All is in readiness for Bart Cummings to attend the Melbourne Cup with the master trainer released from hospital on Sunday after a health scare.The thought of the 150th running of Australia's most famous race without its most successful trainer seems unthinkable, especially as many believe win number 13 is a certainty on Tuesday.Cummings was admitted to hospital last week with a recurrence of a respiratory condition and missed So You Think's devastating win in Saturday's Mackinnon Stakes which r

All is in readiness for Bart Cummings to attend the Melbourne Cup with the master trainer released from hospital on Sunday after a health scare.

The thought of the 150th running of Australia's most famous race without its most successful trainer seems unthinkable, especially as many believe win number 13 is a certainty on Tuesday.

Cummings was admitted to hospital last week with a recurrence of a respiratory condition and missed So You Think's devastating win in Saturday's Mackinnon Stakes which returned him to Cup favouritism over 2009 winner Shocking.

So You Think is unbeaten this spring, beginning his campaign with victory in the Group Two Memsie Stakes followed by Group One wins in the Underwood Stakes, Yalumba Stakes, Cox Plate and the Mackinnon.

Until Saturday, his jockey Steven Arnold was among those who expressed concerns over his ability to run out a strong 3200 metres.

"I was a little bit concerned and probably still am but today was a real positive, he relaxed so well," Arnold said after the Mackinnon.

He has drawn well in barrier three with Shocking to start from the outside gate.

Shocking's trainer Mark Kavanagh was philosophical about the barrier.

"He jumped from 21 last year and won so I think the barrier is irrelevant," Kavanagh said.

"There's a thousand-metre run to the first bend so there's time to find a spot."

Whether that spot translates into victory over So You Think remains to be seen with Shocking sixth in the Mackinnon, some 7-1/2 lengths behind the horse being hailed as Australia's champion.

Respected French trainer Alain de Royer Dupre has Americain in the race with punters warming to his charge after his win in the Geelong Cup.

de Royer Dupre saw So You Think for the first time on Saturday and said he was happy to take him on.

"He was very impressive but over the extra distance, we'll wait and see," he said.

The big danger for Americain could be a soft track, a surface he has not yet raced on.

While So You Think is aiming to win the Cup at just his 12th start, Maluckyday goes in at just his ninth.

Trained by John Hawkes and his sons Michael and Wayne, Maluckyday earned his spot in the field by winning the Lexus Stakes.

He carries Nick Moraitis' pink, grey and white colours worn to victory in 1997 by Might And Power.

Moraitis said there was no comparison between the two yet but he was keen to run him in the Cup.

"He's in winning form and why not," he said.

Gai Waterhouse is upbeat about her two runners, Caulfield Cup winner Descarado and AJC Australian Oaks winner Once Were Wild

Descarado ran second in the Mackinnon while Once Were Wild was third in the Lexus with both horses leading into the straight in their respective races.

"We're not here for the party, we're here to win," Waterhouse said.

Jim Cassidy, who partnered Maluckyday in the Lexus will honour his commitment to Once Were Wild while Nash Rawiller be aboard Descarado at 54kg, his lightest weight for some time.

Godolphin will have two runners - Campanologist and Holberg - with the latter getting the last spot in the field.

The Melbourne Cup is one of the few races on the world calendar to have eluded Sheikh Mohammed who, in addition to Godolphin, is the boss of Darley Australia which does not have a runner.

Hong Kong-based Australian Darren Beadman has won the Melbourne Cup on two occasions, in 1990 with Kingston Rule and six years later on Saintly, both trained by Cummings.

This time around Beadman will be doing his best for his adopted homeland as the pilot of Mr Medici for trainer Peter Ho.

Luca Cumani, who has embraced the Melbourne Cup over the past three years, has brought Manighar and 2008 runner-up Bauer from England for the race.

He is wary of So You Think but happy with his runners.

"I'm very happy with both of them," Cumani said.

"Manighar's run in the Caulfield Cup (fifth) was very good.

"He finished well, probably not as well as Shocking and we saw what So You Think did to Shocking yesterday so we've got a lot of ground to make up.

"But it's a horse race so we're in with a chance."

And what a horse race it is.