Flemington Racing Tips 3 Nov 2026: Can So You Are Win Five?

Overview

So You Are has won her last four starts, and today she tries to make it five in the Melbourne Cup. Bjorn Baker‘s mare has banked $882,250 from five runs in the past 90 days, placing every time, and Rachel King keeps the ride. That is the story of the day at Flemington, and it is a good one, because she carries 54kg and comes in on the kind of run the Cup tends to reward.

There is plenty around her. Ten races on a Good track, a 22-runner staying handicap before the Cup, an unbeaten filly in the 1000m sprint and a Bm90 to close the day. Our Flemington racing tips cover every race, from the Maribyrnong Plate at 10:45AM through to the Channel 9 Trophy at 5:15PM, with a firm view on each one and prices where the bookmakers had markets up. Only the first three races had live prices when this was written, so the later races are judged on form and connections alone.

Reading the Flemington card

The track is rated Good, which suits most of the form lines on the card. Course form is spread thin, but enough of today’s runners have been here three or more times to be worth a table. A few stand out: Stylish has won two of her four Flemington starts and placed in all of them, while Zakouma and Shockletz both have four runs here before tackling the Cup.

The riding table is where Flemington gets interesting. J B McDonald has only 15 rides here in the records, but he has won four and placed in ten. Mark Zahra hits the frame on three of every five rides at the track, and Damian Lane wins on better than one in five of his rides here.

Among the stables, Danny O’Brien‘s record stands out. Ciaron Maher has by far the most runners on the card, seven of them in the Cup alone, and his Flemington numbers carry the weight of 176 starts.

Best Bookmakers for Today’s Racing

Flemington race by race

Race 1: Darley Maribyrnong Plate, 10:45AM, 1000m

Royal Press is the only horse in this field who has been to the races, and that counts for something in a two-year-old dash. He ran second on debut, worth $36,000, and Jye Mcneil rides for the McEvoy stable. Experience is the edge when eight of the nine are walking into a race-day atmosphere like this for the first time.

The worry is barrier 9, the widest gate, and a market that has already decided Amsterdam is the one. Ciaron Maher‘s colt is a debutant with Mark Zahra aboard and sits at $2.70 with Palmerbet. If he is as good as that price suggests, he beats a horse who has had one start. Royal Press at $3.80 with Unibet is the better bet given he has shown he can do it. Small win bet.

Race 2: Pin & Win Community (Bm80), 11:20AM, 2000m

Does Yauson‘s form hold up from barrier 21? That is the whole race. On form he is the clear pick: four starts in the past 90 days for two wins and two placings, and Jordan Childs rides for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott. The market agrees, with Palmerbet at $2.80.

Twenty-two runners over 2000m means a long run to the first turn, so Childs can find cover if he is patient. Johnich is the one at a price. He has won two of his last three and placed in all three, and at $15 with Bet Right he is the each-way answer for anyone wary of the wide gate. Mr O’Reilly has placed in all three of his recent runs too. Back Yauson to win, with a small each-way saver on Johnich.

Race 3: Tab One Pool Trophy, 12:00PM, 1800m

The market has Star Of Macedon on top at $3.90 with Neds, which makes sense: she has placed in both of her Flemington runs. But Mister Whiskers is unbeaten from two starts and has already earned $105,875, and he is $8.50 with Ladbrokes. That price looks too big.

Charlotte Littlefield trains him, and her Flemington record is sharper than her profile suggests: three winners from 15 runners here, with six of them placed. Jett Stanley draws barrier 2, so Mister Whiskers should get every chance from the inside. Star Of Macedon is the danger, a reliable placegetter who gets the run of the race from gate 6. Win bet on Mister Whiskers at the odds.

Race 4: The Schweppervescence Plate, 12:40PM, 1000m

Fifteen sprinters, and several unbeaten. Parcae is the one with two from two, and the Freedman brothers pair her with M J Dee from barrier 5. She has won both her starts in the past 90 days and earned $36,850 doing it.

Fovea brings Bjorn Baker and Rachel King across, a pair with a combined record of 30 wins from 121 rides together, and she has won one and placed in both of her starts. She is the danger. Southern Sway, Splendacious and Sanctuary each won on their only run, so this is a race with more unknowns than most. No live market yet. Parcae to win, small stakes.

Race 5: Australian Heritage Cup (Bm96), 1:20PM, 2800m

Black Peppermint grinds. She has six starts in the past 90 days for two wins among four placings, and she gets in at 53kg in a staying handicap where weight matters over 2800m. Patrick Payne has trained three winners from 19 runners at Flemington, and this is the kind of race his horses are placed to win.

Tempesti is the danger. He has placed in both of his recent runs and earned $107,500 from them, though his three runs here have produced one placing. Autumnheat also has two wins from four recent starts at the same weight as Black Peppermint. Twenty-one runners is a big field to trust any of them, so take the each-way on Black Peppermint.

