Point of Law has justified his favor in the 2026 Melbourne Cup after earlier this year the three-year-old stallion owned by King Charles played Royal Supremacy in a thrilling feature race at Flemington Racecourse.
Jockey Ethan Brown steered the Ciaron Maher-trained horse to victory in the $10 million race with Royal Supremacy — another in Maher’s stable — leading by nearly 20 lengths at one point.
In Tuesday’s race, Maher had a record seven horses and became the first trainer to achieve the treble, with Zahrann second and another from his stable, Juja Kibo, third. Sons and Lovers, trained by Joseph O’Brien, was fourth.
It’s Maher’s second time overseeing the winner of the “race that stops the nation”, with Brown’s victory three years ago marking a stunning turnaround after he nearly died in a horrific fall.
Point of Law was bought by an Australian syndicate from King Charles in August and moved to the top of the stakes after a strong performance in the Geelong Cup.
“He’s going to be a superstar. He’s an amazing horse,” Brown told Channel Nine after his victory, adding that winning the Melbourne Cup was a dream come true.
“Please don’t wake me up,” she said. “It’s every jockey’s dream to do that. I can’t believe it. I was confident in the horse. Everyone I spoke to said they never went in with that confidence.
“He’s in very good hands with Ciaron. He had the best leg in the race. I thought he ran really well and if he’s not a star today, he’ll be a star tomorrow.”
Brown has spent six months out of the saddle after a serious fall at Flemington in the 2023 Australian Guineas left him in hospital and is considering his future in racing.
“Something was burning inside me,” Brown said. “I was inches away from losing my life, but I had some free time and realized I wasn’t good at anything else. I had a slow burn inside. [to come back].”
Point of Law was purchased from a royal stable in the UK after winning the Group 3 Bahrain Trophy at Newmarket in July.
“I knew I had the best hand, but we just had to execute,” Maher told Nine. “I certainly didn’t know Royal Supremacy would go this far, but it’s a real challenge to stay and Point of Law, it’s just evolved.
“It’s been a whirlwind, but I’m proud of the whole team for getting three horses in the top three.”
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After pop star Robbie Williams urged the Flemington crowd to “let me entertain you” and put in a typically rousing pre-race performance, the focus turned back to the horses, with 23 of the expected 24 runners marching in the paddock.
Earlier, head coach Chris Waller was fined 50,000 dollars because it was discovered that his rival Asterix had taken anti-inflammatory drugs and was scratched on the day of the race.
Penetrene administration is generally permitted to horses, but race day treatments are strictly prohibited. Waller revealed that Asterix, owned by former New Zealand cricketer Mark Greatbatch, was being used on his front legs just hours before the race.
“The horse gets the same treatment every day,” Waller said. “It’s a very simple liniment that most stables use and I suppose the pressure of a race day, the person looking after the horse putting it on his feet in full view of the guard, there’s nothing to hide.
“It’s not his fault, I have to take responsibility, it’s my team. It’s rare for us to make mistakes, but the pressure of race day, you can’t explain how it affects everyone, on Melbourne Cup Day everyone is out and you think a little bit differently.”
He left Hall of Fame trainer Waller with just one horse in the race, 13th-place finisher Spirit of Spain.