IT'S A CUP DOUBLE FOR CAVALRY MAN

By Graham Potter | Friday, October 9, 2026

The Lindsay Gough trained Cavalry Man made it back to back Cup wins when he took out the Port Macquarie Cup today landing the Toowoomba Cup two weeks ago.

This latest win came with the bonus that now has the talented grey eligible for a place in the Big Dance line-up, a $3 million race which will be held in Sydney on Melbourne Cup day.

The was a delay before the Gough camp could celebrate though after Braith Nock, the rider of the fifth placed Don Diago De Vega, fired in a protest against both Cavalry Man and the second placed runner Bear On The Loose.

Don Diago De Vega finished close-up behind Cavalry Man as only 0.78 lengths separated the first five runners across the line.

The double protest was dismissed.

There was certainly a fair amount of buffeting in very tight galloping room between these three horses over the final 100m, but the run of interference arguably started before that when Nock made an aggressive outward move on Don Diago De Vega at the 200m mark, forcing King Jerry to shift out sharply and make contact with Cavalry Man and carry the Gough trained runner out wider in the track.

The race only became even more competitive after that with Don Diago De Vega cramped between Bear On The Loose and Cavalry Man.

As stated in the official steward’s report … ‘it was established that Don Diego De Vega was hampered (over the final 100m) when crowded as a consequence of a shift from Bear On The Loose which caused Cavalry Man to be turned in across the running of Don Diego De Vega near the 25m due to contact on its hindquarter.’

The steward’s concluded that they … ‘could not be comfortably satisfied that the gelding (Diago De Vega) would have finished in advance of Bear On The Loose had the interference not occurred. Accordingly, Stewards dismissed both protests and declared correct weight on the judge's numbers.’

So, while Braith Nock was aggrieved, the fact that Cavalry Man was actually hampered twice at vital stages of the running … and still won … underlines the merit of his win.

As those two Cup winning results show, Cavalry Man, six-year-old son of So You Think has impressive ability, but it is his commitment to the cause, wrapped up in pure toughness and determination which brings that added layer to his armoury which helps him remain so competitive when placed under pressure, as he was in both of these recent Cup wins.

At Toowoomba he was out in the breeze, three-wide the whole way yet was able to dig deep to carve out a win by a neat length margin. At Port Macquarie, the bump at the 200m and the busy finish in which so much was happening around him … and to him … could have brought him undone, but there was never any give in him as he powered on to secure the desired result.

Apprentice Jace McMurray, who guided Cavalry Man’s fortunes from the saddle in both the Toowoomba Cup and the Port Macquarie Cup, also deserves his share of praise.

Over the two wins, McMurray was faced a number of challenges in the running and he coped with them all in a very impressive, competent and professional manner.

You can see why he won the Brisbane Apprentice Jockey Premiership last season.

Also from the steward’s report:

‘L. Beuzelin pleaded guilty to a charge of careless riding under AR131(a) for permitting Bear On The Loose to shift out under pressure from the 100m, resulting in Don Diego De Vega being continually hampered when crowded onto Cavalry Man, before bumping that runner near the 25m and being further tightened and becoming unbalanced. L. Beuzelin's licence to ride in races was suspended for a period to commence on Sunday 18 October 2026 and to expire on Saturday 24 October 2026, on which day he may ride.’

(*The margin between Bear On The Loose and Don Diego De Vega was 0.40 lengths)

‘Approaching the 200m (king Jerry) was hampered when forced out by Don Diego De Vega (App B. Nock) which shifted around the heels of Bear On the Loose to obtain clear running. App Nock was reprimanded for the abrupt nature of the shift.’