Trace the Melbourne Cup clues on the path to find a winner

The Daily Telegraph racing editor RAY THOMAS looks at all the facts and figures that matter to determine who will win this year's Melbourne Cup.

THE Daily Telegraph racing editor RAY THOMAS looks at all the facts and figures that matter in this year's Melbourne Cup ... and with the help of acclaimed artist Scott "Boo" Baily, they determine which horse, according to the statistics, is most likely to win Australia's greatest race. at Flemington today.

DOUBLE WINNERS

Caulfield/Melbourne Cup

Poseidon ........... 1906

The Trump ......... 1937

Rivette ............... 1939

Rising Fast ........ 1954

Even Stevens ..... 1962

Galilee .............. 1966

Gurner's Lane ... 1982

Let's Elope ........ 1991

Doriemus ........... 1995

Might & Power ... 1997

Ethereal ............ 2001

JOCKEYS

Bobbie Lewis (The Victory 1902, Patrobas 1915, Artilleryman 1919 & Trivalve 1927) and Harry White (Think Big 1974 and 1975, Arwon 1978 and Hyperno 1979) share the Melbourne Cup riding record with four wins each.

Glen Boss (Makybe Diva 200304-05) has won the Cup three times, as did Darby Munro, Jack Purtell, Jimmy Johnson and W H McLachlan.

Damien Oliver (Fiorente) and Jim Cassidy (Hawkspur) are aiming for their third Melbourne Cup tomorrow. Others jockeys riding in the big race and chasing their second win are Brett Prebble (Green Moon), Gerald Mosse (Red Cadeaux), Michael Rodd (Masked Marvel), Corey Brown (Super Cool), Chris Munce (Dear Demi) and Christophe Lemaire (Verema),

Damien Oliver, rider of Fiorente, has already won two Melbourne Cups.

MULTIPLE WINNERS

Makybe Diva 2005, 2004, 2003

Think Big 1975, 1974

Rain Lover 1969, 1968

Peter Pan 1934, 1932

Archer 1862, 1861

WEIGHT

The highest-weighted winner was Carbine who shouldered an incredible 10st 5 (65.5kg) to win in 1890. It's a record that is unlikely to be broken.

FIRST INITIAL WINNERS

A ... 10

B ... 11

C ... 8

D ... 9

E ... 5

F ... 1

G ... 10

H ... 5

I ...... 0

J ..... 5

K ... 6

L ..... 6

M ... 12

N ... 4

O ... 1

P ... 12

Q ... 0

R ... 10

S ... 12

T ..... 15

U ... 0

V ... 3

W ... 8

X ..... 0

Y ... 0

Z ..... 1

Seville (left), ridden by Hugh Bowman, will carry the No. 12 saddlecloth. Picture: Mark Evans

SADDLECLOTH

No. Winners (last winner) This year

1 ..... 10 ... (Makybe Diva 2005) Dunaden

2 ..... 7 ..... (Delta Blues 2006) Green Moon

3 ..... 5 ..... (Dunaden 2011) Red Cadeaux

4 ..... 11 ... (At Talaq 1986) Sea Moon

5 ..... 7 ..... (Makybe Diva 2004) Brown Panther

6 ..... 8 ..... (Efficient 2007) Fiorente

7 ..... 2 ..... (Just A Dash 1981) Foreteller

8 ..... 9 ..... (Americain 2010) Dandino

9 ..... 5 ..... (Straight Draw 1957) Ethiopia

10 ... 4 ..... (Viewed 2008) Fawkner

11 ... 7 ..... (Empire Rose 1988) Mourayan

12 ... 11 ... (Makybe Diva 2003) Seville

13 ... 6 ..... (Ethereal 2001) Super Cool

14 ... 5...... (Green Moon 2012) Masked Marvel

15 ... 5 ..... (Let's Elope 1991) Mount Athos

16 ... 3 ..... (Piping Lane 1972) Royal Empire

17 ... 5 ..... (Rogan Josh 1999) Voleuse De Coeurs

18 ... 2 ..... (Peter Pan 1932) Hawkspur

19 ... 6 ..... (Colonus 1942) Simenon

20 ... 3 ..... (Gaulus 1897) Ibicenco

21 ... 2 ..... (Shocking 2009) Verema

22 ... 4 ..... (Jezabeel 1998) Dear Demi

23 ... 2 ..... (King Ingoda 1922) Tres Blue

24 ... 4 ..... (Brew 2000) Ruscello

Last year's winning duo Brett Prebble and Green Moon will carry the No. 2 saddlecloth.

