Read up on these and pretend you know all about it.
2005 will be the 145th running of the Melbourne Cup.
The race record time is 3 minutes 16.3 seconds by Kingston Rule in 1990
The heaviest weight carried is 66kg by Carbine in 1880 ( Makybe Diva will carry 58kg)
The first Melbourne Cup was actually run on a Thursday
In 1985 the Melbourne Cup became the first million dollar race in Australia.
Today the race is worth $5.1 million with $3 million for the winner
The first trophy was a hand beaten gold watch and not a cup as we know it. A Cup was not awarded until 1916.
There are the only four horses to win in consecutive years. “Archer” (1861/62), “Rain Lover” (1968/69), and “Think Big” (1974/75) Makybe Diva (2003/04)
Makybr Diva is the only mare to have won twice
The oldest horses to win the race were the eight-year-olds Toryboy (1865) and Catalogue in 1938.
The longest-priced horses to win the race were The Pearl 100-1 (1871), Wotan 100-1 (1936), Old Rowley 100-1 (1940) and Rimfire 80-1 (1948).
For the record, the Mole likes Leica Falcon
