Your Melbourne Cup questions answered

ONE heartwarming fairytale comeback story stands head and shoulders above all other storylines for those looking for the best horse to cheer on today.

THE Melbourne Cup is upon us and if you don’t want to feel left out there are some important details you should know.

WHAT TIME IS IT ON?

The race — which is run at Melbourne’s Flemington Racecourse — is scheduled to begin at 3pm AEDT.

HOW CAN I WATCH IT?

You can watch the race live on Foxtel’s Sky Racing (Channel 519) and on free-to-air TV on Channel Seven, whose coverage of the day will begin at 10am AEDT.

News.com.au will be running a live blog and have all the reaction and analysis to the day’s biggest storylines.

WHY IS IT SO SPECIAL?

You might tune in every year to watch the Melbourne Cup, but do you know what separates it from every other race?

The Cup is the world’s richest handicap race for horses three-years-old and over. The handicap refers to horses having to carry extra weight, the minimum of which is set at 50kg, as they make their way around the track.

The race is 3200m (two miles) long.

HOW MUCH DO THE TOP PERFORMERS EARN?

The prizemoney on offer stands at a whopping $6.2 million. To put that in perspective, only four other races in the world have a more lucrative purse.

First prize is $3.6 million, second is $900,000 and third is $450,000.

The winning jockey is entitled to five per cent of the prizemoney won while the winning trainer is entitled to 10 per cent of the earnings.

WHERE SHOULD I PUT MY MONEY?

Will Rekindling make a splash?

Wall Of Fire is paying $12 for the win and $4.25 for the place and is half a chance when you take into account recent form. He finished second at the G3 Geoffrey Freer before backing that up with another second at the G2 Herbert Power in his last start.

Rekindling ($14 for the win) and Max Dynamite ($15) aren’t up with there with the strong favourites like Marmelo ($8) and 2016 winner Almandin ($9.50) but worth a flutter if you’re after something with enough value that isn’t a complete roughie. Rekindling’s been brilliant since stepping up to 2800m plus races and looks to be peaking at the right time while Max Dynamite proved his quality at the 2015 Melbourne Cup when he ran second.

If you’re looking to take a bigger risk throw some coin at Gallante ($101 for the win, $22.35 for the place). Not because you’re a decent shot at seeing any return on that investment, but because if a miracle did occur, you’d have one helluva story to tell your mates and become a legend for life.

For a full list of suggested tips on Melbourne Cup day, click here.

WHO SHOULD I BARRACK FOR?

Tiberian is one of the sentimental favourites.

If you’ve got no interest in racing and want to cheer for the horse with the best backstory coming into the Cup, we’ve got you covered.

Single Gaze fell 18 months ago and rolled over jockey Kathy O’Hara, who dislocated her sternoclavicular (a joint near the shoulder) and suffered concussion. But after weeks in hospital and months out of the saddle, the pair have reunited in time for the race that stops the nation.

Boom Time can become the first horse to win the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup in the same year since Ethereal in 2001 while 2016 winner Almandin can go back-to-back by crossing the line first again this year.

Tiberian is an option for the softies out there because he shouldn’t even really be here. His father Tiberius Caesar was what’s called a “teaser pony” — used to keep mares “in the mood” but prevented from mating. But six years ago he was the beneficiary of a healthy dose of pity and finally allowed to do his thing with the mare Toamasina. And voila — Tiberian was born.

THE FIELD

Almandin is looking to go back-to-back.

It’s always tough following whichever horse you’ve received in your office sweepstake on the TV when everyone is yelling and jumping up and down. But if you know what number and colours to look out for, that task becomes slightly easier.

1. Hartnell — Barrier: 12, jockey: Damian Lane, colours: royal blue

2. Almandin — Barrier: 14, jockey: Frankie Dettori, colours: navy blue and white armbands

3. Humidor — Barrier: 13, jockey: Blake Shinn, colours: green and teal

4. Tiberian — Barrier: 23, jockey: Olivier Peslier, colours: yellow

5. Marmelo — Barrier: 16, jockey: Hugh Bowman, colours: blue with cream polkadots

6. Red Cardinal — Barrier: 24, jockey: Kieren McEvoy, colours: blue with a white horseshoe on the front and chequered sleeves

7. Johannes Vermeer — Barrier: 3, jockey: Ben Melham, colours: navy with white armbands

8. Bondi Beach — Barrier: 1, jockey: Michael Walker, colours: navy with white armbands and a red cap

9. Max Dynamite — Barrier: 2, jockey: Zac Purton, colours: rose pink with green polkadots and a pink cap

10. Ventura Storm — Barrier: 6, jockey: Glen Boss, colours: mustard with navy stripes

11. Who Shot Thebarman — Scratched

12. Wicklow Brave — Barrier: 8, jockey: Stephen Baster, colours: purple and orange

13. Big Duke — Barrier: 5, jockey: Blake Avdulla, colours: blue with a white horseshoe

14. US Army Ranger — Barrier: 22, jockey: Jamie Spencer, colours: navy with white armbands and a blue cap

15. Boom Time — Barrier: 9, jockey: Cory Parish, colours: white with a green sash and black sleeves

16. Gallante — Barrier: 18, jockey: Michael Dee, colours: navy with white sleeves and a yellow cap

17. Libran — Barrier: 7, jockey: Dwayne Dunn, colours: light blue, blue armbands and a blue cap

18. Nakeeta — Barrier: 19, jockey: Glynn Schofield, colours: grey with purple chevrons

19. Single Gaze — Barrier: 11, jockey: Kathy O’Hara, colours: blue with a red circle on the front

20. Wall Of Fire — Barrier: 15, jockey: Craig Williams, colours: blue with cream polkadots

21. Thomas Hobson — Barrier: 21, jockey: Joao Moreira, colours: pink with green polkadots and a green cap

22. Rekindling — Barrier: 4, jockey: Corey Brown, colours: navy with white armbands and a pink cap

23. Amelie’s Star — Barrier: 10, jockey: Dean Yendall, colours: white with dark blue stripes

24. Cismontane — Barrier: 17, jockey: Beau Mertens, colours: mustard with yellow chevrons and a purple and yellow cap

— with punters.com.au