McNeil cops hefty suspension for Melbourne Cup ride

Jockey Jye McNeil has received an 18-meeting suspension over his ride on Valiant King in the Melbourne Cup, stemming from an incident near the 2500m mark.

Stewards found McNeil caused interference to Stéphane Pasquier on Presage Nocturne and Blake Shinn on Vauban as the field jostled for position passing the post the first time. The penalty was elevated under Racing Victoria’s feature-race guidelines.

McNeil’s ban begins 7 November, with eligibility to return on 24 November.

Earlier on the program, Neil Farley was suspended for seven meetings (6–11 November) for a whip-rule breach aboard runner-up Pittsburgh Pirate in race two.

Later, John Allen was hit with two careless riding charges—one for his ride on Kaleo in race eight and another for his mount Windstorm in the finale. The suspensions (10 meetings and 8 meetings) will be served cumulatively from 7 November, allowing Allen to resume on 24 November.