Melbourne Cup 2020: Iconic trainer demands major change

Melbourne Cup day is the biggest occasion on the Australian racing calendar but something must be done to arrest a grave injustice.

Well-known Australian horse trainer Richard Freedman wants the Melbourne Cup to undergo a major change to give punters a better chance of picking a winner.

The race that stops a nation will look a lot different this year as it takes place without crowds because of COVID-19, but one thing that won’t change is the string of international horses that will line up at the barriers at 3pm on Tuesday.

Irish raiders Tiger Moth and Sir Dragonet are among the favourites to claim the most prestigious prize in Australian racing and some believe there are, at times, too many overseas competitors swooping in to steal the thunder of local horses on the first Tuesday of every November.

Speaking on Nine’s Sports Sunday, Freedman said international horses should not be allowed to run in the Melbourne Cup unless they have qualified by racing at least once beforehand on Australian soil.

That way, he says, punters will be able to make a more informed decision about who they back, because they will have had the chance to see each horse in action before Cup Day.

“There are seven European horses who have come down for this race and there’s one New Zealand horse — that’s an international horse, officially,” Freedman said.

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Tiger Moth is chasing glory.

“There’s four of them in the race here who have not raced in Australia. No one here has seen them. They’re very good horses, they could easily win the race.

“What is the average Punter sitting there thinking, ‘I never even saw that horse, I don’t know anything about it. It’s raced in Europe’.

“So I just think they could fix all this. I’ve been a big critic of European horses coming down for this race, because it’s our most important race ... because of its culture and its history.

“The seven Euro horses that have come down, they should all have to qualify by running in a race in Australia in the preceding three months. Now, if you do that, everybody gets a look at them and the punters are engaged again.

“This race is as much about funding the sport because a huge amount of turnover comes to the sport from this one particular race. It’s incredibly important.

“That would just solve a lot of problems for me.”

Along with his brothers Lee, Anthony and Michael, the Freedman gang has trained more than 100 Group 1 winners, including five Melbourne Cup-winning horses.

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Sir Dragonet is in fine form after winning the Cox Plate.

MELBOURNE CUP FIELD

1: Anthony Van Dyck (IRE) — Barrier 3

Jockey: Hugh Bowman — Trainer: Aidan O’Brien — 58.5kg

2: Avilius (GB) — Barrier 10

Jockey: John Allen — Trainer: James Cummings — 57kg

3: Vow and Declare — Barrier 4

Jockey: Jamie Mott — Trainer: Danny O’Brien — 57kg

4: Master of Reality (IRE) — Barrier 11

Jockey: Ben Melham — Trainer: Joseph O’Brien — 56kg

5: Sir Dragonet (IRE) — Barrier 14

Jockey: Glen Boss — Trainer: Ciaron Maher & David Eustace — 55.5kg

6: Twilight Payment (IRE) — Barrier 12

Jockey: Jye McNeil — Trainer: Joseph O’Brien — 55.5kg

7: Verry Elleegant (NZ) — Trainer: Barrier 15

Jockey: Mark Zahra — Trainer: Chris Waller — 55.5kg

8: Mustajeer (GB) — Barrier 2

Jockey: Michael Rodd — Trainer: Kris Lees — 55kg

9: Stratum Albion (GB) — Barrier 9

Jockey: Jordan Childs — Trainer: Willie Mullins — 55kg

10: Dashing Willoughby (GB) — Barrier 19

Jockey: Michael Walker — Trainer: Andrew Balding — 54.5kg

11: Finche (GB) — Barrier 6

Jockey: James McDonald — Trainer: Chris Waller — 54.5kg

12: Prince of Arran (GB) — Barrier 1

Jockey: Jamie Kah — Trainer: Charlie Fellowes — 54.5kg

13: Surprise Baby (NZ) — Barrier 7

Jockey: Craig Williams — Trainer: Paul Preusker — 54.5kg

14: King of Leogrance (FR) — Barrier 18

Jockey: Damian Lane — Trainer: Danny O’Brien — 53.5kg

15: Russian Camelot (IRE) — Barrier 16

Jockey: Damien Oliver — Trainer: Danny O’Brien — 53.5kg

16: Steel Prince (IRE) — Barrier 21

Jockey: Willie Pike — Trainer: Anthony & Sam Freedman — 53.5kg

17: The Chosen One (NZ) — Barrier 5

Jockey: Daniel Stackhouse — Trainer: Murray Baker & Andrew Forsman — 53.5kg

18: Ashrun (FR) — Barrier 24

Jockey: Declan Bates — Trainer: Andreas Wohler — 53kg

19: Warning — Barrier 8

Jockey: Luke Currie — Trainer: Anthony & Sam Freedman — 53kg

20: Etah James (NZ) — Barrier 22

Jockey: Billy Egan — Trainer: Ciaron Maher & David Eustace — 52.5kg

21: Tiger Moth (IRE) — Barrier 23

Jockey: Kerrin McEvoy — Trainer: Aidan O’Brien — 52.5kg

22: Oceanex (NZ) — Barrier 17

Jockey: Dean Yendall — Trainer: Mick Price & Michael Kent — 51.5kg

23: Miami Bound (NZ) — Barrier 13

Jockey: Daniel Moor — Trainer: Danny O’Brien — 51kg

24: Persan — Barrier 20

Jockey: Michael Dee — Trainer: Ciaron Maher & David Eustace — 51kg

Originally published as Melbourne Cup 2020: Iconic trainer demands major change