| 2006 Melbourne Cup | |
| Horse Race: | Melbourne Cup |
| Location: | Flemington Racecourse Melbourne, Australia |
| Date: | 7 November 2006 |
| Winning Horse: | Delta Blues |
| Winning Jockey: | Yasunari Iwata |
| Winning Trainer: | Katsuhiko Sumii |
| Surface: | Grass |
| Attendance: | 106,691[1] |
| Previous: | 2005 |
The 2006 Melbourne Cup was the 146th running of the Melbourne Cup, a prestigious Australian Thoroughbred horse race. The race, run over 3200m (10,500feet), was held on 7 November 2006 at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse.
The winner of the 2006 Melbourne Cup was Delta Blues, ridden by Yasunari Iwata, which won by a nose ahead of Pop Rock, with Maybe Better coming in third place.[2] [3]
Field and barriers for the Melbourne Cup at Flemington on Tuesday 7 November after final declarations:[4]
Victoria Derby winner Efficient pulled out of the Melbourne Cup lineup early on Tuesday morning with a knee injury, reducing the field to 23 runners. Efficient was aiming to become the first three-year-old since Skipton in 1941 to claim the Derby-Cup double. Efficient returned a year later and won the 2007 Melbourne Cup.
Tawqeet was inspected by veterinarians early Tuesday after concerns had been raised he may have injured his hoof after pulling the shoe on Monday afternoon.[5]
| Saddle cloth | Form | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Weight | Barrier | Placing | Time[6] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | x112 | Aidan O'Brien (Ire) | Kieren Fallon | 59 kg | 4 | 7th | |||
| 2 | 30x3 | Delta Blues | K Sumii (Jpn) | Yasunari Iwata | 56 kg | 10 | 1st | 3:21.47 | |
| 3 | 5800 | John Hawkes | Darren Beadman | 55.5 kg | 2 | 12th | |||
| 4 | 5511 | Tawqeet | David A. Hayes | Dwayne Dunn | 55.5 kg | 8 | 19th | ||
| 5 | 7424 | Geordieland | Jamie Osborne (GB) | Frankie Dettori | 54 kg | 9 | 18th | ||
| 6 | 4607 | Headturner | John Hawkes | Greg Childs | 54 kg | 18 | 13th | ||
| 7 | 3600 | Short Pause | D Hayes | N Callow | 53.5 kg | 16 | 14th | ||
| 8 | 8324 | Activation | Graeme Rogerson | Michael Rodd | 53 kg | 21 | 8th | ||
| 9 | 5160 | Land 'N Stars | J Poulton (GB) | J Egan | 53 kg | 6 | 5th | ||
| 10 | 4960 | Mahtoum | Kim Waugh | Corey Brown | 53 kg | 7 | 6th | ||
| 11 | 5056 | P Montgomerie | Darren Gauci | 53 kg | 14 | 20th | |||
| 12 | 11x7 | K Sumii (Jpn) | Damien Oliver | 53 kg | 11 | 2nd | 3:21.50 | ||
| 13 | 1501 | Graeme Rogerson | Glen Boss | 52.5 kg | 19 | 4th | 3:22.43 | ||
| 14 | 6948 | J Hawkes | Blake Shinn | 52 kg | 20 | 17th | |||
| 15 | 6400 | Ice Chariot | R Maund | J Byrne | 52 kg | 1 | 22nd | ||
| 16 | x924 | Kerry O'Reilly | Jim Gibbs (NZ) | Cameron Lammas | 52 kg | 5 | 11th | ||
| 17 | x220 | Zabeat (NZ) | Donna Logan (NZ) | Oliver Doleuze | 52 kg | 15 | 23rd | ||
| 18 | 0045 | Art Success | J Collins | A Pattillo | 51.5 kg | 12 | 16th | ||
| 19 | 7998 | Demerger | Danny O'Brien | Stephen Baster | 51 kg | 22 | 21st | ||
| 20 | 2323 | Glistening | Luca Cumani (GB) | Scott Seamer | 51 kg | 23 | 10th | ||
| 21 | 2151 | Richard Yuill (NZ) | Craig Williams | 51 kg | 13 | 9th | |||
| 22 | 0306 | Dolphin Jo | T and K O'Sullivan | A Spiteri | 50 kg | 17 | 15th | ||
| 23 | 5811 | Maybe Better | Brian Mayfield-Smith | Chris Munce | 50 kg | 3 | 3rd | 3:22.18 |