Without doubt, the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse is the centrepiece of the Australian horse racing calendar. It goes beyond that however, in a similar way to the Grand National in the UK, or the Kentucky Derby in the USA. Its appeal extends past committed horse racing fans, stretching out into the general public. That’s true not just in Australia itself, but internationally too. Of course, Melbourne Cup betting is also enormously popular. For veterans, this is a key opportunity to get some serious bets down. For the more casual punter, this is a great time to dabble in racing betting with a few smaller wagers.

Whatever your betting experience, and whatever the size of your bankroll, this article will tell you everything you need to know about Melbourne Cup betting. Help you choose the best site for your needs, give you a rundown of the special offers you’ll typically find, provide a step-by-step guide on exactly how to bet on this prestigious event, and plenty more besides.

Melbourne Cup 2022

The Melbourne Cup field and weights have 2020 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe fourth and this year’s Caulfield Cup runner-up Gold Trip framing the handicap. He acts with cut in the ground, and has now had time to fully acclimatise to racing in Australia.

If the forecast rain arrives, Gold Trip could well sluice through the Melbourne mud and give the field weight all-round and a beating for owners Australian Bloodstock and training duo Ciaron Maher and David Eustace. The only concern is his pedigree, which isn’t abundant with stamina.

At the head of the betting are two British raiders in the Melbourne Cup 2022 line-up, with Deauville Legend a strong favourite. James Ferguson’s gelding would have occupied that same position in the St Leger had he been a colt. His absence from the Doncaster Classic is Flemington’s gain with the only question mark being how Deauville Legend will handle a softer surface.

British champion Flat jockey William Buick heads Down Under for the ride on Without A Fight. He skipped the UK’s equivalent of this race, the Ebor Handicap at York, for a crack at the Melbourne Cup 2022 for the Simon and Ed Crisford stable. How Without A Fight gets on in a big field handicap after running in conditions races with few runners of late remains to be seen.

Go Bloodstock purchased Hoo Ya Mal for big money with the precise aim of landing the Melbourne Cup 2022 following an eye-catching second in the Epsom Derby in the UK. A subsequent Goodwood winner, he’s now with the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott team. This is the third stable Hoo Ya Mal has represented this season. While he didn’t fire in the St Leger, this British import commands respect if translating the pick of his European form to Australia.

Montefilia Heads Home Team in Melbourne Cup Betting

The continuing complexities of European horses running in Australia means most Melbourne Cup horses are domestically trained once again this year. They include David Payne’s Montefilia, fourth in the Caulfield Cup for the second season running. This mare’s defeat of the first from last year’s Melbourne Cup result, Verry Elleegant, in the Ranvet Stakes reads very well. Montefilia was nearest at the finish after some bad luck in the run on her latest run at Caulfield.

Realm Of Flowers, meanwhile, sneaks in at the foot of the handicap. She has no weight at all on her back, so last year’s Sydney Cup fifth has proved popular with plenty of smart money going on her for the Melbourne Cup 2022. Anthony and Sam Freedman’s mare is a 2,800m course winner at Flemington, so handles the track.

The Waterhouse team also run Knights Order, who found the going too good in this race last year. With the forecast suggesting rain, he may get the heavy ground that explains why his Melbourne Cup 2022 odds have tumbled in the run-up to his second try at the race that stops a nation.

Smokin Romans is another towards the bottom of the weights with claims. A big price winner of the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes at Flemington on his penultimate start, he disappointed when a beaten favourite in the Caulfield Cup. He wasn’t going the pace of the leaders but now goes beyond a mile-and-a-half for the first time.

Lunar Flare punched her ticket to the Melbourne Cup 2022 with victory in the Bart Cummings. Grahame Begg’s star mare was then far from disgraced when runner-up in the Moonee Valley Gold Cup. As a daughter of Fiorente, who won the Melbourne Cup in 2013, Lunar Flare is bred for this race.

Vow And Declare out to regain crown in Melbourne Cup 2022

Danny O’Brien saddled Vow And Declare to glory in this race three years ago. He bid to regain his crown from 2019 with only a little bit more weight on his back in the Melbourne Cup 2022. Vow And Declare wasn’t beaten far in either the Bart Cummings or the Caulfield Cup, and bettors know he stays the trip. It’s just a question of whether he has as much improvement in him as other runners.

