A New Zealand punter is on the cusp of a life-changing payday, with a $7.41, 12-leg racing multi poised to return more than $730,000 if Buckaroo can finish in the placings in Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup.
The anonymous bettor placed the multi on January 31, with the first nine legs run the following day, before adding three marquee events later in 2025 — The Everest (Ka Ying Rising) on October 18, the Cox Plate (Via Sistina) on October 25, and the Melbourne Cup.
“I’m buying enough beers if this wins already without anyone else (knowing),” the punter said.
Because the multi includes future events, the NZ TAB does not offer a cash-out. Not that the customer was interested. “We’re not cashing out, mate. Even if we could.”
Melbourne Cup Field
| No | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Barrier | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AL RIFFA (FR) | Joseph O’Brien | Mark Zahra | 19 | 59kg |
| 2 | BUCKAROO (GB) | Chris Waller | Craig Williams | 12 | 57kg |
| 3 | ARAPAHO (FR) | Bjorn Baker | Ms Rachel King | 15 | 56.5kg |
| 4 | VAUBAN (FR) | Gai Waterhouse & Adrian Bott | Blake Shinn | 2 | 56.5kg |
| 5 | CHEVALIER ROSE (JPN) | Hisashi Shimizu | Damian Lane | 5 | 55.5kg |
| 6 | PRESAGE NOCTURNE (IRE) | Alessandro Botti | Stephane Pasquier | 9 | 55.5kg |
| 7 | MIDDLE EARTH (GB) | Ciaron Maher | Ethan Brown | 13 | 54.5kg |
| 8 | MEYDAAN (IRE) | Simon & Ed Crisford | James McDonald | 22 | 54kg |
| 9 | ABSURDE (FR) | Willie Mullins | Kerrin McEvoy | 4 | 53.5kg |
| 10 | FLATTEN THE CURVE (FR) | Henk Grewe | Thore Hammer Hansen | 17 | 53.5kg |
| 11 | LAND LEGEND (FR) | Chris Waller | Joao Moreira | 16 | 53.5kg |
| 12 | SMOKIN’ ROMANS (NZ) | Ciaron Maher | Ben Melham | 11 | 53.5kg |
| 13 | CHANGINGOFTHEGUARD (IRE) | Kris Lees | Tim Clark | 24 | 53kg |
| 14 | HALF YOURS | Tony & Calvin McEvoy | Ms Jamie Melham | 8 | 53kg |
| 15 | MORE FELONS (IRE) | Chris Waller | Tommy Berry | 23 | 53kg |
| 16 | ONESMOOTHOPERATOR (USA) | Brian Ellison | Harry Coffey | 6 | 53kg |
| 17 | FURTHUR (IRE) | Andrew Balding | Michael Dee | 7 | 52kg |
| 18 | PARCHMENT PARTY (USA) | William Mott | John Velazquez | 3 | 52kg |
| 19 | ATHABASCAN (FR) | John O’Shea & Tom Charlton | Declan Bates | 1 | 51.5kg |
| 20 | GOODIE TWO SHOES (IRE) | Joseph O’Brien | Wayne Lordan | 20 | 51.5kg |
| 21 | RIVER OF STARS (IRE) | Chris Waller | Beau Mertens | 14 | 51.5kg |
| 22 | ROYAL SUPREMACY (IRE) | Ciaron Maher | Robbie Dolan | 21 | 51kg |
| 23 | TORRANZINO (NZ) | Paul Preusker | Ms Celine Gaudray | 18 | 51kg |
| 24 | VALIANT KING (GB) | Chris Waller | Jye McNeil | 10 | 51kg |