Reigning Melbourne Cup hero Americain has firmed from $7.50 to $4.80 favourite to make it back-to-back wins in the $6 million race after the Cox Plate failed to produce a satisfactory Cup trial.
The winner of the Group Two Moonee Valley Cup on Saturday, the Alain de Royer Dupre Americain is all the rage for the 3200m Cup on Tuesday week.
He in which he will carry the same weight (58kg) as Saturday after chief handicapper Greg Carpenter opted not to penalise him for his win.
The French are the flavour of the week with Wednesday’s Geelong Cup winner Dunaden the second pick at $8 with TAB Sportsbet.
The Anthony Freedman-trained German import Lucas Cranach, who ran fifth in the Caulfield Cup, is at $9 with another German import, Illo, who ran an eye-catching third in the Moonee Valley Cup at his first appearance for Bart Cummings, is now at $11.
Illo had been a $31 chance for the Melbourne Cup going into Saturday’s 2500m race.
Cummings said believes Illo is “in with a show” of giving him his 13th Melbourne Cup.
Moonee Valley Cup runner-up Tullamore, from the Gai Waterhouse stable, has tightened from $26 to $17 in the market.
Trainer Greg Eurell said he would not pay up for Cox Plate winner Pinker Pinker as a second declaration on Monday, preferring to just let the win sink in.
However the four-year-old Reset mare is being kept safe and has firmed from $151 to $51.
Glass Harmonium, 10th in the Cox Plate and Shamrocker (12th) have drifted out of contention while Lion Tamer (last) has been taken out of the market after breaking down in the near hind leg.
AAP TURF
