Only four NZ-based gallopers Melbourne Cup hopefuls
Three of New Zealand’s top threeyear-old fillies of last season head a small contingent of Kiwi-trained nominations for this year’s Melbourne Cup.
Just four New Zealand-based gallopers – Fanatic, Provocative, Mime and Pentathlon – were among the 124 nominations which closed on Tuesday for the great race at Flemington on November 1.
Waikato-trained Fanatic, the New Zealand Oaks winner in March, will be on trial for the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups at her next two group one starts at Hastings over 1600m and 2000m.
Te Awamutu trainers Graeme Sanders and daughter Debbie Sweeney were satisfied with the Shocking mare’s sixth in a ninehorse rating 85 1400m at Hastings in her first race for five months.
‘‘We won’t see the best of her until she’s over a mile and a half . . . she’ll stay all day,’’ Sanders said.
‘‘If all goes well [at Hastings] we’ll go to Caulfield and Melbourne.’’
Provocative, trained by Tony Pike, ran 12th over 1700m at Caulfield last Saturday in her first start since winning the Queensland Oaks in June.
Mime, trained by Murray Baker and Andrew Forsman, was a close-up eighth behind Kawi in an impressive first-up run in the group 1 Makfi Challenge Stakes at Hastings last Saturday.
The John Wheeler-trained Pentathlon was among the top twomilers in New Zealand last season, finishing second in the Wellington Cup and fourth in the Auckland Cup.
Another top New Zealand galloper from last season, Tavago, is among the Melbourne Cup nominations.
The Australian Derby winner – now trained at Cranbourne in Victoria after a trans-Tasman shift by Trent Busuttin and co-trainer Natalie Young – is back on track after missing Saturday’s Memsie Stakes at Caulfield.
Tavago was scratched after pulling a tooth but ran a strong second in a Cranbourne jumpout on Monday.
Busuttin said the Caulfield Cup was Tavago’s primary spring focus.
‘‘He’ll only have the two runs going into the Caulfield Cup, the Underwood might be a bit unorthodox but he’s a horse that doesn’t need a lot of racing and third up into a mile-and-a-half (2400m) he’ll be fine,’’ he told Racing.com.
Former Melbourne Cup winners Prince Of Penzance and Protectionist headline the first nominations which include 31 overseas-trained stayers: onequarter of all entries.
Among the top overseas raiders are Japanese star and dual Tenno Sho placegetter Curren Mirotic; Aidan O’Brien gallopers Order Of St George, Idaho and Sword Fighter; Godolphin horses Manatee, Hartnelland Scottish; the American-trained Da Big Hoss; French horse Erupt; Michael Bell’s Big Orange; Ebor Handicap winner Heartbreak City and Jockey Club Stakes winner Exosphere (not to be confused with his Australian namesake, who was retired to stud earlier this year).
For the first time, a horse prepared by a trainer from the Czech Republic has been nominated: Trip To Rhodes, trained by Pavel Tuma.