ALL HAIL KING CIARON!

By Graham Potter | Tuesday, November 3, 2026

All hail King Ciaron!

Ciaron Maher has etched his name in Melbourne Cup racing history by becoming the first trainer to saddle the big race trifecta … and, on top of that, his stable provided five of the first six runners past the post, creating a statistic that is likely to remain unchallenged for many years to come.

That he achieved the win with Ethan Brown, who has survived in the game largely due to Maher’s positive influence when Brown was going through the worst of times, only added to the pleasure of the moment for almost everybody who witnessed Point Of Law’s demolition job as Brown steered the son of the mighty Frankel to a resounding 3.75 length victory.

Point Of Law had famously been sold to the Maher stable connections by King Charles, reported for a good portion of the $4.5 million that Point Of Law won in prize-money in the Cup, and, while he might have missed out on owning a Melbourne Cup winner, the monarch can boast that he has now bred a Melbourne Cup winner, and that fact again added to the rich fabric of the 2026 edition of the big race.

Ther has been much debate about the way the race unfolded … from the contradictory claims of a pacemaker (Royal Supremacy) to complaints of a slowly run race … but when a horse wins by such a decisive margin, nobody can cry ‘foul’.

“I train for a lot of different blokes and the first three across the line are owned by different clients, so I’m just a contractor doing my best,” Maher told Channel 9 post-race in typical understated fashion.

“I’m rapt. I’m absolutely thrilled. It is one of the biggest races in the world. To get one in the top three is a great thrill. To get three … I’m absolutely ecstatic and proud of the team.”

Maher put that last comment in perspective, in a manner which tells you a lot about the man as he gave due acknowledgement to the team around him.

“When you get to a certain size of stable … probably over twenty horses, and we have a helluva lot more than that … you have got to rely on a lot of other people. I’m proud of them.

“I don’t feel the pressure (on race-day),” continued Maher. “The pressure comes earlier when you try to put the puzzle together … the plans and programs for each individual horse.

“I was just rapt with Point Of Law (going into the race) … the way he had come on so much. I just thought he was different … and special.”

On Cup day, Point Of Law, who jumped as the still easy to back race favourite at $7, was certainly special.

Maher’s other runners who featured in the top six in his historic result on the stable’s day of glory were Zahraaan (who finished second at a starting price of $26), Juja Kimbo (who finished third at $14), Royal Supremacy (who finished fifth at $51) and Shockletz (who finished sixth at $10).

In all, Maher’s seven Melbourne Cup runners took home $6 830 000.

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