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Incentivise to miss Cox Plate for shot at Melbourne Cup

Incentivise will chase the most coveted double in Australian racing after winning the Caulfield Cup.

Incentivise will chase the most coveted double in Australian racing after winning the Caulfield Cup. Photo: Racing Photos

Incentivise has been all but ruled out of a WS Cox Plate start to ensure he has every chance to complete Australian racing’s famous Cups double.

In the wash-up from Incentivise’s stunning Caulfield Cup win, trainer Peter Moody said his latest stable star would most likely be saved for the Melbourne Cup.

“He knows he has been to the races,” Moody told RSN.

“It is the first time (for Moody) that he has felt a run.”

Incentivise remains on the third line of Cox Plate betting but is a clear-cut favourite to win the Melbourne Cup at Flemington on November 2.

He carried 55.5 kilograms to a Caulfield Cup win that was one of the most dominant in more than two decades.

Incentivise has the same weight in the Melbourne Cup but can be re-handicapped for his 3½-length victory over Nonconformist and Persan.

Moody said he didn’t expect Incentivise to be penalised too heavily for the Melbourne Cup despite the magnitude of his Caulfield triumph.

“We were weighted up to our best in the Caulfield Cup and I understand that will lessen the penalty going into the Melbourne Cup,” Moody said.

Racing Victoria handicapper Greg Carpenter is expected to announce any penalty on Monday.

Eleven horses have completed the Caulfield Cup-Melbourne Cup double with Ethereal the most recent in 2001.

In Incentivise’s absence, Zaaki and the three-year-old Anamoe are expected to jostle for favouritism in the $5 million Cox Plate at Moonee Valley on Saturday.

-AAP

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