Almandin wins 2016 Melbourne Cup

The last moments of the two mile (3,200 meter) race ratcheted up the tension as Almandin and Heartbreak City engaged in a sprint along the final 300 meters.

“It’s a dream come true, ” said McEvoy.

“I’ve bought some very bad ones and you have to go back to Efficient for the last one I had with local staying blood”.

“The elation, the elation is unreal mate”.

A cut-and-thrust finale ensued, but Almandin found that little bit extra to provide both jockey Kerrin McEvoy and trainer Robert Hickmott with a second taste of Melbourne Cup glory. Just a dream race.

For one lucky Melbourne Cup punter, the “race that stops a nation” was the last day of their life as they’d known it, having turned a speculative $10 into nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

The Sydney based family are looking forward to Monday, when McEvoy’s wife Cathy Payne is due to give birth.

“He’s been with me for probably 15 years now”, Williams said of the trainer. “This horse is been set for this race since as far back as July”.

It was McEvoy’s second Cup win, 16 years after his triumph on Brew in 2000.

“I think Almandin.in an old-fashioned sense he’s probably beaten the handicapper”.

“I gave him all the pushing and shoving I could from the stands, but, unfortunately, it wasn’t enough”.

Almandin showed guts and spirit in equal measure to narrowly deny Heartbreak City in the Emirates Melbourne Cup at Flemington.

A German-bred by Monsun, Almandin was a Group 2 victor at Baden-Baden Racecourse in Germany in June 2014.

The Irish will, of course, be ruing second place, but they got a terrific ride from Brazilian-born Joao Moreira, the so-called “Magic Man”, who started in an unfavourably wide stall.

Trained by Irishman Tony Martin, the seven-year-old gelding was the first to bolt for the line and all but captured Australia’s richest horse racing prize before conceding at the line. He had already won the Ebor Handicap in the UK.

The five-time Melbourne Cup-winning owner said it was too early to determine if he would defend the crown he won in thrilling style on Tuesday. The race attracts a crowd of up to 100,000 and effectively brings the country to a halt as people turn to their radios and televisions to watch.