Racing Victoria (RV) Executive General Manager - Racing & Participant Wellbeing, Greg Carpenter, has today announced that he has issued a 1.5kg weight penalty in the $7.3 million Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m) to the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Runaway.
Exciting four-year-old Runaway, who took home the Group 3 bet365 Geelong Cup (2400m) yesterday, now moves to 52kg and 28th positon in the order of entry for the Flemington feature.
Carpenter said: “Runaway gave an outstanding performance yesterday to lead throughout in the Geelong Cup and was strong at the finish, holding off stablemate Northwest Passage and Finche.
“He was a progressive talent in his three-year-old season winning the VRC St Leger over 2800m and finishing third in the Group 1 South Australian Derby over 2500m.
“It is encouraging to see a VRC St Leger winner return in such good form as a four-year-old and Runaway will be very competitive in the Lexus Melbourne Cup with 52kg if he can secure a place in the final field of 24 runners.”
Since 2000, 12 Geelong Cup winners have gone on to run in the Melbourne Cup with Media Puzzle (2002), Americain (2010) and Dunaden (2011) able to claim victory in both races in the same year.
Fellow Geelong Cup winners Bauer (2008) and On A Jeune (2005) were able to claim second place, while Karasi (2001) and Qewy (2016) managed fourth position in Victoria’s richest race.
The 1.5kg penalty is the same given to 2014 Geelong Cup winner Caravan Rolls On, who did not make the Melbourne Cup field, and to Media Puzzle in 2002 who then delivered a famous Melbourne Cup victory for Damien Oliver 13 days later.
If successful in gaining a start, Runaway would be seeking to emulate Gurner’s Lane, who was the last VRC St Leger winner to claim the Melbourne Cup in the same year as a four-year-old back in 1982.
Second acceptances for the Melbourne Cup will be taken at 10am next Monday, 29 October before final acceptances are taken at 4.30pm on Saturday, 3 November and the field of 24 is determined.
Racing Victoria were also advised this morning by owner Lloyd Williams that Irish Derby winner Latrobe has been withdrawn from the Lexus Melbourne Cup and is likely to head to the Seppelt MacKinnon Stakes (2000m) on the final day of the Cup Carnival.
Click here to view the updated order of entry for the Lexus Melbourne Cup