The 2026 Melbourne Cup horses list has 24 accepted runners, with the final field and barrier draw announced on Saturday, October 31. The Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. Melbourne time (Australian Eastern Daylight Time, AEDT, UTC+11). That is 4:00 a.m. UTC on November 3. It is Race 7 at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria, over 3,200 meters. All times in this guide refer to the scheduled race, not the time this article was prepared or published.
As of the pre-race update on November 3, 2026: the 24-horse field is confirmed, but final scratchings and any last-minute rider changes still need to be checked before the start. The list below uses the club’s official saddlecloth numbers and barriers, together with updated jockey information. It is a starting field, not a race result.
| Item | Confirmed details |
|---|---|
| Date | Tuesday, November 3, 2026 |
| Race | Race 7, Group 1 Lexus Melbourne Cup |
| Scheduled start | 3:00 p.m. AEDT (Melbourne, UTC+11); 04:00 UTC |
| Venue | Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Distance | 3,200 meters |
| Field | 24 accepted horses; check for race-day scratchings |
| Prize money | A$10.2 million total, as published by the Victoria Racing Club |
The official Flemington race-day schedule identifies the Melbourne Cup as Race 7 at 3:00 p.m., following Race 6 at 1:55 p.m. This is the advertised start time, not a guarantee that the gates will open to the second. If watching live, have your coverage ready before 3:00 p.m. and use the race-day program for delays or changes.
Victoria observes daylight saving in early November. The 2026 change began October 4, so Melbourne is on AEDT (UTC+11), not standard time (UTC+10). Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia do not observe daylight saving. The following are the same scheduled race instant on November 3:
| Location | Local scheduled start | Time zone |
|---|---|---|
| Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Hobart | 3:00 p.m. | AEDT (UTC+11) |
| Adelaide | 2:30 p.m. | ACDT (UTC+10:30) |
| Brisbane | 2:00 p.m. | AEST (UTC+10) |
| Darwin | 1:30 p.m. | ACST (UTC+9:30) |
| Perth | 12:00 p.m. (noon) | AWST (UTC+8) |
The applicable seasonal clock changes are detailed by the Reserve Bank of Australia daylight saving calendar. These are event-time conversions; a website may instead show your device’s local time or its own update timestamp. The race is at 04:00 UTC on November 3 in every time zone.
The following table follows the final acceptances released by the Victoria Racing Club on October 31 and cross-checks the race details against Victoria Racing Club’s October 31 field and barrier announcement and Racing.com final-field report. The first number is the saddlecloth number, which identifies the horse on the race card; it is not the barrier. The barrier is the numbered starting stall drawn for the horse. The listed weight is the horse’s allocated handicap weight, including the rider and applicable riding gear under the rules, and does not by itself predict performance.
| No. | Horse | Barrier | Trainer | Jockey | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sons And Lovers | 3 | Joseph O’Brien | Dylan Browne McMonagle | 57.5 kg |
| 2 | Trustyourinstinct | 18 | Joseph O’Brien | James McDonald | 57 kg |
| 3 | Knight’s Choice | 2 | John Symons and Sheila Laxon | Robbie Dolan | 56.5 kg |
| 4 | Middle Earth | 1 | Ciaron Maher | Mark Zahra | 56.5 kg |
| 5 | Vauban | 22 | Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott | Jordan Childs | 56.5 kg |
| 6 | Enfjaar | 8 | Roger Varian | Ray Dawson | 56 kg |
| 7 | Royal Supremacy | 21 | Ciaron Maher | Ben Allen | 56 kg |
| 8 | Wine Dark Sea | 23 | Harry Charlton | Damian Lane | 56 kg |
| 9 | Asterix | 6 | Chris Waller | Jye McNeil | 55 kg |
| 10 | Goodie Two Shoes | 19 | Joseph O’Brien | Wayne Lordan | 55 kg |
| 11 | Juja Kibo | 14 | Ciaron Maher | Sam Clipperton | 55 kg |
| 12 | Hopewell Rock | 15 | George Boughey | Zac Lloyd | 54.5 kg |
| 13 | Onesmoothoperator | 13 | Tim Fitzsimmons | Declan Bates | 54.5 kg |
| 14 | Soul Of Spain | 5 | Chris Waller | Tommy Berry | 54.5 kg |
| 15 | Zahrann | 11 | Ciaron Maher | Ben Melham | 54.5 kg |
| 16 | So You Are | 7 | Bjorn Baker | Rachel King | 54 kg |
| 17 | Future History | 12 | Greg Hickman | Jamie Melham | 53.5 kg |
| 18 | James J Braddock | 24 | Joseph O’Brien | Craig Williams | 53.5 kg |
| 19 | Kizlyar | 20 | Joseph O’Brien | Beau Mertens | 53.5 kg |
| 20 | Point Of Law | 9 | Ciaron Maher | Ethan Brown | 53 kg |
| 21 | Strictly Business | 4 | Thomas Carberry | Dean Yendall | 53 kg |
| 22 | Mr Monaco | 16 | Ciaron Maher | Jabez Johnstone | 52.5 kg |
| 23 | Zakouma | 10 | Grahame Begg | William Pike | 52 kg |
| 24 | Shockletz | 17 | Ciaron Maher | Harry Coffey | 51 kg |
Rider update: Strictly Business is listed with Dean Yendall rather than an earlier Michael Dee booking. Harry Coffey was cleared on Monday, November 2, to ride Shockletz after a Derby Day injury and subsequent medical assessment. The initial Saturday field lists can therefore differ from later race-day updates. Recheck the live declarations for any subsequent changes.
