Lexus Melbourne Cup: Rating the internationals

Horses from Ireland, England, Japan and the USA form a tick under 23 percent of the nominations for this year's $10 million event at Flemington on November 3, highlighting a renewed desire for the race from those north of the equator.

Total entries for the 3200-metre Group 1 were down 19 on last year, when there were 19 from outside Australia and New Zealand, which was similar to the previous year, when internationals accounted for 20 of 123 nominations.

This year's percentage is almost identical to 2022 – when entries closed on the first Tuesday in August – and 43 of the 186 entries were trained in the Northern Hemisphere.

The job now for Aussie fans is to try and sort them out.

Two-time Melbourne Cup-winning trainer Jospeh O'Brien has almost half the overseas entries with 11, placing him behind only local giants Ciaron Maher (14) and Chris Waller (12) among the most heavily-represented trainers.

Goodie Two Shoes is the familiar name to Australian racing fans, having beaten home all bar Half Yours in last year's Melbourne Cup, while leading fancies Defiantly and James J Braddock are among those owned in Australian interests.

Last-start Group 2 Prix Kergorlay (3000m) Defiantly has the highest peak rating of any of O'Brien's entries and that son of Kameko is one of two of O'Brien's that caught the attention of Racing And Sports ratings expert Trent Crebbin.

"Defiantly won the Kergorlay with a Racing And Sports rating of 121 from the front in good time and smashed Santorini Star, who had gone down a nose to Goodie Two Shoes the start prior at Goodwood," Crebbin said.

"He edges Protectionist for the same connections by a pound in the Kergorlay and while I would've thought he was too slow for a Melbourne Cup, on face value this is a serious Melbourne Cup performance.

"Of his others, I'm drawn to Trustyourinstinct. He'd been a bit of a rock around the 115 mark but the clock had hinted there was a bit more on offer and stepping him past a mile and a half has seen that.

"He ran to 118 winning the Curragh Cup beating last year's Melbourne Cup topweight Al Riffa at set weights and looks a lovely prospect for Flemington."

O'Brien's father Aidan has five hopes of a first win in Australia's most famous race, headlined by the highest-rated horse among the international entries – Epsom Derby winner Christmas Day (123).

Others from Europe include Nicky Henderson's champion jumper Constitution Hill (111), Roger Varian's Enfjaar (119), Wine Dark Sea (117) and Ebor Handicap runner-up Hopewell Rock (117), who caught Crebbin's attention.

"Hopewell Rock is an improving stayer for a very good trainer in George Boughey, giving fellow Cup entry Small Fry 4.5kg and beating him at Goodwood where the time stacked up very favourably against Goodie Two Shoes over the same trip," Crebbin said.

"Since beaten a head in a strong edition of the Ebor by another progressive stayer Daiquiri Bay, he's rated 117 and while he may need to increase his rating to make the field, he has passed the first ballot clause and would be very well-handicapped if he can sneak in."

Tawny Port (116), winner of the ballot-exempt Belmont Gold Cup, is a chance to become the second American-trained runner to contest the Melbourne Cup, while Stinger Glass (117) is the lone Japanese entry.

The Yasuo Tomomichi-trained six-year-old, who is by Kizuna, is a confirmed traveller and will seek to give Japan a second win, 20 years after Delta Blues and Pop Rock fought out the race.

"Stinger Glass is rated the same as Warp Speed at 117 and won the 3400m Diamond Stakes two back, which was a race Warp Speed ran third in before his narrow second placing to Knight's Choice," Crebbin said.

"That's also the same number Breakup brought here the year before, when he finished down the track behind Without A Fight.

 "Mer De Grace was 121, the same as Delta Blues, and Stinger Glass is still relatively lightly-raced, but every time he's come up against better opposition he's proven himself to be a touch below to the top grade."

Defiantly is the shortest-priced Northern Hemisphere entrant with TAB at $11, with his stablemate James J Braddock at $15, along with Stinger Glass and Wine Dark Sea, while Hopewell Rock owns a place on the $18 line.

Weights for this year's Melbourne Cup will be revealed on Thursday, September 17 with the first round of acceptances to be taken on September 29.

The full list of nominations for the 2026 Lexus Melbourne Cup can be found here.

2026 Melbourne Cup internationals ranked by peak RAS rating