Melbourne Cup: Sea King will run back five days after Bendigo Cup victory

Sea King, the 5-year-old British-bred gelding, had a mighty introduction to Australian racing when he won the Group 3 Bendigo Cup at 1 1/2 miles at Bendigo Racecourse on Wednesday.

Sea King stalked the pace, challenged for the lead with three furlongs remaining, and pulled clear late. A similar trip may put Sea King in the winner’s circle of the famous Group 1 Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne on Monday evening.

Trained by Harry Eustace, Sea King should be able to handle the two-mile distance. In Britain, he won five times at distances ranging from 1 1/4 miles to 1 5/8 miles.

Sea King will be part of a field of 20 in the $5.26 million Melbourne Cup, which has a field heavily influenced by foreign-bred runners.

As of Friday, Buckaroo, a British-bred gelding, was the 9-2 favorite, a slight choice over Vauban, a 7-year-old French-bred gelding at 11-2.

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Vauban, trained in Ireland by Willie Mullins, was 14th in the 2023 Melbourne Cup, beaten 13 1/4 lengths. Vauban has had five starts in Europe this year, including a win in the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup at 2 1/16 miles at York Racecourse in August and a second to the star distance specialist Kyprios in the Group 1 Irish St. Leger at 1 3/4 miles at the Curragh in Ireland on Sept. 15.

Vauban has won 8 of 20 starts, including three races over hurdles, notably the Group 1 Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham Racecourse in Britain in 2022. Vauban has raced exclusively on the flat for the last 18 months.

Mullins, Ireland’s leading jump trainer, has yet to win the Melbourne Cup despite decades of trying. Mullins was second with Max Dynamite in 2015 and third in 2017.

The Indiana-bred 6-year-old Onesmoothoperator was the third choice at 6-1 for the Melbourne Cup, but may not start after he was found to have a cut on a heel, according to media reports in Australia.

Onesmoothoperator was scheduled to undergo a veterinary exam on Saturday that will determine whether he can start. Onesmoothoperator, by Dialed In, raced in Britain from 2021 until earlier this year when he was sent to Australia.

Onesmoothoperator won the Group 3 Geelong Cup at Geelong Racecourse near Melbourne on Oct. 23 to join the list of contenders for the Melbourne Cup.

Of the 28 horses still listed in contention for the field as of Friday, only four were bred in Australia, including Zardozi, who was 25-1.

A 4-year-old filly, Zardozi was fourth in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup at 1 1/2 miles at Caulfield Racecourse in Melbourne on Oct. 19. Buckaroo was second in the Caulfield Cup, beaten 1 1/4 lengths.

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