Joseph O’Brien has revealed his delight after Twilight Payment secured victory in the prestigious Lexus Melbourne Cup on Tuesday.
Jye McNeil’s mount managed to fend off the challenge of Tiger Moth, trained by O’Brien’s father Aidan, to secure the Group One contest at Flemington.
O’Brien was over the moon with the thrilling victory and feels jockey McNeil deserved great credit for how he managed the runner through to the finishing line ahead of runner-up Tiger Moth and Prince Of Arran in third.
“Jye gave the horse a fantastic ride,” O’Brien said. “Credit goes to the lads who have looked after Twilight Payment for the last month or so. They’ve done a fantastic job with the horses down there.
“This was our first full year with him, he came to us halfway through last year. Going through the summer, he ran a couple of huge races at the Curragh.
“I was worried today he might have got a bit of pressure on the lead, but the horse has an incredible heart and Jye gave him a fantastic ride and he has a huge will to win.”
