RACE OF MANY UPSETS

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 109, 4 November 1939, Page 23

RACE OF MANY UPSETS

MELBOURNE GUP ON TUESDAY

CAN CATALOGUE DEFY HIS MOUNTING YEARS?

(By "Rangatira.")

"On the fingers of two hand a chance in the Melbourne Cup—t into consideration. Really there a Marauder, St. Constant, L'Aiglon, Melbourne's leading critics prior months ago. "The usual thrill will be exp Cup, but only half a dozen horse! leading Sydney critic at the same -, ' enumeration," though in rather difl But all these estimates of the No one competent to judge in pr motest chance to the New Zealam three or four lengths in front, anc - • ivereto provide the big thrill finis! Another Melbourne Cup, the seventyninth on the scroll, will be decided on the famous Flemington course next -Tuesday. Twenty-eight horses survived the gruelling trials to the final acceptance, and their form prospects have already been thoroughly sifted by the layers and the critics. But the Melbourne Cup has never been a race of the variety "Of that „ there is no manner of doubt— No probable, possible shadow of doubt— No possible doubt whatevej." It is a widely acknowledged adage of racing that there is no contest that is more likely to be won by the best horse in the field than a handicap race over two miles or further. The trouble often is, however, that the best horse is located only when the race is all over. Tuesday's Melbourne Cup must therefore remain an enigma until something like 3 minutes 20-odd seconds after the starter has sent the field on its way. . NEW ZEALAND'S INTEREST. New Zealanders have always taken an' interest in the „ Melbourne Cup second only to that in the New Zealand Cup itself. Usually there tere New Zealand horses in the field, but even without thfe participation of our own horses the Melbourne Cup would remain one of the great sporting events of the year. The race has a glamour that corresponds to that of the Derby and Liverpool Grand National Steeplechase in the Old Country. The hope of those who will be listening in to this year's Melbourne Cup on, Tuesday will be to hear the announcer towards.the close calling the name or names of some of the New Zealand horses in the race.,. That thrill has been a feature of almost every Melbourne Cup since broadcasts were , inaugurated. ... : . Nightmarch won in 1929, with Paquito and Phar Lap filling the minor places. Phar Lap was the 1930 winner, with Second Wind second. Concentrate was the likely victor at the last furlong in. 1931, but he broke down and; was relegated to third place by two Australians, White Rose and Shadow King. In 1933 Game CsKrington dead±heated ■ for third, and three years later Wdtan scored his sensational "outsider victory, though New {Zealand listeners did-not-for the first £ew minutes,.realise ,who the winner was,, because, of the' way the name was pronounced. The next year Willie Win was cut down -near the post by The Trump, ridden by A. Reed and trained by 5. W. Reid, two.former New Zealanders, and last year Catalogue opened an unbridgeable break on his opponents six furlongs from; home. ■ • ;.,New;Zealand will have pertinent interest in the Cup again this year. Catalogue, now nine years: old, will make liis second tilt at the £7200 prize -for the winner, on this occasion sharing the ■ distinction of topweight with Mosaic a Dominion-bred horse owned in-Sydney. Catalogue deserves to carry the No. 1 saddlecloth, but the- order on the acceptance list suggests that Mosaic •will have that honour. New Zealand's three other candidates are the three-year-olds Beau. Vite, Gold Salute, and Wilson, the last pair now owned: in Australia. Catalogue's connections rare more than hopeful that this horse will defy his years and win his.-:second, Melbourne Cup, and they jsuppbirted him: at good odds some time ago-;to do so; It may be said that he \ had never looked in brighter order than he did when he went out to win his third Winter Cup at Riccarton in Augusti From all reports he has Maintained, his fit appearance since arriving, iri Melbourne, and he has already had two races over short distances there, to •bring him towards peak for the/big day. Though not among the better favourites at latest advice, he will probably shorten a deal^when he renews acquaintance with the huge crowd that flocks to Flemington on Cup Day. Catalogue stayed the journey last year and he was in such playful mood after the race that one would have thought he was only just going out for the run round to the starter. His time was well outside the record, but nothing ever got near enough to force him to do better over the last six furlongs. It is strange to think of this horse as once condemned because of a bad heart!

WEIGHT-FOR-AGE STAR. Mosaic, who,, shared • with Royal Chief at the recent A.J.C. Meeting the distinction of being best w.f.a, stayer of the year in the Commonwealth, is also one who will not be troubled to get the distance. Last Easter he was winner of the Sydney Cup, 2 miles, in handicap class, and his success in the W. S. Cox Plate at Moonee Valley last Saturday would have gathered him; new friends, though he probably still: remains third favourite to Rivette and Respirator. ' . It is difficult to distinguish among the three Dominion three-year-olds. On A.J.C. Derby running Wilson should be likeliest of them, but. the connections of Beau Vite and : Gold Salute have not lost their confidence in these •two colts. Beau Vite, who is from the same line of descent as Wotan, has ibeen most unlucky in his recent races

