RACING:The Dermot Weld team are taking a softly-softly approach with Galileo's Choice towards tomorrow morning's Melbourne Cup where the Irish star's challenges won't just include 23 opponents in the "race that stops a nation".
Curragh trainer Weld is chasing a third Cup success after Vintage Crop (1993) and Media Puzzle (2002) as Pat Smullen teams up with Galileo’s Choice whose stall 11 draw was the one Americain broke from in 2010.
Americain is back again, as is last year’s winner Dunaden, while last year’s runner-up, Red Cadeaux, is joined among the international visitors by Cavalryman who will be Frankie Dettori’s last ride as retained jockey for Godolphin.
Luca Cumani runs both Ryan Moore’s mount Mount Athos and Quest For Peace while Irish jockey Colm O’Donoghue is on Jakkalberry in a race shown live on “Attheraces” at 4.00 tomorrow morning.
Galileo’s Choice has escaped much of the pre-race hullabulloo down under but did make an early morning visit to Flemington last week to check out the track when it was much quieter than the expected 100,000 people who will attend tomorrow.
“In the old days, before the tunnel here, Vinnie Roe and Media Puzzle were walking up the race between the roses and Vinnie wouldn’t go because of the crowd,” Weld’s son, Mark, told local reporters.
“Media Puzzle gave him a nudge, then he reared up and nearly fell over.
“It can get to them.”
The Weld camp would like a little rain ahead of the big race which also has an American starter in the ex-Weld trained Grade One winner Winchester.
