Sydney’s Melbourne Cup Day program at Royal Randwick is headlined by the second edition of the $3 million The Big Dance (1600m) where the Matthew Dunn-trained top-weight Cepheus is set to start favourite.

Cepheus is favourite to carry the top-weight to victory in the 2023 The Big Dance at Randwick on Sydney’s Melbourne Cup Day program. Photo: Steve Hart.

Looking to take some of the attention away from Victoria’s time-honoured Group 1 $8.41 million Lexus Melbourne Cup (3200m), which runs for the 163^rd time on Tuesday at 3:00pm (AEDT) as Flemington Race 7, is The Big Dance 2023 race for Country Cup winners in New South Wales.

Heading the capacity 20-horse The Big Dance field for this year’s race is Sea The Stars seven-year-old Cepheus who is the $4.60 favourite through Ladbrokes to cart the 62kg to victory.

Nash Rawiller has the ride on the in-form chestnut who jumps from barrier one chasing his third win on the trot.

He comes off back-to-back Rosehill victories in the Group 2 Shannon Stakes (1500m) and the $1.5 million The Alan Brown (1400m) with Rawiller aboard for both wins.

Saturday he is up to a mile and up in weight but remains the horse to beat according to the bookies.

“Cepheus went to Rosehill last Friday, and he looked really good when finishing second in a barrier trial,” Murwillumbah trainer Dunn told The Sydney Morning Herald.

“With his high rating, he’s going to have a big weight to contend with in the Big Dance, but Nash knows him well and we can hopefully draw a good gate to give him his chance.”

There are three other last start winners in this year’s The Big Dance field including the airborne $6.50 second elect Iknowastar for Bjorn Baker.

The four-year-old Star Witness gelding is out to extend his winning streak to five straight and is drawn to get a charmed run from barrier three with Tyler Schiller coming aboard.

Iknowastar looks well weighted with 53kg and is undefeated with a five-from-five mile record coming into Tuesday’s multi-million dollar showdown.

That weight will have him flying late after he carted 61kg to a 1.56 length win in race record time over 1550m at the Kensington track last time out on October 18.

Baker has a strangle-hold on The Big Dance field numbers-wise in 2023 saddling-up a total of four runners.

His other contenders are Hollywood Hero out in gate 19 with Jason Collett to ride, Highlights in gate five, and fellow 52kg lightweight Wategos who is a single-figure fancy at $9.50 tipped to improve on his eighth in the $1 million Five Diamonds Prelude at the track from a wide gate with more weight a fortnight ago.

The other runners coming off a confidence-boosting lead-up win meanwhile are the Team Hawkes-trained Superium ($14) and King Of The Castle ($12) for The Everest winning trainer Joseph Pride.

Chris Waller then saddles-up the last of the runners at single-figure The Big Dance odds with Wicklow ($9) in gate two with Tommy Berry on the winter’s Wagga Wagga Gold Cup winner.

The Big Dance 2023 is set to jump at 2:20pm (AEDT) as Randwick Race 5 on the 10-race Melbourne Cup Day card in Sydney on November 7.

2023 The Big Dance Field & Barriers  

Table Credit: Racing Australia.