For those who remember the 2009 Melbourne Cup, the name Shockletz might spark interest in this year’s edition, echoing the success of her sire, Shocking.
The Ciaron Maher-trained mare is a striking image of her father, Shocking, and races under the same distinctive Eales Racing colours.
The parallels are more than just cosmetic; the five-year-old mare will carry the identical 51kg weight that Shocking famously bore to victory. Adding to the narrative, she is coming off a win in the very same race that served as Shocking’s final stepping stone to Cup glory.
The ultimate prize, the Melbourne Cup, has been the dream for Laurence Eales, who also bred Shockletz from Zelt, since her birth on November 27, 2021, and Maher is thrilled to have guided her to the race.
“It was always on our radar if we could get her in,” Maher explained.
“She’s a horse we’ve been very, very patient with, and so has Laurence Eales, and she’s just developed and strengthened. I can only imagine how Laurence and his team of owners are feeling, winning it with the sire and then breeding one. They would be beside themselves just to be in the race and I think she’s got an extremely good chance.”
A win for Shockletz in Tuesday’s $10 million Flemington feature would place her sire, Shocking, onto an elite list of Melbourne Cup winners who have produced subsequent winners of the same race.
The last sire to achieve this distinction was Black Knight, whose sire Silver Knight won in 1984. The annals of the Melbourne Cup also list Grand Flaneur, Malua, and Comedy King as sires of Cup winners.
This Melbourne Cup will be Shockletz’s 21st career start. Her racing journey began in September 2024 with a second-place finish in a modest 1400m maiden at Ballarat.
Her subsequent outing saw her claim a 1500m fillies and mares maiden at Bendigo at $1.45, which subsequently earned her a place in the Group 2 Wakeful Stakes (2000m), though the step up proved too challenging.
Maher then recalibrated, allowing Shockletz to climb through the ranks. Across nine starts in three-year-old or benchmark company, she secured five victories, reigniting the team’s belief that their Melbourne Cup aspirations for her were within reach.
The groundwork for her Cup campaign was meticulously laid with three runs between May 2 and June 6, before the dedicated build-up to the first Tuesday in November commenced on the opening day of the racing season.
Following a sixth-place finish over 1620m at Flemington on August 1, she ran fourth in a swift 2000m handicap at Caulfield four weeks later. This was followed by a decisive victory in the race now known as The Archer, which carries a coveted Melbourne Cup ballot exemption.
In 2009, this 2500m Group 3 event was identified as The Lexus Stakes and was run on Derby Day, still offering the Melbourne Cup golden ticket that Shocking successfully claimed.
Maher has since been able to concentrate exclusively on the Melbourne Cup. Shockletz subsequently finished sixth in the Group 2 Herbert Power Stakes (2400m), before a narrow second in the Group 3 Tesio Stakes (2040m) carrying 58kg at Flemington on Cox Plate Day.
The champion trainer is thoroughly pleased with Shockletz’s preparation and draws comparisons to High Emocean, who secured third place in the 2022 Melbourne Cup, a race Maher had previously won with Gold Trip.
“The old saying is you’ve got to beat the handicapper, well, she gets in with no weight and she flew here last Saturday,” Maher commented.
“She reminds me of a horse that we had that ran very well called High Emocean. She ran third, had no weight, snuck into the field, and she just gives me that feel. She might even be a little bit better than her and with no weight they can go to a new level.”
The sole remaining uncertainty revolves around the rider from barrier 17. Harry Coffey, who has partnered Shockletz in all three of her starts this season, sustained a collarbone injury during a Derby Day fall, leaving his availability in doubt.
Check out the online bookmakers for the latest Melbourne Cup betting markets.
