Kovalica will be seeking his first victory since his 2023 Queensland Derby triumph when he competes in the 2024 Melbourne Cup for trainer Chris Waller.
The five-year-old gelding has been competing mostly at the top level throughout this preparation, but his best result came in the Group 2 Hill Stakes when he finished a narrow second at Rosehill.
With bookmakers keeping the up-and-coming stayer safe in Melbourne Cup betting markets, can he stretch out to 3200m for the first time and record a win at his first attempt? Let’s find out.
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When will Kovalica run in the Melbourne Cup
A full field of 24 competitors will assemble at a packed Flemington Racecourse on the first Tuesday of November, all vying for a share of the $8.56 million prize pool.
Among them, Kovalica will join 23 other hopefuls, each aiming to make history with a victory in Australia’s most celebrated handicap race.
Kovalica (17)
- Age: 5YO
- Color: Bay
- Sex: Gelding
- Sire: Ocean Park (NZ)
- Dam: Vitesse (NZ)
Kovalica 2024 Melbourne Cup Odds
Win: +2200
Place: +400
Best odds at Picklebet
Career stats for Kovalica
- Career: 24: 6-2-4
- Flemington: 0: 0-0-0
- Distance: 0: 0-0-0
- Wet: 8: 1-0-3
- Good: 16: 5-2-1
- Group 1: 10: 1-1-1
- Win %: 25%
- Place %: 50%
Melbourne Cup results for Kovalica
Kovalica’s start in the 2024 Melbourne Cup will be the first of his career.
Recent Form for Kovalica
| Date | Race | Track | Distance | Placing | Jockey | Barrier | Weight | Odds | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 26 | Cox Plate | Moonee Valley | 2040m | 6/9 | Mark Zahra | 9 | 59kg | $26 | 11.8L |
| Oct 12 | Hill Stakes | Rosehill | 1900m | 2/9 | Zac Lloyd | 2 | 59kg | $4.40 | 0.24L |
| Oct 5 | Epsom Handicap | Randwick | 1600m | 4/20 | James McDonald | 1 | 55.5kg | $7.5 | 2.02L |
Can Kovalica win the 2024 Melbourne Cup?
Chris Waller opts to put the blinkers on 2023 Queensland Derby winner Kovalica and they should be the ideal gear change for him. Since his win in the Derby of May last year, the son of Ocean Park has yet to find his way into the winners stall since. He hardly runs a bad race, and his closing sectionals in the Cox Plate when well-beaten and everything else he has shown suggests he will see out the 3200m. He has become a bit of a non-winner and he will be hitting the line strongly, so perhaps throw him in a trifecta or first-four bet.
Watch Kovalica finish 6th in the Cox Plate
READ ALSO:
- 2024 MELBOURNE CUP BEGINNERS GUIDE
- BEST MELBOURNE CUP BETTING SITES
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