English horse Point of Law has won the Melbourne Cup in Australia, just hours after a New Zealand-bred horse was pulled out of the race.
The famous race was held at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne on 3 November 2026. Point of Law started as the favourite and gave jockey Ethan Brown his first Melbourne Cup win.
Trainer Ciaron Maher had seven horses in the race, and three of them finished first, second and third: Point of Law, Zahrann and Juja Kibo.
Earlier that day, NZ-bred horse Asterix was scratched, which means it was taken out of the race. Race officials, called stewards, found that a medicine called Penetrene, used for sore muscles and sprains, had been rubbed onto both of its front legs that morning. Medicines like this aren’t allowed on race day.
Asterix’s trainer, Chris Waller, said the stable worker who looks after the horse put the medicine on in front of a security guard, with nothing to hide. “The pressure of raceday, a very simple mistake,” he said. Waller was fined 50,000 Australian dollars.
Asterix is owned by two Hawke’s Bay families and former New Zealand cricketer Mark Greatbatch.
Chief steward Rob Montgomery said it appeared to be an honest mistake by the horse’s handler.
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