Racing
Melbourne Cup contenders emerge at Royal Ascot
Willie Mullins’ pursuit of Australia’s most famous race is set to continue in 2025.
Melbourne Cup field.
Picture: Steve Hart
As two of the best racing carnivals in the world, it comes as no shock that Royal Ascot form can often translate to Melbourne Cup Carnival form, especially in the Lexus Melbourne Cup.
Even in very recent years, the Willie Mullins' pair off Vauban and Absurde, the former now with Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott, have been highly prominent in Melbourne Cup betting.
Mullins has come agonisingly close to winning the Melbourne Cup, running second to Prince Of Penzance with Max Dynamite in 2015, and the master jumps' trainer could have another pair of former hurdlers off Royal Ascot once again.
Five-year-old gelding Ethical Diamond was the first, winning the Duke Of Edinburgh Handicap (2414m) impressively on Friday, while the OTI Racing owned Sober was a dominant five-length winner of the Queen Alexandra Stakes (4355m) to round out the carnival.
In winning the Duke Of Edinburgh, Ethical Diamond posted a new peak rating at Racing And Sports, coming in at 110. For comparison, ran to 109 in 2023 while Crystal Black also went 110 last year.
A six-year-old by Camelot, Sober has already had good success on the flat before going jumping, winning the Group 2 Prix Vicomtesse Vigier (3100m) and Group 2 Prix Kergorlay (3000m) in 2023.
Sober was rated 118 by Racing And Sports when winning the Prix Kergorlay compared to subsequent Cup winners Americain 116 and Protectionist 120.
Victoria Racing Club's Executive General Manager Leigh Jordan has been in contact with Willie Mullins who wants nothing more than to win the Melbourne Cup, and says the master trainer would love to bring the pair to Flemington.
"Ethical Diamond and Sober are both likely (chances)," Jordon said.
"Obviously with Willie, I've been sort of 'what's happening' and he's been giving me the thumbs up that that's the way he wants to go.
"He's still got a few things to do. Ethical Diamond's not passed the ballot yet and probably wouldn't have enough weight.
"Sober, he won at Kergorlay a couple of years ago, I don't know whether he's passed the ballot actually, the race he won won't do that.
"He knows the drill about getting there. Willie's got plenty of ammo, he's got Absurde as well who in the same ownership as Ethical Diamond.
The other Ascot winner who has been touted as a possible Melbourne Cup contender is the John & Thady Gosden trained French Master, a son of Frankel who ran a new peak of 113 with Racing And Sports when winning the Copper Horse Handicap (2816m), the same race Vauban won two years ago.
John Gosden has only had two runners in a Melbourne Cup, finishing ninth with Muntahaa in 2018 and 12th with Geelong Cup winner Gatewood in 2014.
"French Master, the Wathnan (owned) horse, our track manager Liam O'Keefe is over there, he's done a bit with Qatar and touched touch base with them.
"He also needs to get past the ballot and look at his rating, there's probably still a bit more work to be done with him.
"I always think Ascot's a bit of a fork in the road, and then really from there, trainers will start thinking about their summer period, second half of the season.
"Ascot, very much, is like a premiership for most trainers. So it's probably from now on where you're going to get a bit more of a guide on who's a chance."
Sober is rated a $15 chance across markets for the November 4 feature with Ethical Diamond at $18.
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