Edward Cummings expects there’s more to come from Duais. Another to be nearest at the finish in the Caulfield Cup, she shares a sire with last year’s Melbourne Cup favourite and runner-up Incentivise. As winner of both the Australian Cup and Tancred Stakes earlier in the year, Duais is yet another mare with prospects now given a greater test of stamina.

Michael Moroney has Kingman gelding Emissary in top form after winning the Geelong Cup, yet his pedigree raises doubts about getting home over further. Stockman, meanwhile, faces a quick turnaround in the Melbourne Cup 2022 just a few days after running in a Rosehill handicap.

Young Werther is still a maiden yet can’t be ruled out if judged on his Turnbull Stakes third two starts back, for all he disappointed in the Cox Plate. The ex-Irish trained Camorra is very interesting as a potential Melbourne Cup 2022 each way bet on the pick of his form. He joined Ben and JD Hayes from Ger Lyons for this after winning the Curragh Cup in the Emerald Isle.

Melbourne Cup 2022 Odds – Deauville Legend a Strong Favourite

Only two favourites have justified their Melbourne Cup odds being the shortest-priced runners since 2005. That is a poor record for the market leader, but such trends can easily be reversed. It’s worth knowing what the Melbourne Cup 2022 odds are before placing a bet. Here is the latest Melbourne Cup betting on this year’s race with current prices listed in the table below (odds correct as of 23:30 AEDT on Monday, 31 October):

With only two horses shorter than 11.00 (10/1) in the Melbourne Cup field this year, it’s clear that there is a strong favourite. Deauville Legend has very short odds for a race of this nature but with good reason as noted above. A shock isn’t out of the question based on Melbourne Cup 2022 odds and you should never be put off betting on a horse by its price if there are bits of form you like.

Overseas runners and foreign imports are prominent in the betting, simply because of the form they showed when running in the UK and Ireland. Winners of key trials and horses who shaped well in them are prominent in the Melbourne Cup 2022 odds too. This explains why a previous winner of the race, like Vow And Declare, is such a big price.

What to Look for in Melbourne Cup Betting Sites

Australia doesn’t have the widest selection of online sportsbooks, but there are still plenty of good options. Narrowing these down to the very best choices for you isn’t always easy, but it can still be a lot of fun. To help guide your search, here are a few of the biggest things you should look for when picking a Melbourne Cup betting site.

Melbourne Cup Specials

The Melbourne Cup carnival is not only a great opportunity for punters to make money, but – naturally – for bookies to drum up new business. One of the most tried-and-tested ways to do this is through special offers, some of which will be exclusively available for the Melbourne Cup. Because of government restrictions, bookies can’t advertise these promotions as they do in other countries. You can simply create an account for free with any online bookmakers you’ve got your eye on though, and check them out for yourself.

The specifics will change between Melbourne Cup betting sites, but these are several of the most popular offer types you’ll find:

Melbourne Cup Betting Offers

Australian bettors in general aren’t blessed with a huge range of promotions, because of the aforementioned tight government restrictions. That said, the cupboard isn’t completely bare here, with a few highly respectable offers still available. These are three of the best ones available right now, each of which would also be useful on the next Melbourne Cup.

How to Place a Bet on the Melbourne Cup

Sportsbooks tend to be incredibly easy to operate nowadays, regardless of your experience level as a bettor. This definitely applies to Melbourne Cup betting sites too. To help you on your way though, here’s a quick-and-easy guide on exactly how to get started betting on the Melbourne Cup online.

Step 1: Choose Between Melbourne Cup Betting Sites

You’ve got a couple of dozen good options here, but we’ve already narrowed those down into a top 10, which you can see at the top of this page. If you don’t fancy any of those, check out the ‘What to Look For in Melbourne Cup Betting Sites’ section instead, to help guide your search.

Your number one priority here should be finding the right site for your specific needs. Identify your own priorities – for markets, promotions, payment methods, and so on – then pick a bookie which definitely matches them.

