Damien Oliver is chasing yet another Melbourne Cup win in his final festival ride

The news that Damien Oliver will be retiring from competitive racing at the end of the 2023 season, has taken a while for most punters to digest. 

Bringing his incredible 30+ year career to an end was always going to be a tricky task and there has been much speculation amongst online betting sites as to which horse he would saddle in the Melbourne Cup at Flemington on November 7th. 

Whilst there were plenty of potential suitors, it is the French speedster Alenquer that will be cultivated around the Flemington track by Oliver, as he chasing a 4th Melbourne Cup title. 

Stepping away from the sharp end of any sport is always very tough to do but for legendary hoop Damien Oliver, the  Australian horse racing scene is due to change markedly without his presence. 

One of the most prolific winners in Australian horse racing history, he has frequently been the toast of many punters and Aussie bookmakers and he is chasing one final Melbourne Cup victory. 
 
Oliver has won 3 previous Melbourne Cup’s previously and how fitting it would be if he could go out on the ultimate high at Flemington on November 7th. 
 
Oliver’s Army 

Every sport frequently overuses the word legend in the modern age, but Damien Oliver remains a true icon in the world of horse racing. 
 
Starting his career back in the early 1990’s, Oliver has ridden a remarkable 129 Group 1 winners in the subsequent 30+ years and he remains as prolific in the winner’s enclosure today, as he was at the start of his career. 
 
At the age of 51 however, Oliver has achieved almost everything possible in the game and the news that he was to step away from racing at the end of the 2023/24 season did not come as a shock to many. 
 
Fittingly, Oliver has been embarking on a farewell tour of sorts in recent weeks and months, getting a hero’s welcome at tracks across the country and the Melbourne Festival at Flemington is a rather meaningful next stop. 
 
4th Time Lucky 

For any jockey, winning the Melbourne Cup is the absolute pinnacle of a career and Damien Oliver has had the privilege of winning the famous race on three previous occasions. 
 
Triumphing on Doriemus in 1995, Media Puzzle in 2002 and Fiorente in 2013, Damien Oliver possesses one of the very best Melbourne Cup records in history but bagging a 4th winner in the famous race would be record equaling. 
 
Only legendary jockeys Bobbie Lewis and Harry White have been able to get over the line in first place 4 times at the Melbourne Cup and the prospect of Oliver being able to equal those greats is whetting the appetites of all Victorian bookmakers and punters. 
 
French flyer to get the job done? 

For a jockey with the reputation of Oliver’s, choosing a Melbourne Cup ride simply comes with the territory and many betting apps are reading into the fact that he has opted to board Alenquer for the 2023 Melbourne Cup. 
 
A relative outsider in the ante-post betting, Alenquer has demonstrated some pretty decent form out of the Michael Moroney yard and is seen as a horse ideal for the trip. 
 
Oliver is sure to get the very best out of Alenquer, with his know-how of the Flemington track often the telling factor in some of his races and it looks to be a very good match. 
 
Willie Mullins trained Vauban continues to look like the horse to beat at Flemington, whilst the likes of Without A Fight and 2022 winner Gold Trip also head up a vibrant betting market. 
 
Whether Damien Oliver manages to bag one more Melbourne Cup winner remains to be seen but regardless of how his last Melbourne Festival pans out, his place in Australian racing folklore is assured

Damien Oliver has one final Melbourne Cup ride lined up and French speedster Alenquer has the honour of being his final ride at the infamous Flemington contest. 
 
Oliver has enjoyed an incredible career at the highest level, triumphing at the Melbourne Cup three times, in addition to over 120 Group 1 winners and how fitting it would be if he could end his association with the race on the ultimate of highs in 2023.