The 24-strong field features two runners from Britain in Sea King and Brian Ellison’s Onesmoothoperator, while the Willie Mullins-trained pair of Vauban and Absurde form the Irish challenge.
Eustace has a direct form reference with Onesmoothoperator as he finished a nose behind Sea King when the pair were sixth and seventh in the Ebor and the merit of Mullins’ runners is well known, with Vauban having finished second to Kyprios in the Irish St Leger last time out and Absurde a cosy Listed winner at Chester.
Absurde was seventh at Flemington last year when Vauban proved a bitter disappointment in 14th and neither has had an Australian prep run, unlike Geelong Cup winner Onesmoothoperator and Eustace’s Bendigo Cup hero Sea King.
“I might be a little biased but I think the European raiders look to have massive chances. Onesmoothoperator won well at Geelong and our guy was obviously ahead of him in the Ebor,” Eustace told Grovesnor Sport.
“In the last few years of the Cup, it’s been all about the quality horses, and I’ve got a huge amount of respect for the Mullins horses, Vauban and Absurde. Vauban has been mixing it with the champion stayer Kyprios and Absurde is an Ebor winner who ran a blinder in this race last year.
“But look, it is a handicap at the end of the day, and this year, with the way it’s cutting up, there could be a surprise winner, and I suppose we’re just hoping it’s us.”
Sea King will be ridden for the first time by Hollie Doyle at Flemington, with the five-year-old drawn in stall one in what is his first attempt at two miles.
Eustace said: “We’ve been drawn in stall one, which on paper wouldn’t be the first berth you’d pick. However, given he was a little keen in the Bendigo Cup, it might just suit us to jump from stall one and allow Hollie (Doyle) to get covered up nicely and early. I’d much rather be drawn low than high, so we’re happy.
“I’m actually confident about the two-mile trip. Obviously, I want him to relax a bit better than he did in the Bendigo Cup, as he was a little keen in the blinkers that day, but he certainly wasn’t stopping at the line. I am considering changing his headgear, though, and putting a pair of cheekpieces on for the Cup instead of the blinkers.
“It’s very hard to change a winning formula, but would he get away with being as keen as he was on Wednesday in the Cup? I’m not sure, and I think the cheekpieces could actually work even better for him.”
Sea King turns out six days after securing his place in the field at Bendigo and Eustace added: “The quick turnaround isn’t ideal, and it’s not the typical way you’d prep a horse for a big race. But it’s not the end of the world either, as Wednesday’s efforts might’ve just taken a bit of the freshness out of him so he can race more efficiently.”
Eustace took over the licence from his father James in 2021 and his brother David is also a trainer, forming a fruitful Australian partnership with Ciaron Maher which yielded Melbourne Cup glory with Gold Trip in 2022 before striking out on his own in Hong Kong this year.
His brother has been a source of advice for Eustace, who revealed his father has a little extra interest riding on the result.
He explained: “It’s great to have my parents down here for the race. Dad has always been a glass half-full kind of person and before Sea King had even won at Bendigo, he’d backed him at 100/1 to win the Melbourne Cup. He’s enjoying the ride and feeling very clever with himself at the moment.
“[I’ve had] plenty of opinions from David. He’s very much in favour of us keeping the blinkers on! But in all seriousness, it’s great to have someone like him to bounce ideas off, as he’s able to give us an outsider’s perspective and he knows what it takes to win the race.”
Sea King previously raced for Mark Prescott, winning five of his 18 starts before being bought by a group led by OTI Racing and joining Eustace ahead of his Australian adventure.
Eustace said: “Unsurprisingly Sir Mark has been a gent about it all. He wrote a letter to us where he very modestly played down his role in the horse’s career.
“Sir Mark’s been in the game a long time and knows that certain horses suit certain racing jurisdictions very well. Sea King was obviously a very good horse for him, and we’ve probably not done a whole lot different with him since he joined us.
“I can’t really take much credit for his immediate success anyway as Laura [Pike], who’s basically trained and ridden him since he’s been in quarantine, has done a huge job with him.”
Ex-Joseph O’Brien runner Buckaroo currently heads the Melbourne Cup betting for trainer Chris Waller, while former Aidan O’Brien runner Interpretation, Godolphin’s Zardozi and Land Legend, who raced in Britain for James Ferguson previously, head the home hopes.