Step 2: Create an Account

Now that you’ve picked a site, you’ll need to create an account. This is extremely straightforward with most modern bookies. You’ll simply need to provide a selection of personal details across several short stages. These will include your name, date of birth, address, and so on. You’ll also need to agree to the full T&Cs of the website here, and should be able to set both your marketing preferences and deposit limits.

Step 3:  Fund Your Account

Before you can actually place wagers, you obviously need some money in your account. If you followed our earlier advice, you will have picked a bookie which supports your payment method of choice.

If so, simply head to the deposit screen and pick that method from the available options. Type in your card details, or link your betting account to that on another site like PayPal. Then, just enter the amount you want to deposit, and complete the payment.

Step 4:  Find a Melbourne Cup Betting Market

With your account funded, it’s time to place a wager. Head to the horse racing section of your chosen sportsbook. The Melbourne Cup should have its own subsection within this. Browse the list of markets therein, and – when you see a selection you like – click on its odds to add it to your betslip.

Step 5:  Place Your Bet

Head over to your betslip (usually on the right of your screen), then check that you’ve added the correct wager, and that the odds haven’t changed. Enter how much you want to bet in the stake box.

If you want to place a simple singles wager, you can now go ahead and confirm the bet. If you want to place an each way instead, there will usually be an ‘E/W’ box you can tick (remember, this will double the size of your stake). If you want to place a fixed odds multiples bet, you’ll typically enter your stake in a box near the bottom of your betslip, rather than next to an individual selection.

When Do Melbourne Cup Race Betting Markets Open?

There are two main ways to bet on horse racing: ante-post, and pre-race. Both are available options when betting on the Melbourne Cup.

Ante-Post Melbourne Cup Betting Markets

Ante-post (also called ‘futures’) betting is much more long-term. These markets open for the contest months in advance. In fact, sometimes they open for the following year straight after the current edition of the event finishes.

The attraction of ante-post markets is that they have significantly higher odds than their pre-race counterparts. The drawback is obviously that they’re much more unpredictable. You could be backing the best horse in Australia last year, but – by the following year – it might not even sniff the starting line due to injury.

Pre-Race Melbourne Cup Betting Odds

This is the more common way to bet on the Melbourne Cup. It might offer lower rewards, but it also carries much less risk.

Melbourne Cup race day is on the first Tuesday in November. The regular pre-race markets will typically be opened on the Saturday night prior to this. By this point the final field of runners will have been finalised, and you’ll have plenty of information on the health and form of each final field horse heading into the race.

5 Utimate Melbourne Cup Betting Tips

As with any other sports event, making money on your Melbourne Cup race betting is never easy. Of course you can simply swing for the fences with a few high risk, high reward wagers, and you might get lucky. You might also blow up your account, however.

The smarter play is to gamble responsibly, in a considered way. Here are five top Melbourne Cup tips to help you do just that.

Melbourne Cup Odds

As mentioned above, it is incredibly important to do plenty of research prior to your Melbourne Cup betting online. With that said, we should also point out that neither expert opinions nor a runner’s form are any guarantee of success.

To get a sense of what we’re talking about, here’s a quick list of where the favourite has finished in the last 12 Melbourne Cups:

Year	Favourite	Finished
2022	Deauville Legend	4th
2021	Incentivise	2nd
2020	Surprise Baby	13th
2019	Finche	7th
2018	Yucatan	11th
2017	Marmelo	9th
2016	Hartnell	3rd
2015	Fame Game	13th
2014	Admire Rakti	22nd
2013	Fiorente	1st
2012	Dunaden	14th
2011	Americain	5th

As you can see, in the past decade literally one favourite has actually won the Melbourne Cup. You have to go all the way back to 2005 for the last time it happened before that. What does this mean for your Melbourne Cup betting? Mainly, that there is no ‘safe’ pick. With around 25 horses competing, the chances of even the supposedly-best horse winning – the favourite – are pretty slim.

Thus, one of our biggest Melbourne Cup tips is to sprinkle wagers across a few different horses. Betting on all 25 won’t be profitable, but – by backing at least several runners in this incredibly unpredictable race – you greatly increase your chances of hitting a big win.

