Highly fancied Irish pair Vauban and Absurde have returned for their shot at Melbourne Cup glory.
The forecast of a cooler Melbourne Cup Day than 12 months ago is expected to help the Willie Mullins-trained pair of Vauban and Absurde.
While Mullins altered the preparations of both stayers from the one employed last year, the weather forecast is also a little kinder this time around.
The Group 1 Melbourne Cup (3200m) at Flemington on Tuesday is expected to be run under clear skies and 25 degrees, not as harsh for the Irish pair as the 32 degrees they encountered last year when Absurde finished seventh and Vauban 14th.
"In Ireland we don't get many days of 30 degrees, we get maybe 26 or 27 degrees," Mullins said.
"When you go to France, you might get 30 and a lot of the trainers over there don't run their horses over 26 or 27 degrees, especially stayers.
"Those longer races take a lot out of a horse if they're not used to it, it's tough on them, so we're hoping the weather will be right this year."
This year Mullins decided to bring the pair to Melbourne later than 12 months ago.
Last year Absurde and Vauban did minimal mid-season racing and did more work in quarantine along with work at Flemington at 'Breakfast With The Best' a week before the Cup.
"This year I've thrown the kitchen sink at it, let them race at home and use the quarantine as sort of a spell rather than a training exercise," Mullins said.
"They've had an easier time here with a harder time at home and hopefully that works."
Mullins arrived in Melbourne on Saturday morning and headed to Werribee to inspect both horses.
He liked what he saw after both had a 'blow' and recovered quickly to show they were spot on for Tuesday's race.
"The horse's preparations for this year have been good," Mullins said.
"Vauban's form has been good all season and brings good depth of form into the race.
"Absurde has done nothing wrong and is a horse that is maturing all the time in his mind.
"He's a quirky character. We saw that last year, he went down past the gate and wouldn't come back, but that's him.
"Hopefully he has grown up a little bit. He's in good shape on the track at Werribee, but Vauban's form I think stands out, but I don't know how good Absurde is, he keeps improving."
Mullins said he has been reading about the Melbourne Cup from an early age.
His first trip to the Cup in 1993 was when Irish galloper Vintage Crop took home the coveted prize, and Mullins has been dreaming about the race ever since.
"I think it's the biggest flat race in the world that I can win with the type of horses that we buy, that's why it's a race that we would really love to win," Mullins said.
