Makybe Diva became the first mare to score a repeat victory in the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse on Tuesday, after which her trainer Lee Freedman said that she could be pointed to the Ascot Gold Cup and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe next year.

Helios Quercus remained undefeated through five starts with a 1 1/2-length tally in the Group 1 Criterium International at Saint-Cloud on Sunday.

Helios Quercus (5-1) had no trouble holding off the mild late run of the British filly Dubai Surprise, getting the mile on very soft ground in 1:45.30. Meanwhile, the 11-10 favorite, Early March, clearly uncomfortable with the ground, finished sixth, 7 1/2 lengths behind the winner.

Winning trainer Cyriaque Diard said that the French Derby next June will be the early 2005 target for Helios Quercus.

Zenno Rob Roy caught Dance in the Mood in the closing stages to record a 1 1/4-length victory in the $2.4 million Grade 1 Autumn Tenno Sho at Tokyo Racecourse on Sunday.

For Zenno Rob Roy, a 4-year-old son of Sunday Silence, it was his first victory since he won the 1 1/4-mile Grade 2 Japanese St. Leger Trial last September. Ridden by Frenchman Olivier Peslier, he covered the 1 1/4 miles in 1:58.90 and will go next in the Japan Cup on Nov. 28.

The first two finishers are both trained by Kazuo Fujisawa.

Makybe Diva, winner of last year's Melbourne Cup, is favored for a repeat success in this year's running of Australia's greatest race, to be run at Flemington on Tuesday. She is trying to be only the fifth dual winner in the Cup's 143-year history.

The 6-year-old Makybe Diva, who was bred by her Australian owners, Emily Krstina Pty Ltd., in England, has been in great form. It is a measure of her improvement that, having given She's Archie two pounds when she defeated her by 1 1/4 lengths last year, she is now expected to have no trouble giving She's Archie nine pounds.

NEW YORK - The so-called World Thoroughbred Championships at Lone Star Park on Saturday were missing a number of Europe's best.

Timeform's top-rated 3-year-old foreign invaders in this year's Breeders' Cup were Whipper (126), Ouija Board (125), and Diamond Green (123). Its top older horse at Lone Star was Powerscourt at 124. Fifteen older horses in Europe are rated more highly than Powerscourt by Timeform. Seven 3-year-olds have higher marks than Whipper.

Who are they, and why didn't they travel to Texas?

3-year-olds

Breeders' Cup favorites Pleasantly Perfect and Kitten's Joy head the list of nine American-trained horses who have been invited by the Japan Racing Association to run in Tokyo Racecourse's two multimillion-dollar races on Nov. 28.

Westerner cruised to a 2 1/2-length victory in the Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak at Longchamp on Sunday, winning the French equivalent of the St. Leger Stakes for the second year in a row.

Westerner's score over the filly Behkara also gave him an unprecedented second successive Prix du Cadran/Prix Royal-Oak double. A 5-year-old trained by Elie Lellouche, Westerner led at the quarter pole under Stephane Pasquier in the $255,600 Royal-Oak. He went off at 2-5 and covered the 1 15/16 miles in 3:28.90 on heavy ground.

Motivator justified his 3-2 favoritism and gave trainer Michael Bell a Group 1 victory in the Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster in England. Coming into the race after only one start, the least experienced member of the field shrugged any worries of greenness aside when he hit the front 2 1/2 furlongs out.

He ran on gamely under Kieren Fallon to hold off the fast-finishing Albert Hall and Henrik with ease. Motivator's owners, the Royal Ascot Racing Club, will now point their winner to next year's classics.

Westerner goes in search of his second successive Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak, or French St. Leger, on Sunday, the final day of racing this season at Longchamp.

Victory for Westerner in the 1 15/16-mile, $243,000 contest would also give him a second straight Prix du Cadran-Prix Royal-Oak double. Last year Westerner handled the drop in distance from the 2 1/2-mile Cadran with aplomb, winning by 2 1/2 lengths. Things should not be too much different this time around.

Haafhd, winner of both the 2000 Guineas and the Champion Stakes this year, has been retired and will stand the 2005 season at Shadwell Stud in Newmarket, England.

Trained by Barry Hills for Hamdan Al Maktoum, Haafhd started his 3-year-old campaign with a bang, landing both the Group 3 Craven Stakes and the classic Group 1 2000 Guineas. Unplaced efforts in the St. James's Palace Stakes and the Sussex Stakes were followed by an 11-week rest. Haafhd returned to the races just this past Saturday with a 2 1/2-length victory in the Group 1 Champion Stakes.