Ethan Brown rides Point of Law to Melbourne Cup victory

Ethan Brown guided Point of Law to victory in the Melbourne Cup at Flemington on Tuesday, delivering Australia's most prestigious horse race for a runner previously owned by King Charles. According to BBC Sport's report, the horse had been among the early favourites before Brown brought him through from the middle of the field to win.

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The decisive move came in the closing few hundred metres. Royal Supremacy had established a lead of more than a dozen lengths, but Brown waited before asking Point of Law to advance on the home straight. In his post-race interview, the jockey described concentrating on patience and remaining calm while the leader was so far ahead.

Point of Law is trained by Ciaron Maher and had already won the Geelong Cup last month. The three-year-old was sold by the King earlier this year to investors including former Australian rules football player Chris Judd and his wife Bec. The purchase price was not disclosed. BBC Sport reported that Maher had a record seven runners in this year's Melbourne Cup.

For Brown, who grew up in Alice Springs, the result followed a career interruption caused by a serious race fall in 2023. He said that accident had nearly cost him his life and kept him out of racing for six months. Reflecting on Tuesday's success, Brown credited the support he had received during his career and expressed confidence in Point of Law's future under Maher.

The Melbourne Cup has been staged since 1861. This year's race carried prize money of A$10.2 million, making it Australia's third-richest race, according to the BBC. Tens of thousands attended Flemington in sunny conditions on Tuesday. Robbie Williams provided the pre-race entertainment with a 10-piece band, dancers and pyrotechnics, in a performance organisers described as the biggest staged at the venue before the Cup.

There was also a race-day withdrawal after Asterix received penetrene, a treatment for inflammation and muscle soreness. The BBC reported, citing the Age, that stewards considered the application an error but a serious breach of the ban on race-day treatments. Trainer Chris Waller was reportedly fined A$50,000. Outside the course, opponents of horse racing gathered for protests organised around the Nup to the Cup movement.