The spring campaign of Gold Trip, the defending Melbourne Cup champion, is expected to be influenced by historical trends, with the Caulfield Cup 2023 emerging as the most likely target.
While no topweight in the Melbourne Cup has successfully defended their title, there is a connection to the Caulfield Cup that may shape Gold Trip’s spring program.
Australian Bloodstock’s Jamie Lovett expressed on Tuesday that the logical race for Gold Trip this season would be the Caulfield Cup, considering that past Cup winners have returned the following year to claim victory in the Caulfield Cup, which appears to be a more attainable goal compared to the Melbourne Cup 2023.
Despite an underwhelming autumn campaign, Gold Trip is currently progressing well and is in good spirits, instilling confidence for the upcoming spring season.
Although no Melbourne Cup winner has managed to secure a consecutive victory since Makybe Diva achieved the feat from 2003 to 2005, the Caulfield Cup has proven to be a less challenging endeavor.
Two Melbourne Cup champions have returned the following spring to claim success in the Caulfield Cup.
Viewed, the winner of the 2008 Melbourne Cup with 53kg, triumphed again at Caulfield almost a year later, carrying 57kg to victory.
Similarly, Dunaden, the 2011 Melbourne Cup winner, achieved a subsequent triumph in the Caulfield Cup the following year with topweight of 58kg after carrying 54.5kg to win the Melbourne Cup.
Lovett mentioned that Gold Trip is likely to resume racing either in the Heatherlie Handicap (1700m) at Caulfield on September 3 or wait two weeks for the weight-for-age G1 Makybe Diva Stakes (1600m) at Flemington.