SEX

(last winner in brackets)

Entires 68 (Green Moon 20121)

Geldings 48 (Efficient 2007)

Colts 19 (Skipton 1941)

Mares 13 (Makybe Diva 2005)

Fillies 3 (Sister Olive 1921)

HORSE COLOUR

Wins ... Colour

65 ....... Bays

36 ....... Brown

34 ....... Chestnuts

6 ......... Greys

6 ......... Bay/Brown

3 ......... Black

2 ......... Brown/Black

TRAINERS

There are five trainers with runners tomorrow who have won a Melbourne Cup before - Mikel Delzangles (Dunaden, 2011), Robert Hickmott (Green Moon, 2012), Mark Kavanagh (Shocking, 2009), Mike Moroney (Brew, 2000) and Alain De Royer-Dupre (Americain, 2010). Bart Cummings has the record with 12 wins in the nation's most famous race. Incredibly, he has also led in the quinella five times. His first win was with Light Fingers in 1965, his most recent was Viewed in 2008. Other multiple winners include Lee Freedman and Etienne De Mestre with five wins each. The only female trainer to win a Melbourne Cup was Sheila Laxon with Ethereal in 2001.

Dear Demi (right) produced an eye-catching run behind Side Glance in the Mackinnon Stakes. Picture: Colleen Petch

AGE

Number of winners (last winner in brackets)

3yo ... 23 (Skipton 1941)

4yo ... 43 (Shocking 2009)

5yo ... 43 (Viewed 2008)

6yo ... 31 (Green Moon 2012)

7yo ... 10 (Makybe Diva 2005)

8yo ... 2 (Catalogue 1938)

BARRIERS

Barrier No. of winners (last winner) This year

1 ..... 4 ... (Kingston Rule 1990) Dunaden

2 ..... 2 ... (Might & Power 1997) Masked Marvel

3 ..... 3 ... (Media Puzzle 2002) Verema

4 ..... 4 ... (Kensei 1987) Dandino

5 ......6 ... (Green Moon 2012) Fiorente

6 ..... 5 ... (Light Fingers 1965) Brown Panther

7 ..... 2 ... (Makybe Diva 2004) Sea Moon

8 ..... 5 ... (Viewed 2008) Fawkner

9 ..... 4 ... (Efficient 2007) Seville

10 ... 5 ... (Delta Blues 2006) Green Moon

11 ... 8 ... (Americain 2010) Royal Empire

12 ... 2 ... (Foxzami 1949) Simenon

13 ... 3 ... (Dunaden 2011) Super Cool

14 ... 6 ... (Makybe Diva 2005) Ethiopia

15 ... 1 ... (Silver Knight 1971) Foreteller

16 ... 3 ... (Jezabeel 1998) Dear Demi

17 ... 4 ... (At Talaq 1986) Ibicenco

18 ... 0 ... (no winners) Hawkspur

19 ... 5 ... (Red Handed 1967) Mourayan

20 ... 2 ... (Empire Rose 1988) Tres Blue

21 ... 4 ... (Shocking 2009) Voleuse De Coeurs

22 ... 2 ... (Gurner's Lane 1982) Mount Athos

23 ... 3 ... (Brew 2000) Red Cadeaux

24 ... 3 ... (Gala Supreme 1973) Ruscello

No one has ever won from barrier 18, where Hawkspur will start from. Picture: Mark Evans

FOREIGN RAIDERS

There have been 102 overseas-trained stayers contest the Melbourne Cup since the first raiders, Vintage Crop and Drum Taps, ran in 1993.

The Dermot Weld-trained Vintage Crop won that year before the Irishman returned in 2002 to win again with Media Puzzle. Japanese duo, Delta Blues and Pop Rock, ran an historic quinella in the 2006 Melbourne Cup. Americain became the first French horse to win the race in 2010 while Dunaden kept the Melbourne Cup in France when he won last year.

The highest weight carried to success by an international is Delta Blues with 56kg in 2006. It is also worth noting that Vintage Crop is the only foreign raider to win without having a lead-up run in Australia.

Gai Waterhouse's Melbourne Cup hope, Fiorente, stops to taste the flowers at Flemington. Picture: Mark Evans

FAVOURITES

Since the Melbourne Cup was first run in 1861, favourites have won the race 33 times. Makybe Diva was favourite in two of her three Cups triumphs (2004-05).

The shortest priced favourite was Phar Lap who won at 11/8on in 1930.

As for the longshots - The Pearl (1871), Wotan (1936) and Old Rowley (1940) were 100/1 rank outsiders when they won the Cup.

RACING SILKS

Colour .......... Wins

White .......... 24

Yellow ......... 24

Red ............. 18

Green .......... 14

Dark Blue ..... 13

Royal Blue ... 9

*Grey or brown have won only two Cups in the last 50 years.

Dandino during trackwork at Werribee racecourse. Picture: Mark Evans

OUR CON(CLUE)SION - DANDINO

Dandino fits the profile of a Melbourne Cup winner. His bay colour is the most successful in Cup history with 65 wins, he's an entire and they have won the most Cups with 68, his first initial has won nine times, his No. 8 saddlecloth has been carried to four victories, his four barrier has produced four winners, he's a five-year-old and that age group is the most successful with 43 wins, and his racing colours of mainly yellow have been worn by 24 Cup-winning jockeys.

As a foreign raider, he is in with the right weight of 54.5kg and he did have a lead-up run earlier this spring, an outstanding second in the Caulfield Cup.