Katelyn Mallyon gives her advice on what jockey James McDonald needs to do to steer Melbourne Cup favourite Yucatan to victory
YUCATAN is the red-hot Melbourne Cup favourite but victory in Australia’s biggest race won’t come easily. There’s a specific game plan jockey James McDonald has to stick to if he’s to win, writes Katelyn Mallyon.
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WE want the last crack at them. So work backwards from there.
That will give Yucatan the best chance of winning today’s $7.3 million Melbourne Cup at Flemington.
The European stallions like to have room and build into their races.
Yucatan is no different.
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He won’t want to be hustled and bustled early, so we need to be ready, if need be, to sit three-wide and work into the race that way.
I actually think that is where the winner will come from anyway, with a few of the non-winning chances having drawn inside barriers.
Yucatan did everything you shouldn’t do at Caulfield last start — went back, wide and worked up the hill — and still romped in to win the Group 2 Herbert Power Stakes.
I’d be riding the horse confidently today, he won’t be forward (preferably), so midfield somewhere trying to slot in to get cover.
The most important thing to do, apart from not panic, is to get Yucatan in a rhythm.
His stablemate Rostropovich is likely to go forward from barrier 21, so I’d be trying to get on the back of Cross Counter, with that light weight (51kg), he’s going to bring you into the race nicely.
You want to be on the second wave in the straight.
Usually, the second wave gets a nice cart into the race and this will let Yucatan finish strongly, with momentum, at his first go at the 3200m.
With that in mind, I wouldn’t be making any quick decisions early in the race because things can change, especially in these big races. Just look at the Caulfield Cup and how slow the field went. I wouldn’t be leading, either, or going forward.
If he jumps, then you want to be wherever Yucatan is comfortable.
That might be just behind the speed or well back.
I’d be riding Yucatan like the favourite he is, knowing that Aidan O’Brien — the world’s best trainer — and six-time Melbourne Cup winner Lloyd Williams has the horse spot on for this.
But we don’t want to be in front too early. The later the better, actually.
Just try and cuddle him, as much as you possibly could, just cuddle, cuddle, cuddle and just hope.
It is difficult not to get caught up in the aura of the race, it is a dream for all of us jockeys to be riding in Melbourne Cups and, of course, winning them.
The build-up is huge — all the talk leading into the race and the mountains of work that goes into preparing horse and rider for the contest.
All the nerves go out the window once those barriers open. We go into jockey mode, and that is why you put the best on.
Originally published as Katelyn Mallyon gives her advice on what jockey James McDonald needs to do to steer Melbourne Cup favourite Yucatan to victory