2015 Melbourne Cup

The 2015 Emirates Melbourne Cup was the 155th running of the Melbourne Cup, a prestigious Australian Thoroughbred horse race. The race, run over 3,200 metres (1.988 mi), was held on 3 November 2015 at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse. The date is a public holiday in the state of Victoria. The final field for the race was declared on 31 October.[1] The total prize money for the race was A$6.2 million, the same as the previous year.[2]

The winner was Prince of Penzance, ridden by Michelle Payne, who became the first female jockey to win the Melbourne Cup. Max Dynamite ran second and Criterion third.[3]

Background

Prior to the race, racehorse advocacy groups and animal rights activists attempted to highlight the number of racehorse deaths due to injuries sustained during a race.[4] The death of two horses in Melbourne Cup 2014 race[5] has called into question the use of the whip and whether it results in unnecessary harm to the animal.[6] Racing Australia has since amended its rules governing the use of the whip, effective from 1 December 2015.[7]

Race summary

Prince of Penzance, ridden by jockey Michelle Payne, won the race. Max Dynamite ran second and Criterion third.[3]

Prince of Penzance pulled ahead of the front-runners only around 100m from the finish of the race,[8] surprising many, including Payne.[9] Payne's technique focused on galloping, due to her belief that doing so was key to winning.[9]

Three-time cup runner-up Red Cadeaux did not finish,[10] suffering a suspected fracture in the left fetlock,[11] a joint above the hoof similar to an ankle in humans.[12] The gelding was taken to a veterinary clinic for surgery.[13] Red Cadeaux's trainer initially announced that the horse would likely recover, but retired from racing.[13] However, on 21 November, Red Cadueaux was euthanised, due to complications from the injury.[14][15]

Field

№ Horse Trainer(s) Jockey Weight Barrier Place
1 United Kingdom Snow Sky United Kingdom Sir Michael Stoute United Kingdom Ryan Moore 58 kg 16 23
2 New Zealand Criterion Australia
Australia 		David Hayes
Tom Dabernig 		New Zealand Michael Walker 57.5 kg 4 3
3 Japan Fame Game† Japan Yoshitada Munakata Australia Zac Purton 57 kg 12 13
4 Germany Our Ivanhowe Australia Lee Freedman
Anthony Freedman		 Australia Ben Melham 56 kg 22 10
5 United Kingdom Big Orange United Kingdom Michael Bell Republic of Ireland Jamie Spencer 55.5 kg 23 5
6 United Kingdom Hartnell Australia John O'Shea New Zealand James McDonald 55.5 kg 17 15
7 Japan Hokko Brave Japan Yasutoshi Matsunaga Australia Craig Williams 55.5 kg 20 17
8 France Max Dynamite Republic of Ireland William Mullins Italy Frankie Dettori 55 kg 2 2
9 United Kingdom Red Cadeaux United Kingdom Ed Dunlop France Gérald Mossé 55 kg 8 DNF
10 Republic of Ireland Trip To Paris United Kingdom Ed Dunlop Australia Tommy Berry 55 kg 14 4
11 New Zealand Who Shot Thebarman New Zealand Chris Waller Australia Blake Shinn 54.5 kg 6 11
12 United Kingdom Sky Hunter United Arab Emirates Saeed bin Suroor United Kingdom William Buick 54 kg 7 22
13 Republic of Ireland The Offer Australia Gai Waterhouse Australia Damien Oliver 54 kg 13 8
14 United Kingdom Grand Marshall New Zealand Chris Waller New Zealand Jim Cassidy 53.5 kg 15 21
15 New Zealand Preferment New Zealand Chris Waller Australia Hugh Bowman 53.5 kg 11 20
16 Republic of Ireland Quest For More United Kingdom Roger Charlton Australia Damian Lane 53.5 kg 21 9
17 United States Almoonquith Australia
Australia 		David Hayes
Tom Dabernig 		Australia Dwayne Dunn 53 kg 10 18
18 Republic of Ireland Kingfisher Republic of Ireland Aidan O'Brien Republic of Ireland Colm O'Donoghue 53 kg 9 19
19 New Zealand Prince of Penzance Australia Darren Weir Australia Michelle Payne 53 kg 1 1
20 Republic of Ireland Bondi Beach Republic of Ireland Aidan O'Brien Australia Brett Prebble 52.5 kg 18 16
21 Australia Sertorius Australia Jamie Edwards Australia Craig Newitt 52.5 kg 5 12
22 Republic of Ireland The United States Australia Robert Hickmott Brazil João Moreira 52.5 kg 3 14
23 United Kingdom Excess Knowledge Australia Gai Waterhouse Australia Kerrin McEvoy 51 kg 24 7
24 New Zealand Gust Of Wind New Zealand John Sargent Australia Chad Schofield 51 kg 19 6

† Indicates race favourite

See also

References

  1. ↑ 2015 Melbourne Cup Horses – racenet.com.au. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  2. ↑ 2015 Melbourne Cup – HorseRacingInfo.com.au. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Melbourne Cup 2015: Michelle Payne first woman to ride winner as long shot Prince of Penzance wins – as it happened". Guardian Australia.
  4. ↑ "127 horses killed on Australian tracks in a year". News. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  5. ↑ "Cup runner Admire Rakti died of heart attack, initial autopsy finds". ABC News. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  6. ↑ Chang, Charis (3 November 2015). "Courier Mail". Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  7. ↑ "Whips" (PDF). 2015 media releases. Racing Australia. 23 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  8. ↑ "Fly Emirates Melbourne Cup 2015 Race (video)". Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  9. 1 2 "Melbourne Cup: Michelle Payne lauds 'incredible' Prince Of Penzance after historic win". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 3 November 2015.
  10. ↑ "Melbourne Cup 2015 results: finishing order". The Age (Australia). Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  11. ↑ "Red Cadeaux breaks down: Trainer Ed Dunlop confirms retirement of popular Melbourne Cup runner". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  12. ↑ "Red Cadeaux ‘alive and well’". NewsComAu. https://plus.google.com/+newscomauHQ. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  13. 1 2 "Red Cadeaux to retire after Melbourne Cup injury". 9news. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  14. ↑ "British Stayer Red Cadeaux Euthanized". bloodhorse.com. 20 November 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  15. ↑ "Red Cadeaux euthanised after succumbing to injuries". Sydney Morning Herald. 21 November 2015. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
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