Melbourne Cup Betting Guide – Trifecta

Different bettors have different levels of risk and reward with which they’re comfortable. If you’re happy to take on some extra risk, in return for some seriously big rewards, a trifecta might be the perfect way for you to bet on the Melbourne Cup.

A trifecta bet – as the name suggests – involves betting on three different horses. In a regular trifecta, you must actually predict the top three finishers – in order – to win your bet. Alternatively, you can place a ‘boxed’ trifecta. You still need to pick the top three runners here, but they can finish in any order. The former will deliver higher returns, but your chances to win are obviously better with the latter.

Either way, winning a trifecta bet is tough. That’s why we’d definitely recommend being sensible with your stakes. The Melbourne Cup betting odds for trifectas are always high anyway, so – even for a smaller spend than usual – you can still make an impressive return.

Where to Watch the Melbourne Cup Live in Australia

From a practical point of view, live streaming isn’t as important here as it is with a sport like soccer or rugby. In-play betting isn’t a factor, after all, and neither are cash out tools. The reason for wanting to watch the Melbourne Cup live is far more straightforward – because it’s fun! This race is exciting enough in itself, but – when you’ve got a few wagers on it – it becomes even more enthralling.

If you simply want to watch it on TV, then Network 10 provides coverage most years, including several hours of lead up previews. Subscribers to Foxtel can also watch the event on several channels, including Sky Racing 1, while cord-cutters can use an online service like Kayo. In addition, several Melbourne Cup betting sites each year will also let you watch along live. The exact brands vary from year to year, but the three listed below are usually your safest bets.

Melbourne Cup Betting Online – Previous Winners

It goes without saying that each Melbourne Cup presents its own challenge for bettors. That said, it really can be useful to look into the past when you’re trying to plan for the future. In that spirit, here’s a list of the 12 previous three year old-plus runners who claimed the Melbourne Cup prize money in Victoria, along with the jockeys who led them to victory.

Year	Horse	Jockey
2022	Gold Trip	Mark Zahra
2021	Verry Elleegant	James McDonald
2020	Twilight Payment	Jye McNeil
2019	Vow and Declare	Craig Williams
2018	Cross Counter	Kerrin McEvoy
2017	Rekindling	Corey Brown
2016	Almandin	Kerrin McEvoy
2015	Prince of Penzance	Michelle Payne
2014	Protectionist	Ryan Moore
2013	Fiorente	Damien Oliver
2012	Green Moon	Brett Prebble
2011	Dunaden	Cristophe Lemaire

Bottom Line

The interest and excitement generated by the Melbourne Cup each year is unparalleled in Australian horse racing. It’s known as ‘the race that stops a nation’ for a reason. If you’ve always wanted to get a taste of the betting action, there’s never been a better time to do so.

To get the ball rolling, just pick between our recommended Melbourne Cup betting sites or find your own by following our guidelines. Fund your account, then get started on your research in plenty of time before the big event. Remember to monitor your stakes, and you should enjoy a responsible – and potentially profitable – Melbourne Cup.

FAQ

What are the best sites for betting on the Melbourne Cup online?

Betfair and Ladbrokes are extremely well-known brands, who provide excellent coverage of the Melbourne Cup. If you'd prefer to go with a more local Australian brand, the likes of Sportsbet.com.au, PalmerBet, and Neds are all strong options.

What is the minimum bet you can have on the Melbourne Cup?

The minimum bet amount varies from bookie to bookie. An industry standard amount is $0.50, but this can be as low as $0.01 on Sportsbet.com.au, or as high as $1 on BlueBet.

What are the most important Melbourne Cup tips?

There are two. The first is to do plenty of research, taking advantage of the wealth of expert betting tips available online. The second is to set a strict overall budget for the event, and be sure not to exceed this.

How can I find the best Melbourne Cup betting odds?

This is pretty straightforward. Identify two or three horses you have your eye on, and a handful of bookies you like the look of. Then simply compare the odds on those runners across the different sportsbooks, and pick the one with the best prices.

What are the best special offers for Melbourne Cup betting?

You should definitely prioritise anything which gives you free bets, which can subsequently be used on future horse races, greyhound races, or anything else you like. Any offers which boost your odds are obviously useful, and - if you’re planning on placing each way wagers - look for Extra Places deals.