi), No. 13 A smooth operator (Brian Ellison), and No. 15 Sea King (Harry Eustatius).

The largest Melbourne Cup winning margin of eight lengths is shared by Archer (1862) and Rain Lover (1968)

Melbourne Cup coaches:

• The late Bart Cummings holds the Melbourne Cup training record with 12 wins: Light Fingers (1965), Think Big (1974, 1975), Gold And Black (1977), Hyperno (1979), Kingston Rule (1990), Let’s Elope (1991), Saintly (1996), Rogan Josh ( 1999) and viewed (2008).
• Other trainers preparing multiple Melbourne Cup winners include: Lee Freedman (5): Tawrrific (1989), Subzero (1992), Doriemus (1995), Makybe Diva (2004, 2005); John Tait (4): The Barb (1866), Glencoe (1868), The Pearl (1871), The Quack (1872); Richard Bradfield (4): Patron (1894), The Victory (1902), Night Watch (1918), Backwood (1924); James Scobie (4): Clean Sweep (1900), King Ingoda (1922), Bitalli (1923), Trivalve (1927); WS Hinkenbothem (4): Mentor (1888), Carbine (1890), Newhaven (1896), Blue Spec (1905).
• The previous Melbourne Cup-winning trainers with runners in the 2024 field Are: Ciaron Maher (Circle Of Fire, Okita Soushi, Interpretation, Saint George); Chris Waller (Buckaroo, Kovalica, Country Legend, Valiant King, Manzoice); Gai Waterhuis (Just good); Shelia Laxon (Knight’s Choice), and Graeme Rogerson (Sharp ‘N’ Sharp).

Melbourne Cup jockeys:

• Bobbie Lewis and Harry White are the most successful Melbourne Cup jockeys with four wins.
• Lewis rode 33 runs in the Melbourne Cup, winning with The Victory (1902), Patrobas (1915), Artilleryman (1919) and Trivalve in 1927. He also finished second four times and ran third at the famous Phar Lap in 1929.
• White won aboard the Bart Cummings-trained Think Big back-to-back in 1974 and 1975 before his other wins over Arwon in 1978 and another Cummings runner Hyperno in 1979.
• Kerrin McEvoy chases his fourth Melbourne Cup-winning ride aboard No. 9 Absurd for Irish coach Willie Mullins in the 2024 Melbourne Cup.

Horse racing tip
Jockey Kerrin McEvoy chases a record fourth Melbourne Cup-winning ride aboard Absurde on Tuesday

• The other previous Melbourne Cup-winning jockeys with a ride in 2024 are: Mark Zahra (Circle of fire), Jye McNeil (Just good), and Craig Williams (Onesmooth operator).
• Jockey turned trainer Michelle Payne became the first female jockey to win a Melbourne Cup in 2015 aboard the 100/1 rugged Prince Of Penzance for trainer Darren Weir.
• Rachel King (The map), Jamie Kah (Okita Soushi), and Winona Costin (Positivity) are aiming to become the second female Melbourne Cup-winning rider in the 2024 Melbourne Cup.

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*All odds quoted for the 2024 Melbourne Cup are correct at time of publication, provided by Ladbrokes.com.auand subject to change.

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