The Melbourne Cup form of Red Cadeaux is stronger than any other horse in the field for the 2014 edition of the race and Robin Trevor Jones believes that the Group 1 event is the ideal race for the veteran stayer.
Red Cadeaux has impressed connections with his trackwork ahead of the 2014 Melbourne Cup. Photo by: Race Horse Photos Australia
Red Cadeaux has recorded seven wins from his 46 race starts during his extraordinary career, but he has arguably produced the two best performances of his career in the Melbourne Cup.
The Cadeaux Genereux gelding made his Australian racing debut in the 2011 edition of the Melbourne Cup and he looked as though he had the race won before he was beaten by Dunaden by the smallest margin in Melbourne Cup history.
Red Cadeaux was far from disgraced when eighth behind Green Moon in the 2012 Melbourne Cup, but he returned to his best form in the race last year when he finished a brave second behind Fiorente at lengthy odds.
Trevor Jones, the travelling foreman for trainer Ed Dunlop, said that the Melbourne Cup has clearly become the target race for Red Cadeaux every season, but he told Racing.com this afternoon that ‘the race that stops a nation’ is one of the few races on the global racing calendar that suits a unique horse like Red Cadeaux.
“He has a constitution that helps him a lot,” Dunlop said.
“The race really suits him to be honest and it is a race that we have to aim at now.
“The Flemington track suits and that is one of the reasons that we keep coming back.
“We say we save it for here, but it is a race that suits him; there isn’t too many two mile races on a flat track that is left-handed, that all suits.”
Red Cadeaux performed well in both the Group 1 Hong Kong Vase (2400m) at Sha Tin in December last year and the Group 1 Dubai World Cup (2000m) at Meydan in March, but he failed to fire in the Group 1 Tenno Sho (3200m) at Kyoto on May 4, the Group 2 Geoffrey Freer Stakes (2700m) at Newbury in August and the Group 3 September Stakes (2400m) at Kempton Park last month.
While the Melbourne Cup lead-up form of Red Cadeaux has not been particularly strong, the popular stayer has impressed onlookers with his work at the Werribee International Equine Centre and Trevor Jones is confident that the veteran can produce another strong effort in the Melbourne Cup
“The way that he is going there is no reason that he shouldn’t,” Trevor Jones said.
Red Cadeaux is currently available at 2014 Melbourne Cup odds of $19 to finally breakthrough for a win in the $6 million event.
