Champion Australian mare Makybe Diva rewrote Melbourne Cup history and made light of rainswept conditions to clinch back-to-back wins in the country's greatest horse race yesterday.
Makybe Diva became the first mare to claim the Cup twice in its 143-year history and established a weight-carrying record for a mare in the 3,200m race of 55.5kg at Flemington.
PHOTO: AP
The 5-2 favorite, ridden by Glen Boss and giving trainer Lee Freedman his fourth Cup, flashed through along the rail about 200m from home to hold off champion Irish stayer Vinnie Roe (5-1) and land the US$3.3 million Cup.
PHOTO: AP
Makybe Diva became the fifth horse to twice win the Melbourne Cup, after Archer (1861 and 1862), Peter Pan (1932 and 1934), Rain Lover (1968 and 1969) and Think Big (1974 and 1975).
Vinnie Roe, attempting to give Irish trainer Dermot Weld his third win in the Melbourne Cup after previous wins by Vintage Crop and Media Puzzle, was pulling ground off Makybe Diva nearing the post but the gallant mare held on to a one-and-a-quarter length winning margin in the wet conditions.
Freedman said he had a strong feeling that Makybe Diva would win the race.
"It was like having a present under the tree and I couldn't open it until after the race," he said.
"To take her over from [Hong Kong-based trainer] David Hall and to repeat it, and to break history to have to do it, is an amazing thing -- it's the greatest feeling.
"I'm just lucky that I'm here today to be able to enjoy it and having won my fourth Melbourne Cup," he said.
Outsider Zazzman (100-1), who was up with the leading bunch midway through the race, was third a further two-and-a-half lengths away.
Makybe Diva was carrying 4.5kg more this year after her triumph last year, but she was sent out the favorite ahead of Vinnie Roe, who firmed as the rain tumbled down. They were the only two runners under double-figures in the betting.
She remains unbeaten after three runs over 3200m -- two Melbourne Cups and a Sydney Cup.
Winning jockey Glen Boss stuck to the rail and extricated Makybe Diva into the clear after being in eighth place at the 800m.
Approaching the home turn he was presented a dream run on the inside and Makybe Diva accelerated to the front inside the 200m to open up a winning break over Vinnie Roe.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two