Melbourne Cup: Hawke's Bay hopes riding high

Former Hawke's Bay jockey Michael Dee and Durston, winners of the Caulfield Cup on October 15. Now he goes for the double, booked for Lunar Flare in Tuesday's Melbourne Cup. Photo / Getty Images

Hawke's Bay could hold two of New Zealand's more significant hopes in the 2022 Melbourne Cup, the three minutes and 20 seconds gallop that stops two nations on the first Tuesday of each November.

Dannevirke man Steve Prenter, who once owned a successful galloper called Dannevegas, is a 15 per cent part-owner of Smokin' Romans - six New Zealanders have parts of 60 per cent - and former Napier Boys High School pupil and 2022 Caulfield Cup-winning rider Michael ("Mick" or "Mickey) Dee is booked to ride Lunar Flare, both horses being trained at Cranbourne, just over 50 kilometres from cup venue Flemington.

Smokin' Romans sits at No 21 on the order of entry list of 32 that remain eligible for the 24-horse field which will be decided tomorrow night(Saturday), while Lunar Flare heads the list as an automatic qualifier after winning The Bart Cummings four weeks ago.

The road-proper to the big $A7.75 million ($8.5m), 3200 metres race effectively started when both horses won at Flemington on October 1.

Smokin Romans, a 6-year-old gelding trained by prominent partnership Ciaron Maher and David Eustace, won the 2000m Turnbull States, a significant early form-guide for Cup hopes, and, having since run seventh in the 2400m Caulfield Cup on October 15 was quoted by the New Zealand TAB on Thursday at odds of $26 to win the big race.

Trained by Graham Begg, 7-year-old mare Luna Flare claimed a ballot-free entry by winning The Bart Cummings over 2510m, was runner-up last Saturday in the 2500m Moonee Valley Cup, and was quoted at $21 to win.

By the time of the Caulfield Cup, won by Dee on 7-year-old gelding Durston, which is trained by Australia-based New Zealander Chris Waller, Dee had already been booked to ride Lunar Flare next Tuesday.

Durston became a $13 equal third-favourite for the Melbourne Cup, to be ridden by champion Australian jockey Damien Oliver, but was withdrawn from contention on Thursday on veterinary advice.

Prenter, a former Woodville-Pahiatua Racing Club president and now in Melbourne awaiting the big day, recently told Hawke's Bay Today racing correspondent John Jenkins how he bought into a horse that has now won nine of its 23 races.

He and three others attended the 2018 Karaka yearling sales and decided to bid on a chestnut colt by Ghibellines out of the Yamanin Vital mare Inferno - with high-profile Australian trainer Darren Weir among the contenders - and getting the sale at $52,500.

"We decided we wanted to take a share, and so a group of us Kiwis have now got 50 per cent between us," he said.

Son of former racehorse trainer Richard Dee and wife Jo, who farm in Hawke's Bay, 26-year-old Dee is zeroing in on a career tally of 600 winning rides.

He had his first ride in the Cup in 2017, on Gallante, which ran last of the 23 finishers, and last year picked up a late ride on Great House, which firmed in favouritism after winning three days earlier but, after a good run, was swamped in the straight and finished 13th.

The expected favourite for Tuesday's race is 4-year-old Irish gelding Deauville Legend, winner of three of just seven races, which is having his first start in the Southern Hemisphere, and quoted by the New Zealand TAB at $4.80 to win.

There was another shakeup today with second-favourite and German hope Loft also pulled on veterinary advice, leaving champion Kiwi jockey and 2021 winner James McDonald also without a mount.

Also having its first start Down Under is Irish raider and proven stayer Without A Fight, which has had seven wins from 17 starts. The top weight is former Northern Hemisphere galloper Gold Trip.

The 2019 winner, Vow And Declare, is also expected to start, as are Grand Promenade, Tralee Rose and Knight's Order which ran in the 2021 Cup and finished sixth, ninth and 19th respectively last year.

The process of deciding the final field started when nominations closed on August 26, with over 100 entries.

Saturday's Group 3 Lexus Archer Stakes at Flemington, over 2500m, is the last chance for a horse to get into the race, with the winner an automatic qualifier, joining Lunar Flare, Deauville Legend and Point Nepean as ballot-exempt entries.

Final acceptances will be taken at 6.30pm New Zealand time on Saturday, determining the 24 runners, with the saddle numbers, from top weight to those on the minimum, confirmed, followed by the barrier draw.

The race starts at 5pm Tuesday, New Zealand time.

The order of entry (the order number being the race number) for the 33 horses on Friday remaining eligible to run in the Cup, with weight and TAB odds to win:

1 LUNAR FLARE 51.5kg, $21. Jockey: Michael Dee
2 POINT NEPEAN (IRE) 51kg, $34
3 DEAUVILLE LEGEND (IRE) 55kg, $4.80. Jockey: Kerrin McEvoy
4 GOLD TRIP (FR) 57.5kg, $15. Jockey: Mark Zahra
5 DUAIS 55.5kg, $17. Jockey: Hugh Bowman.
6 MONTEFILIA 55.5kg, $13. Jockey: Jason Collett
7 HOO YA MAL (GB) 53.5kg, $15. Jockey: Craig Williams
8 KNIGHTS ORDER (IRE) 55.5kg, $26. Jockey: Tim Clark
9 WITHOUT A FIGHT (IRE) 55.5kg, $11. Jockey: William Buick
10 NUMERIAN (IRE) 55.5kg, $51
11 CAMORRA (IRE) 55kg, $26. Jockey: Ben Melham
12 ALEGRON 53kg, $26
13 STOCKMAN (NZ) 54kg, $34. Jockey: Sam Clipperton
14 YOUNG WERTHER (NZ) 54kg, $17. Jockey: Damian Lane
15 VOW AND DECLARE 54kg, 17. Jockey: Blake Shinn.
16 GRAND PROMENADE (GB) 53kg, $51. Jockey: Harry Coffey
17 TRALEE ROSE (NZ) 51.5kg, $51. Jockey: Dean Yendall
18 DAQIANSWEET JUNIOR (NZ) 53kg, $51. Jockey: Daniel Moor
19 ARAPAHO (FR) 52.5kg, $101. Jockey: Rachel King
20 CRYSTAL PEGASUS (GB) 52kg, $101
21 SMOKIN' ROMANS (NZ) 51.5kg, $26. Jockey: Jamie Kah
22 EMISSARY (GB) 51.5kg, $21
23 REALM OF FLOWERS 50kg, $21. Jockey: Damien Thornton
24 INTERPRETATION (IRE) 50kg

Those still to get into the field are:

25 MAKRAM (IRE) 50kg, $101
26 KING OF THE CASTLE (IRE) 50kg, $101
27 SERPENTINE (IRE) 53.5kg, $301
28 CHAPADA 52.5kg, $201
29 SAN HUBERTO (IRE) 51.5kg, $301
30 equal 31 HARMYSIAN (GB) 50kg, $301; HIGH EMOCEAN (NZ) 50kg, $51; SCHABAU (GER) 50kg, $301