FATHER AND SON WILL SADDLE UP FIVE STARTERS IN THE BIG RACE

HE’S 81 years old (82 in November), he has won 12 Melbourne Cups, he has won a total 254 Group One races, his latest Group One win was last Saturday, he is the latest trainer to win the Melbourne Cup and he is known as the ‘Cups King’ to all the racing industry – he is Bart Cummings.

On Saturday, the legendary trainer will saddle up three runners in the $2.5million BMW Caulfield Cup – his son Anthony will saddle up two.

There has been no other trainer win as many Caulfield Cups as Bart has. His tally stands at six. He hasn’t won one since 1991when Let’s Elope was victorious. Steven King, who rides the current favourite on Saturday, enjoyed his last success in the same year riding for Bart.

The honor roll of Bart’s Caulfield Cup winners includes some of racing’s finest. Galilee (1966) is in the Australian Racing Hall Of Fame, just like his famous trainer, who has been inducted as a Legend. Big Philou (1969), Leilani (1974), Ming Dynasty (1977 & 1980) and Let’s Elope (1991) is Bart’s complete list – or is it incomplete?

Allez Wonder, Viewed and Roman Emperor will carry the hopes of a seventh win, by a legend of Australian racing, in the toughest 2400m handicap race in the world.

Allez Wonder provided Bart with Group One win number 254 just last Saturday by winning the David Jones Toorak Handicap. Viewed gave Bart a remarkable 12th Melbourne Cup victory last Spring and Roman Emperor won the AJC Derby over the Caulfield Cup distance of 2400 metres in April at Randwick.

Bart has a strong armoury on Saturday.

Bart’s boy, Anthony, is not living in the shadow of his famous Dad anymore.

Red Lord and Zavite are the two horses Anthony will saddle up in an attempt to put Bart’s next Caulfield Cup win on hold.

Red Lord has won over 2800 metres (November 2007) but most recently sprung into Caulfield Cup calculations by winning the Naturalism Stakes at Caulfield on 19 September. This win meant he was exempt from being balloted in the Caulfield Cup.

Zavite also has credentials of his own including winning the 2008 Adelaide Cup (3200m) at Morphettville in March. En-route to winning the Adelaide Cup, Zavite won the Launceston Cup (2400m) in February and the Australia Day Cup (2400m) at Randwick in January this year.

Anthony too has a strong armoury on Saturday.

If the Cummings name is to be inscribed on the BMW Caulfield Cup trophy on Saturday, will it be Bart or Anthony holding it aloft?

The Final Field for Saturday’s $2.5 million BMW Caulfield Cup is;

 

No

Horse

Trainer

Jockey

Weight

1

VIEWED

BART CUMMINGS

BRAD RAWILLER

57KG

2

KIRKLEES (IRE)

SAEED BIN SUROOR

KERRIN MCEVOY

56KG

3

C’EST LA GUERRE (NZ)

JOHN SADLER

STEVEN ARNOLD

55.5KG

4

CIMA DE TRIOMPHE (IRE)

LUCA CUMANI

DAMIEN OLIVER

55.5KG

5

FIUMICINO (NZ)

TEAM HAWKES

DWAYNE DUNN

55.5KG

6

MASTER O’REILLY (NZ)

DANNY O’BRIEN

VLAD DURIC

55KG

7

ROMAN EMPEROR (NZ)

BART CUMMINGS

HUGH BOWMAN

54KG

8

SARRERA

MICHAEL MORONEY

NICHOLAS HALL

54KG

9

PREDATORY PRICER

PAUL MURRAY

STEVEN KING

53.5KG

10

RED RULER (NZ)

JOHN SARGENT

DANNY NIKOLIC

53.5KG

11

ZAVITE (NZ)

ANTHONY CUMMINGS

MARK ZAHRA

53KG

12

HARRIS TWEED (NZ)

MURRAY & BJORN BAKER

CRAIG NEWITT

52.5KG

13

LIGHT VISION (NZ)

ROBERT SMERDON

LUKE NOLEN

52.5KG

14

DAFFODIL (NZ)

KEVIN GRAY

CHRIS MUNCE

51.5KG

15

READY TO LIFT

GERALD RYAN

GLEN BOSS

51.5KG

16

RED LORD

ANTHONY CUMMINGS

GLYN SCHOFIELD

51.5KG

17

VIGOR

DANNY O’BRIEN

COREY BROWN

51KG

18

ALLEZ WONDER

BART CUMMINGS

MICHELLE PAYNE

50KG

19 (E1)

BAUGHURST

BILL & SYMON WILDE

52.5KG

20 (E2)

 

SHOCKING

MARK KAVANAGH

51KG

21 (E3)

 

NEWPORT

PAUL PERRY

PETER WELLS

52.5KG

22 (E4)

 

MISS DARCEY

ANTHONY CUMMINGS

50KG