The Melbourne Cup picture changed dramatically on Saturday with important riding moves and the one-time favourite ruled out for the rest of the spring.
Winter Melbourne Cup favourite Puissance De Lune was found to be lame in his near foreleg after his failure in the WS Cox Plate and will be spelled immediately.
Another Cup casualty is the Peter Moody-trained Sneak A Peek, who will be gelded and spelled after his disappointing Moonee Valley Cup performance as favourite.
The Darren Weir-trained Puissance De Lune's Cox Plate flop ended a mixed spring for the big grey that began so promisingly when he won first-up at Caulfield.
Glen Boss had been committed to riding Puissance de Lune in the Melbourne Cup for six months but after his withdrawal was announced late on Saturday he was snapped up to replace Damien Oliver as the rider of high class import Jet Away by David Hayes.
Jet Away's owners had requested that Hayes find a new jockey after they were disappointed with Oliver's ride on the horse in the Caulfield Cup where he finished a gallant fourth after he was taken to the front 800m from the finish,
Oliver defended the ride as he claimed Jet Away, having only his second start for the spring, was too fresh and over raced for the first half of the race.
Boss will ride Jet Away for the first time on Saturday at Flemington when he has his Cup lead-up in the Mackinnon Stakes over 2000m.
Oliver will not be distressed as he has taken the Cup ride on the Gai Waterhouse-trained Fiorente, last year's runner-up who is the firming Cup favourite after his excellent effort to finish third in Saturday's Cox Plate when ridden by Blake Shinn.
Shinn was filling in for the suspended Oliver, who ironically landed the Cup ride on Fiorente after his owners decided to replace Nash Rawiller following his defeat on the import in the Turnbull Stakes.
The Waterhouse stable also announced on Saturday that her Sydney-based stable jockey Tommy Berry has been rewarded with the Cup ride on Tres Bleu, the young French import who is still in quarantine at Werribee.
Tres Bleue, like Fiorente last year, will make his Australian debut in the Cup.
In Cup betting Fiorente firmed from $6.50 to $5.50 favouritism after his fine Cup trial in the Cox Plate.
Sportingbet Australia's Michaeal Sullivan said Fiorente's Cox Plate performance established him as the horse to give Waterhouse her first Cup win at Flemington on Tuesday week.
“Gai has said all along the Melbourne Cup is Fiorente's grand final and after his sensational run in the Cox Plate he looks right on track,” Sullivan said.
“He's been the best backed runner with us over the past three weeks and he now looks like he'll start a clear favourite on Cup day.”
Caulfield Cup second Dandino and the Luca Cumani-trained Mount Athos, fifth in the race last year, are the $10 equal second favourites with Sportingbet.
The Bart and James Cummings trained Precedence shortened from $501 to $71 following his impressive win in Saturday's Moonee Valley Cup.
The eight year old has run in the last three Melbourne Cups but needs a penalty to make it four in succession as he is well down the order of entry with 52kg.