Point Of Law is No. 20 but starts from barrier 9; Middle Earth is No. 4 and starts from barrier 1. These numbers serve different purposes. Use the saddlecloth number to locate a runner on the official race card, and the barrier to understand its initial gate position. Barrier numbers do not identify finishing positions or rankings.
The Melbourne Cup is a handicap: horses are assigned different weights in an attempt to balance their chances. Sons And Lovers carries 57.5 kg at the top of the published list, while Shockletz carries 51 kg. A lower allocation may be useful, but it does not erase differences in racing ability, the quality of recent opposition, distance suitability, or how a race unfolds.
An inside barrier can reduce the ground needed to reach a favorable position, but a horse can also be crowded or forced to change plans. An outside gate may require more work early or a patient ride from behind. For example, James J Braddock drew barrier 24, whereas Knight’s Choice drew barrier 2. Those draws present different tactical problems; neither proves a finishing result before the race.
For someone who wants to follow the Cup rather than evaluate every runner in detail, several confirmed storylines offer different ways into the field:
This is a guide to what is verifiable in the starting field, not a ranking or forecast. Published market prices are time-sensitive and can change; none is needed to understand who is entered, when the race is scheduled, or how the draw works.
| What you need | Useful source | Tradeoff |
|---|---|---|
| Exact runners and barriers | Victoria Racing Club final-field announcement | Excellent for the declared list, but the October 31 page may not reflect later jockey changes or scratchings |
| Up-to-date jockeys, scratchings, and live race status | Current Flemington Race 7 card and Racing.com updates | More current but can display an unfamiliar layout or abbreviations |
| Live coverage and track atmosphere | Authorized broadcaster or the club’s official race guide | Shows the race itself, though access rights and video delays can vary |
| Planning a sweep with friends | Confirmed saddlecloth list or Racing.com sweep sheet | Easy to organize; a scratched horse requires a clear replacement rule |
For a simple office sweep, start with the declared saddlecloths and agree in advance what happens if a horse is scratched. For anyone following a particular jockey, the current race card matters more than a weekend preview. If you are attending Flemington, allow for travel, access, and the broader Cup Day program instead of planning to arrive at 3:00 p.m. exactly.
The club’s official Flemington race-day schedule provides race-day scheduling; its Victoria Racing Club’s October 31 field and barrier announcement provides the fixed field and barrier draw. The Racing.com November 2 runner-by-runner guide is useful for rider updates and context before the start. If two pages disagree, prioritize the latest official race declarations and note the timestamp rather than merging information from different versions.
The Victoria Racing Club announced a final field of 24 on October 31, 2026. Actual starters may be fewer if a runner is withdrawn before the race.
The scheduled start is Tuesday, November 3 at 3:00 p.m. AEDT (UTC+11), or 04:00 UTC on November 3. It is Race 7 at Flemington.
No. A horse can have saddlecloth No. 20 and start from barrier 9, as Point Of Law does. Always consult both columns when matching a name to its race-day details.
Start with the Victoria Racing Club’s October 31 field and barrier announcement, then compare with the live Race 7 acceptances on the official Flemington race-day schedule and current coverage from Racing.com. This is especially important if checking a saved image of the field or a card printed before race day.
Source and timing note: The starting field and barrier information were checked against the Victoria Racing Club’s October 31, 2026 announcement; the 3:00 p.m. start against its Cup Day schedule; race-day rider developments against November 2 reporting; and daylight saving against the Reserve Bank of Australia daylight saving calendar. This article is a pre-race reference for November 3, not a results report.
Why Brent fell on November 2, 2026: Iran diplomacy, a misleading futures rollover comparison, verified settlement prices, and scenarios for November 3.
WTI crude tumbled on November 2, 2026 as U.S.–Iran peace-talk hopes eased supply fears. Compare settlement data, catalysts and November 3 scenarios.
See all 24 Melbourne Cup 2026 horses, barriers, jockeys and weights, plus the November 3 start time at Flemington and conversions across Australia.
Check airline statements about the 2026 Amadeus breach, learn which bookings may be affected, and protect your travel accounts from scams.
Learn what the polar vortex is, why it sometimes affects UK cold spells and snow, and how to check reliable forecasts and weather warnings.
A supermarket freezer cyberattack can disrupt cooling and force food withdrawals. Here is what Europe’s November 2026 incidents mean for UK shoppers.
Leweston School will not reopen after October half-term 2026. Find verified updates, Dorset Council contacts, alternative places, childcare and exam guidance.
Popeyes Cajun Onion Rings returned for a limited time in November 2026. Learn how to check nearby stores, prices, pickup, and delivery before you go.
Understand Oklahoma tornado watches vs. warnings, check official alerts for Oklahoma City or Tulsa, and prepare to shelter during severe weather.
Who could replace Marnus Labuschagne at No. 3 for Australia? Compare Josh Inglis, Steve Smith, Sam Konstas, Nathan McSweeney and other Test options.
