Hunting Horn Wins Gr.2 Moonee Valley Cup

The Coolmore navy blue colours were carried to victory in the $500,000 Group II MVRC Moonee Valley Gold Cup on Saturday by Hunting Horn (4h Camelot x Mora Bai, by Indian Ridge).

Trained by Aidan O’Brien and ridden by Ryan Moore, Hunting Horn finished hard to beat the favourite Mr Quickie by a length and a half with the Joseph O'Brien trained Downdraft (4h Camelot x Cinnamon Rose, by Trempolino) in third place. Hunting Horn took his overall record to three wins and seven placings from 22 starts.

Hunting Horn firmed from $51 to $18 for the Melbourne Cup on November 5 following his victory.

Hunting Horn was already in the Cup field at 20th with 55kg and is eligible for a weight penalty for Saturday's victory.

O'Brien's travelling foreman T J Comerford confirmed Hunting Horn was a straightforward fellow and should be well suited at Flemington, albeit the two mile trip is a query.

"You don't know until the day. It's a big step up in trip as well," he said.

"You have a lot of things going against you. A mile and a quarter (2000m) is probably his ideal trip but at the same time you don't know until you step them up how their stamina kicks in.

"Aidan is quietly confident that there's another good day in him. But he won today anyway and that's the main thing.

"It was a class ride by Ryan Moore."

Hunting Horn is by Epsom Derby winner Camelot, who is by the great Classic sire Montjeu and his dam is a half-sister to another Epsom Derby winner in renowned sire High Chaparral, so there is good cause for optimism that he may stay the additional trip.