The decision to line up in Tuesday’s $7.75 million Melbourne Cup has paid off for Ciaron Maher and David Eustace following Gold Trip’s win in Australia’s great race.

Gold Trip was huge carrying the 57.5kg top-weight to victory in the 2022 Lexus Melbourne Cup. Photo: Steve Hart.

The 21-1 shot set the grandstand alight in front of a packed house at Flemington, drawing clear down the middle of the straight to win just his second race start.

The European import hadn’t featured in the winner’s circle since taking out the Group 2 PR Greffulhe at Lyon two years ago, but he did bring some strong form into his fifth assignment of the spring.

The six-year-old kicked off his campaign running third in the Naturalism at Caulfield before running on well in the Turnbull Stakes out to 2000m at Flemington.

He took plenty of improvement into his next start in the Caulfield Cup finishing a narrow second to Durston – the previous Cup favourite before being scratched – while he was always worth forgiving on his run in the Cox Plate a fortnight ago after struggling on the heavy ground.

Barrier 14 tasked Mark Zahra with a difficult job against a strong field of 21 rivals, but his patience to settle midfield paid huge dividends once he found daylight at the top of the straight.

Emissary, trained by Michael Moroney, laid down a late threat and appeared to be the one going better with a furlong to spare, only to hit a flat spot and hold on for second.

“We were confident he’d get it, he didn’t get a shot last year, I suppose it was redemption or the horse more than anything,” co-trainer David Eustace told racing.com when asked on Gold Trip seeing out 3200m.

“He showed he was a top liner. We were very nervous over the last 200m when Emissary was coming, we thought it’d be a repeat of the Caulfield Cup. The horse kicked at the right time and thank god he did.”

Last start Bendigo Cup winner High Emocean – also trained by Maher and Eustace – flew home late for third in what was arguably the run of the race.

“We set a plan for her and we knew one of those races, being the Bendigo Cup, would be a little bit wet,” Ciaron Maher said afterward.

“She ended up winning and sneaking her way in. Fantastic result.”

Maher and Eustace are renowned for making winning decisions with their stayers, but Tuesday’s win was as much about the trainers as it was Mark Zahra – who won his first Melbourne Cup.

“Early I thought was a little too far back and I didn’t want to push early because I thought he might die late,” Zahra told Racing.com.

“I was just in a three-wide lane that kept improving, a few came around and me I was following Young Werther. Got to the top of the straight and thought its time go now, and he just let rip when I asked him”

Short-priced $4.00 favourite Deauville Legend failed to see out the trip and only managed fourth, while Montefilia also finished towards the tail, struggling over 3200m for the first time.

Realm of Flowers was the best-backed runner in this year’s field and was far from disgraced getting up late for fifth.

The complete 2022 Melbourne Cup finishing order can be viewed here.