Race 6: Asahi Super Dry Plate, 1:55PM, 1800m

J B McDonald does not waste many rides at Flemington, and ST Lawrence is a good one to have. The horse won on his only start here, and he has won two of his three runs in the past 90 days, placing in the other, for $191,500. Gavin Bedggood has him in form at the right time.

Darkbonee is the threat with Craig Williams aboard. He has placed in both Flemington runs and three of his four recent starts, including a win. If the pace is strong, his finish could matter. Al Duca has placed twice from three here and is the each-way option. Back ST Lawrence to win.

Race 7: Lexus Melbourne Cup, 3:00PM, 3200m

So You Are arrives at the Melbourne Cup having won her last four, and nothing else in the field has a sequence like it. Five starts in the past 90 days have produced four wins, a second and $882,250. She carries 54kg from barrier 7, which puts her in the middle of the draw with room to settle.

Rachel King and Bjorn Baker have won 30 races together from 121 rides, and placed in half of them. They know what this mare needs. Her form line reads 421111, which tells you she has kept improving through this campaign rather than peaking early.

The danger list is long, as it should be in a 24-runner Cup. Juja Kibo won on his only Flemington start, worth $450,000, and has placed in all four of his recent runs with two wins. Ciaron Maher saddles seven runners, and Juja Kibo is the one his form says to follow. Shockletz has placed in three of his last four, and with 51kg from barrier 17 he will be finishing late. Point Of Law won on his only recent start, worth $300,000, and Ethan Brown has the ride.

Joseph Patrick O’Brien sends five, led by Sons And Lovers with top weight of 57.5kg. The Irish horses have less form in our records here, which is a reason to be careful rather than a reason to rule them out.

Markets had not opened on the site when this was written, so watch the price. So You Are to win, with Juja Kibo and Shockletz in the exacta and trifecta. Shockletz is the each-way play at whatever price he settles at.

Race 8: Crown Amanda Elliott, 3:50PM, 1400m

Ranarsson is unbeaten from two starts and steps up to Flemington for the Hayes stable with B Melham aboard. Two wins and $55,000 is a small sample, but it is the cleanest form in the race, and barrier 9 is fine over 1400m here.

Beautiful You is the horse who will run a place. She has finished in the first three in all five of her recent starts, with two wins, and she was placed in both her Flemington runs. D W Stackhouse draws gate 1. Harry Lime won two of his last three for Waterhouse and Bott and is the other danger. Win on Ranarsson, place on Beautiful You.

Race 9: The Hong Kong Jockey Club Stakes, 4:35PM, 1400m

Stylish versus Shadhavar is a contrast in profiles. Stylish has been to Flemington four times, won twice and never missed the frame, and Ethan Brown rides for the Hayes stable. Shadhavar has the better recent form: two wins from four starts and $308,250 in prize money, with Craig Williams aboard for Tom Dabernig.

Stylish gets the vote on the strength of the track. Her recent form is patchier, with one win from five, but she is a different horse here. Shadhavar is the clear danger and could easily win. You Sexy Thing has placed in all four of her recent runs and is worth including in exotics. Back Stylish to win, with a Shadhavar saver.

Race 10: Channel 9 Trophy (Bm90), 5:15PM, 1400m

The market will like Buccleuch, and fairly so: three wins from his four starts in the past 90 days. But he carries 60.5kg, the top weight, and that is a big ask in a Bm90 over 1400m against horses in form.

Jett Smash gets in much lighter and won on his only Flemington start. Damian Lane rides for Danny O’Brien, whose runners win nearly one in five here. Jett Smash‘s form line has a run of wins in it, and the last-start sixth is the only blemish. Space Rider has placed in all three of his recent starts and is a solid exotics inclusion for Mark Zahra. Jett Smash to win, with Buccleuch as the danger if the weight does not stop him.

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Flemington FAQ

What time does racing start at Flemington today?

The first race, the Darley Maribyrnong Plate over 1000m, starts at 10:45AM local time. The Melbourne Cup is Race 7 at 3:00PM, and the last race, the Channel 9 Trophy, is at 5:15PM.

Who are the top jockeys and trainers at Flemington?

Damian Lane has ten wins from 44 rides at Flemington, and J B McDonald has four wins and ten placings from 15. Among trainers, Danny O’Brien has won with 11 of his 61 runners here, and Ciaron Maher has 24 winners from 176.

What are the best bets at Flemington today?

So You Are in the Melbourne Cup is the NAP, on four straight wins. Yauson in Race 2 is the banker, and Mister Whiskers in Race 3 is the value pick at $8.50.

Where can I find the best odds for Flemington races?

Check the bookmaker list above. When this was written, Palmerbet was best on Yauson ($2.80) and Amsterdam ($2.70), Ladbrokes on Mister Whiskers ($8.50), and Unibet on Royal Press ($3.80). Markets for Races 4 to 10, including the Cup, had not opened.

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