What. A. Week. The Flemington Melbourne Cup Carnival really turned it on for us, and although our livers and wallets are in some serious pain right now, we are well and truly in the honeymoon phase here at Punt Drunk. The carnival seemed to go to another level on each of the four days; J-Mac rode four winners on Derby Day, then our darling Verry Elleegant won the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, Ollie got his seventh Oaks on Thursday, and then we saw brilliant displays both on and off the track on Stakes Day as Nature Strip and Zaaki blitzed their rivals. Can we start it all over again this week?
THAT SWEET EMBRACE
While our love affair with Zaaki and James McDonald hit an all-time high on Saturday, the entire world fell in love with the antics from Brett Prebble and J-Mac as they crossed the line in the Mackinnon Stakes. Heading into the 2021 Melbourne Cup Carnival, Prebble held the record for the most winners in the saddle over the week with nine wins, a record he set back in 1999 and then matched in 2000. Zaaki’s victory gave McDonald his 10th win of Cup Week, and of course it was Prebble who came second. The pair stood high in the irons on their two mounts and engaged in a bit of a hug past the post, which led to “that” photo being taken, which put the racing world into a state of euphoria. To top it all off, Prebble won his first Melbourne Cup in 2012 aboard Green Moon while J-Mac rode Fiorente, who finished second. On Tuesday, McDonald turned the tables by winning the race that stops the nation on Verry Elleegant, with Prebble finishing second aboard Incentivise. Full circle. How bloody good is racing?
James McDonald and Brett Prebble in 2005, and again today.
McDonald bested Prebble’s @FlemingtonVRC Carnival record of 9 winners today, taking it to a perfect 10 on Zaaki.
(Images: SMH/ The Age)@abcsport pic.twitter.com/pIVH4PwaGI
— Daniel Miles (@danielmiles) November 6, 2021
UMMM WHAT? CHAOS AT BREEDERS’ CUP
While we were all caught up in the Melbourne Cup Carnival hype, the Breeders’ Cup meeting was being run and won at Del Mar in the United States. On Saturday morning, one of the most bizarre situations we have ever seen on a racetrack took place. The runners were behind the barriers for the US$2 million Group 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf and the Charlie Appleby-trained Albahr fell backwards in the barriers, making contact with his stablemate and race favourite Modern Games, which saw the two Godolphin horses scratched from the race. Although the pair were both scratched and removed from betting pools, on-course vets checked Modern Games once again and decided he was fit to take part in the race and run for prizemoney only – which is, somehow, permitted in the US. Of course, Modern Games would go on to win the race, leaving punters who backed him with only their refunded stake in their betting accounts, while punters who backed the second horse, Tiz The Bomb, were paid out as the winner. Just another way to lose on the punt…
Incredible scenes here at @DelMarRacing
Modern Games has been withdrawn prematurely from the @BreedersCup Juvenile Turf – the vets have suggested that Modern Games is OK to run, but he has been withdrawn from the betting pools – discussions are underway to allow him to run pic.twitter.com/IowB52Q1DK
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) November 6, 2021
BUBBLE BURSTS ON HK PROSPECT
The old saying of “odds on, look on” came to fruition on Sunday night in Hong Kong at Sha Tin Racecourse as the unbeaten Nervous Witness stepped out in his third career start as a $1.14 favourite. The four-year-old gelding had been ultra-impressive in his first two career starts, winning by a combined margin of 6.8 lengths while being asked to do practically nothing in either of his races under the guidance of Australian expat Zac Purton. The David Hayes-trained son of Star Witness seemingly had every chance down the 1000m straight at Sha Tin but only battled in the concluding stages, almost missing out on a place at Winx-like odds. Talk about a confidence booster! Yikes…
Humans are like horses. Sometimes you just need to go to the country for an easy kill to boost confidence! #NervousWitness #BOOOOM
pic.twitter.com/WpCyVJvhXN
— Golden Paddy (@Golden_Paddy_) November 6, 2021
About Punt Drunk
Welcome to Punt Drunk! Our daily column covering all the latest horse racing and punting controversies, dramas and headline news. Have a story or gripe or issue that just grinds your gears? Just hit us up in the comments or contact us page and our jaded, punt hardened Punt Drunk staff will give it the Punt Drunk treatment it deserves. Don’t expect pleasantries or typical racing media fanboy gloss from Punt Drunk – we’re on the punt and we don’t have time to bullshit; the next is about to jump…
