Admire Rakti scores in Caulfield Cup

Admire Rakti won the biggest race of his career in Saturday’s $2,634,000 Caulfield Cup in Australia and immediately vaulted to the top of future-book lists for the Melbourne Cup on Nov. 4.

A 6-year-old Japanese-bred, Admire Rakti (10-1) closed from the middle of a field of 18 to take the lead from longtime leader Rising Romance in the final sixteenth of the race over 1 1/2 miles on turf. Lucia Valentina, the 3-1 favorite, finished third, beaten a length.

Admire Rakti was ridden by Zac Purton for trainer Tomoyuki Umeda. By the prominent Japanese stallion Heart’s Cry, Admire Rakti was fourth in the Japan Cup in 2013. He is generally priced as the 5-1 favorite for the two-mile Melbourne Cup, a slight choice over Lucia Valentina and Protectionist at 7-1.