Melbourne Cup on the Radar for Parchment Party

When Parchment Party won the Aug. 6 Birdstone Stakes, a 1 3/4-mile race dirt race at Saratoga Race Course, a plan to tackle one of the most celebrated races in the world, Australia's Melbourne Cup (G1), was foremost on the minds of the colt's owners, Jim and Dana Bernhard of Pin Oak Stud. In the post-race quotes from the New York Racing Association's media department, Dana Bernhard said, "It's our plan - go to the Melbourne Cup, quarantine in England, then go on to Australia for quarantine, and see how he does." Two days after the Constitution colt's win in the listed Birdstone, the objective was still being pursued, according to the Bernhards' son, Ben, vice president of Pin Oak Stud. Parchment Party earned an automatic berth to the AU$10 million (US$6.5 million) Melbourne Cup, a turf race at Flemington Racecourse, with his 8 1/2-length victory in the slop in Saratoga's June 6 Belmont Gold Cup (G3), a 1 3/4-mile dirt race. If the Bill Mott-trained 4-year-old makes the trip down under, Parchment Party will be the first American-trained horse to compete in the storied race, which will be contested Nov. 4 for the 165th time. The 3,200-meter (about two-mile) Melbourne Cup is commonly referred to as the "Race That Stops a Nation." Parchment Party is 0-for-2 on the turf, but there is no doubt of his proclivity for marathon races. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We don't buy or breed horses with the intention of getting one that likes to run two miles," Ben Bernhard told BloodHorse Aug. 8. "But I think Parchment Party would like running two miles. So having that on his side and being qualified, we would like to go. I think after every race we've watched him, we've always said, 'You know, I think he might like a little more distance.' "If there was a grade 1 going two miles on the dirt in the U.S. at the same time (as the Melbourne Cup), then we'd have more of a decision to make, I think. But there aren't really a bunch of races like that." Ben Bernhard said Mott will be overseeing the management and particulars of Parchment Party's participation in the Melbourne Cup while Jo Robinson, a trainer at Pin Oak Stud in Versailles, Ky., will be the onsite person supervising the colt's two required quarantines and training in the lead-up to the race. The hoops are considerable for horses based outside of Australia to run in the Melbourne Cup. First, Parchment Party will need to undergo veterinary examinations later this summer in the United States before getting the green light to travel to Newmarket, England, where he will be quarantined for two weeks. During that time, he will be permitted to train. After that, the colt would travel to Melbourne for additional quarantine and more mandatory veterinary inspections. All international runners in the Melbourne Cup are required to undergo computed tomography scans to compete in the race. Last year, the Aidan O'Brien-trained Jan Brueghel was scratched from the Melbourne Cup in the days leading up to it after a CT scan revealed the 2024 St Leger Stakes (G1) winner was "at heightened risk of injury." In a change to this year's purse structure, the Melbourne Cup received a AU$1.3 million purse bump. The changes primarily benefit the connections of the runners who finish between 13th and last among what is typically a 24-horse field with an AU$100,000 payment. The Pin Oak Stud-owned World Beater, winner of the Aug. 2 Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes (G1T) for trainer Riley Mott, Bill's son, qualified for Australia's Cox Plate (G1) with his win in that turf race. Ben Bernhard, however, said it was unlikely the 3-year-old son of Oscar Performance would make the trip because of opportunities closer to home.