The Melbourne Racing Club has documented 124 nominations for its premier event, the Caulfield Cup.
This Group 1 handicap, now boasting a $6 million prize pool, is scheduled to be contested over 2400 metres on October 17.
Among the 124 hopefuls, 32 hail from international stables, representing trainers based in Ireland, England, and France.
While this year’s international contingent is an improvement on the 12 received by the MRC last year, the overall tally is lower than the 147 from the previous year. In 2024, a total of 173 entries were received, with 36 coming from overseas.
The deadline for entries this year was set two weeks later than in the preceding year.
Joseph O’Brien, a trainer with two Melbourne Cup victories to his name, has put forward the most substantial entry among international stables, comprising 15 of the 20 Irish nominations. His father, Aidan, has one nomination, while Willie Mullins has three, and Emmet Mullins has one.
Goodie Two Shoes, who finished second to Half Yours in last year’s Melbourne Cup, is listed among Joseph O’Brien’s Caulfield Cup entries.
Presage Nocturne, a fourth-place finisher in last year’s race, has been entered again by trainer Alessandro Botti. Furthur, who finished 11th in the Melbourne Cup last year, is one of three nominations for the Caulfield Cup submitted by trainer Andrew Balding.
The sole international Group 1 winner among the nominated horses is the Joseph O’Brien-trained Tennessee Stud, which secured victory in the Criterium De Saint Cloud, a two-year-old race, in October 2024.
Encouragingly, the top six finishers from last year’s Caulfield Cup have all been nominated again. This group includes the winner, Half Yours, one of three entries from the Tony and Calvin McEvoy stable. However, it is anticipated that the dual Cups winner will instead target the Cox Plate.
The Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott stable has put forward five entries, including Vauban and Sir Delius. Along with Half Yours, these horses are expected to carry significant weight in the Caulfield Cup when the handicaps are released next month.
As anticipated, Chris Waller leads the entries with 18 nominations, which include Aeliana, Autumn Boy, Buckaroo, Ohope Wins, and River Of Stars. Ciaron Maher follows with 15 entries, featuring Point Of Law, Light Infantry Man, Middle Earth, Juja Kibo, and King Of The Sea.
Bjorn Baker aims to replicate his father Murray’s achievement of winning both the Australian Derby and the Caulfield Cup with Mongolian Khan in 2015.
Green Spaces, a winner of the Derby earlier this year, is among the Caulfield Cup entries, joined by So You Are and Thebudgiesmugla.
The Chief Executive Officer of the MRC, Tanya Fullarton, remarked that the calibre and breadth of nominations underscore the importance of this significant edition of the race.
“The 150th Caulfield Cup is a significant milestone for the Melbourne Racing Club and Australian racing, and we are delighted with the quality and depth of horses nominated for this historic running,” Fullarton said.
“With 24 Group 1 winners among the nominations, including reigning Caulfield and Melbourne Cups champion Half Yours and an exciting group of emerging four-year-olds, there is enormous quality already building towards October.
“We have made this year’s Caulfield Cup the richest in the race’s history at $6 million, and the strong increase in international nominations adds another dimension to what is shaping as an outstanding 150th running of one of Australia’s great races.”
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