The Queen has been to Flemington three times - in 1954, 1963 and 1977 - but has never been to the Melbourne Cup.
The Queen raced horses in Australia on occasion, most notably Arabian Story who ran sixth in the 1997 Melbourne Cup and was ridden by Frankie Dettori.
The Melbourne Cup has been won by five overseas-trained horses but none has carried more than 56kg to win the race.
The present record holder is the 1990 winner Kingston Rule with a time of 3:16.3.
But there is one horse that stands head and shoulders above the rest in Melbourne Cup folklore, and that is Makybe Diva. With her wins in 2003, 2004 and 2005, the superstar mare became the first horse to win three Melbourne Cups.
How much prize money does the jockey get for winning the Melbourne Cup? Jockeys are entitled to 5% of the prize money earned and will usually also receive a small amount for booking the ride. That was $220,000 in 2022. The winning jockey is entitled to 5% of the prize money earned.
The Present Day Melbourne Cup Trophy
The present day trophy is made from 34 pieces of gold metal that has been beaten for over 200 hours and made by Hardy Brothers. The estimated value of the trophy rose in 2008, with the winning trophy now containing 1.65 kg of 18 carat gold estimated at over $250,000.
After the weights have been allocated, each horse owner must pay a series of entry and acceptance fees, including a $600 initial entry fee, $960 first acceptance, $1,450 second acceptance, $2,450 third acceptance, and $45,375 final acceptance on the Saturday prior to the big race.
Phar Lap is on permanent display at Melbourne Museum. Bresis, a 3 year old filly, won the Cup in 1876. She is not the only 3 year old filly to win the race however, she has a unique record because in six days she won the Victoria Derby, The Cup and the Oaks. The most versatile horse to win the race was Malua.
In it's long history the Melbourne Cup has been won twice by four horses; Archer (1861 & 1862), Peter Pan (1932 & 1934), Rain Lover (1968 & 1969) and Think Big (1974 & 1975).
How much prizemoney jockeys win is decided by a very complicated Rule of Racing and varies from race type to race type and is dependent on how many places are being paid. However, as a general rule of thumb Flat jockeys receive around 8.5% of the advertised win prize and 2.61% of the advertised place prize.
No female horse has ever won the Triple Crown. Three have won the Kentucky Derby, Regret, Genuine Risk, and Winning Colors. One two have won the Belmont, and five won the Preakness.
The oldest horses to win the race were the eight-year-olds Twilight Payment (2020), Toryboy (1865) and Catalogue (1938). The last three-year-old to win was Skipton (1941), who gave champion jockey Billy Cook his first Cup win.
The 2022 Melbourne Cup is worth a total of $8 million, and is the richest handicap horse race in the world. The winner of the Cup gets $4.4m of that pool, as well as the coveted Cup itself which is said to be worth an extra $250,000 in gold.
Each day has it's own dress code or 'theme' that patrons must adhere to, though all of the Melbourne Cup Carnival days strictly ban a number of clothing items, including jeans, torn clothing, casual footwear, shorts, leggings, and caps.
Affectionately known as the “Loving Cup”, the Emirates Melbourne Cup trophy's three handles symbolise the relationship between the winning jockey, trainer and owner and its timber base is hand turned from Australian Black Wattle.
The Everest – $14million
Boasting a whopping jackpot of $14 million, The Everest is the richest race in Australia and the richest turf race in the world.
The real money for jockeys comes from prize money, if they can ride a horse to finish first, second or third in a race and earn part of the purse. The percentages a jockey receives for a thoroughbred race range from 5% for a second- or third-place finish to 10% for first place, according to the Covington Reporter.
French horse Gold Trip has won the 162nd edition of the A$8 million (NZ$8.8m) Melbourne Cup as crowds headed back to a rainswept Flemington after years of Covid-19 disruptions.
12 have each won the Melbourne Cup 11 times. No. 1 is next, with 10 wins, while saddlecloth numbers 5, 6, 8 and 11 have accounted for eight wins each. Makybe Diva was the first wearing No.
Only three horses have ever won the Melbourne Cup and then gone on to win the Cox Plate the following year: Phar Lap, Might and Power and Makybe Diva.