After his second visit to Werribee this week to hop aboard Melbourne Cup 2025 hope Meydaan, James Mcdonald could not have been happier with the four-year-old’s progress towards the 3200-metre Group 1 feature on Tuesday.
While his immediate attention is on steering $2.20 favourite Autumn Glow in the Group 1 Golden Eagle (1500m) at Randwick on Saturday, Meydaan is just as high in his thinking especially after impressing again in work over 1400-metres on Thursday morning.
“I can’t wait,” McDonald said.
“He’s done really, really well.”
Meydaan had a chequered passage when finishing ninth in the Group 1 Caulfield Cup (2400m) on October 18 but still finished within five lengths of the winner and $6 Melbourne Cup favourite Half Yours.
“He has come through Caulfield really well,” McDonald added.
“Even when you feel him he doesn’t seem like the type of horse suited to Caulfield and I think that was evident on his run as well so getting back to the big stretches of Flemington, I think you’ll see a really good version of him.
“He can’t be any fitter, he can’t look any better, he can’t feel any better, so he’ll have every opportunity to run as good a race in the Melbourne Cup as he can.
“I’m quietly excited that he’s a nice, progressive horse on the way up.”
Meydaan is rated a $15 chance for Tuesday’s event.
“He’s nicely weighted with the 54½-kilos and he’s got the speed of a mile-and-a-half horse and in this day and age that is probably the type of horse that you need for a Melbourne Cup,” he said.
The prospect of heavy rain in the lead-up to and on Melbourne Cup Day is not presenting too many concerns for the champion jockey as being able handle soft conditions is one of the gelding’s positive traits but also that the consistent Flemington surface can handle wet weather.
“I’d be worried if it became heavy but Flemington is always in such pristine order that is probably won’t be heavy,” he said.
“He’s a good horse, this.”