Is can be counted the horses with that is, taking every possible angle are six only* Royal Chief, Nuffield, and Kingdom." So wrote one of r to the Melbourne Cup twelve >erienced in this year's Melbourne s look like providing it," wrote a time, going on to make the same Eferent order. form last year were badly floored, rint even so much as gave the reder Catalogue, who romped home d not one of those half-dozen who hed in the first four places. and it is high time, that his luck changed. A victory for Gold Salute would give great pleasure to those who admire the pluck of his new owner, Mr. Alan Cooper, a millionaire perhaps but a sportsman of more than ordinary courage and discernment. The Victorian Derby result today would throw more light on , the chances of these three colts, as well as that of the A.J.C. Derby winner Reading, who is also in the Cup field. The handicap form to the Melbourne Cup has been provided as usual by the racing at Randwick, Caulfield, and] Moonee Valley. The. Metropolitan ( winner was Feminist, who carried 7.11 in that race and beat Fearless and Pantler (also in the Cup) into the minor places. This four-year^ j old mare is highly bred, as she is by' that good horse Pantheon, who ran a close third in Spearfelt's Melbourne; Cup, out of the Magpie mare Loqua-! cious, a full-sister to the Melbourne | Cup winner Windbag, and herself J winner also of the Metropolitan. Her Cup' weight is 8.6 and she is one of the better-favoured candidates.. Pantler also has a fairly strong following as a lightweight prospect under 7.0. J THE RULING FAVOURITES. ! The Caulfield Cup *' winner was i Rivette, who has been rehandicapped to 7.9, still a comparatively easy weight, and was the favourite along with Respirator at latest advice. She is another mare in this year's field. Last Saturday she was beaten in the! Moonee Valley Gold Cup, 13 furlongs, by Gilltown and L'Aiglon in a thrill« ing finish, but according to the cable" she lost none of her Flemington admirers, as she had been at the rear early iri the race. From all accounts she is a real stayer. Gilltown was one of the Cup .outsiders prior to his success at Moonee Valley, but that victory has undoubtedly brought him into some favour now. His time on Saturday was a course record and only a quarter of a second outside the Australian and j New Zealand ( record,, which further | enhances the merit of his effort. Still, at the longer distance a preference will probably remain for L'Aiglon, who finished very fast on Saturday and was the cause of a demonstration when he was not awarded the verdict. L'Aiglon, -who -precedes -Mosaic on the scroll of Sydney Cdp; winners, was one of last year's:.'.'half-dozen* for the Melbourne Cup, ;and;iri finishing tenth he ; was second best to Royal Chief of those selected prior to the race as "the only horses with a chance."

Respirator owes his high place in the ruling order of favouritism to his third in theCaulfield Cup, which many considered he was unlucky not to win". On that day he carried 8.7 and Rivette 7.2, and their Melbourne Cup weights are respectively 8.6 and 7.9. The horse who separated them at Caulfield was Maikai A 7.11, whose Flemington mark is the same, Fourth horse at Caulfield, only a head away, was David Spear, who has bottom weight, 6.9, in the j Melbourne Cup; and the next to finish included Pantler (sixth), Ortelle's Star (seventh), Wilson (eighth). Feminist (ninth), and Prince Sion (tenth). Ortelle's Star, who was third in last year's Melbourne Cup, behind Catalogue and Bourbon, has since run: a close fourth in last Saturday's Moonee [Valley Cup, a race she won twelve months ago, and she-is another of the known? stayers in next Tuesday's ;field; , The/Trgmp, as .well -as Catalogue, re^ mains' .in this year's Melbourne: Cupi but,=his chance of, repeating his victory of years ago'is apparently considered ; very remote, as. be is down among the bottom-Jiners on the layers' cards. He also ran ifi the Cup last year, when he-finished, outside the:first thirteen, but for. that failure, and others, he has been dropped from 9.4 to 8.12 this year,---a weight that is still 151b above what he carried in the year of bis triumph; 'There are no records to be broken in this year's Cup.' unless it is the time record of 3min 21Jsec held by Wotan or the age record of £ieht years. The record field was the 39 of Carbine's year (1890), and the record weight carried to success is also that borne by Carbine; 10.5. It may be interesting to recall in this connection that the year after, his success, Carbine was awarded 10.12, but-his racing career, had termi-; hated before that Cup was run. Poitrel carried 10.0 to victory when he defeated a field of-22.in 1920. The only two 100 to 1 chances who have succeeded in the race are The Pear-] (1871) and Wotan (1936), The favourites have won sixteen of the 79 contests so far decided and they have been'in the minor places on 21 other occasions. Only seven topweiehts on the day have triumohed. p notable list comorising Archer (10.2). Warrior (8.10), Carbine (10.5) Poitrel (10.0); Spearfelt (9.3), Phar Lap (9.12), Peter Pan (9.10). Archer and Peter! Pan'alone have won the Cup twice, Archer in successive years and Peter Pan with a year in between when he did not start. Toryboy and Catalogue, as eight-year-olds at the time, are the oldest horses to have succeeded, so the age record is one that Catalogue would have to beat to score on Tuesday.

Mr. F. E. McMatiemin, of Auckland, has been i-ecommended for a trainer's licence.by the Auckland district committee.