Damien Oliver has claimed another win on Derby Day, riding Kalapour to victory in the Lexus Archer Stakes.
The retiring champion Oliver took Kalapour to the front at the top of the long Flemington straight, and while jockey James McDonald threw everything at his mount Athabascan, it wasn't quite enough with Kalapour prevailing by a narrow margin.
The race was a battle for the ages not just between two finely-tuned thoroughbreds, but between a jockey who is the undisputed contemporary king of the saddle in McDonald and an all time great who is about to hang up his silks in Oliver.
The win gives Oliver an incredible 86th success at the Melbourne Cup Carnival and catapults Kalapour into Tuesday's Melbourne Cup.
READ MORE: Melbourne Cup 2023 order of entry
READ MORE: 'Wrong': Aussies botching Cup favourite's name
READ MORE: How weather forecast will impact the 2023 Melbourne Cup
Race results
1. Kalapour
2. Athabascan
3. Gan Teorainn
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.