Melbourne Cup barrier draw: Fancied runners draw kindly

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The Melbourne Cup barrier draw for 2025 has taken place immediately after the final race of Derby Day at Flemington on Saturday.

Caulfield Cup winner Jamie Melham will ride the current favourite Half Yours and jump from gate 8.

If she wins the race that stops a nation, Melham will become the first female jockey to achieve the Caulfield-Melbourne Cup double.

Also drawing well is the Chris Waller-trained Buckaroo who will start from 12.

The Melbourne Cup dates back to 1861 and is the centrepiece of the Melbourne Spring Carnival.

It is run over a distance of 3200 metres with a total prize money of $10 million.

Final Field confirmed: Horse, jockey, trainer, weight and barrier number in brackets

1. Al Riffa (19) - Mark Zahra / Joseph O’Brien - 59kg
2. Buckaroo (12) - Craig Williams / Chris Waller - 57kg
3. Arapaho (15) - Rachel King / Bjorn Baker - 56.5kg
4. Vauban (2) - Blake Shinn / Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott - 56.5kg
5. Chevalier Rose (5) - Damian Lane / Hisashi Shimuzu - 55.5kg
6. Presage Nocturne (9) - Stephane Pasquier / Allesandro Botti - 55.5kg
7. Middle Earth (13) - Ethan Brown / Ciaron Maher - 54.5kg
8. Meydaan (22) - James McDonald / Simon & Ed Crisford - 54kg
9. Absurde (4) - Kerrin McEvoy / Willie Mullins - 53.5kg
10. Flatten The Curve (17) - Thore Hammer Hansen / Henk Grewe - 53.5kg
11. Land Legend (16) - Joao Moreira / Chris Waller - 53.5kg
12. Smokin' Romans (11) - Ben Melham / Ciaron Maher - 53.5kg
13. Changingoftheguard (24) - Tim Clark / Kris Lees - 53kg
14. Half Yours (8) - Jamie Melham / Tony & Calvin McEvoy - 53kg
15. More Felons (23) - Tommy Berry / Chris Waller - 53kg
16. Onesmoothoperator (6) - Harry Coffey / Brian Ellison - 53kg
17. Furthur (7) - Michael Dee / Andrew Balding - 52kg
18. Parchment Party (3) - John Velasquez / William Mott - 52kg
19. Athabascan (1) - Declan Bates / John O’Shea & Tom Charlton - 51.5kg
20. Goodie Two Shoes (20) - Wayne Lordan / Joseph O’Brien - 51.5kg
21. River Of Stars (14) - Beau Mertens / Chris Waller - 51.5kg
22. Royal Supremacy (21) - Robbie Dolan / Ciaron Maher - 51kg
23. Torranzino (18) - Celine Gaudray / Paul Preusker - 51kg
24. Valiant King (10) - Jye McNeil / Chris Waller - 51kg