William Buick knows how to find the right horse to compete in the Melbourne Cup, but he just didn’t get on it at the right time.

Buick raced Cross Counter the year after winning the Cup, while he most recently raced in 2022 on Without A Fight, before completing the Cup double last year.

“Obviously, Cross Counter, I think he only weighed 51kg when he won, so it was well below my weight range and the next year I rode him, but it didn’t probably wasn’t quite the same horse,” Buick said.

“I still remember him running in the top 10 and still having a good race.

“Without a fight, the day he ran, the heavens opened and the ground became soft. He won the next year.”

Buick will return to Melbourne for this year’s Melbourne Cup and has been booked to ride Irish raider Vauban from the Willie Mullins stable.

“It’s just a great race to be a part of, it’s a real privilege to get the call to go down and ride a horse like Vauban, a real chance and I believe in a horse that’s going to give me a great ride there -down,” Buick said.

“Obviously you need factors that work in your favor. If you get a good barrier, it can make your life a lot easier.

“He’s not a complicated horse but the little things always make the difference; it’s a difficult race, it’s always a tactical race, it’s a race where the very small and fine margins make a big difference. “

The internationally renowned rider has partnered with Vauban this year, guiding him to victory in the G2 Lonsdale Cup, while he was also in the saddle for his G2 Yorkshire Cup places and his final appearance in the G1 Irish St. Leger.

According to Buick, Vauban has what it takes to give Ireland a fifth victory in the race and the first for Mullins.

“I’ve never won the Melbourne Cup, but I’ve been in a few now,” he said.

“Being a three-kilometre race your horse needs endurance, which he has, but I still believe Melbourne Cup horses have a bit of pace.”

Buick referred to Cross Counter to describe the right kind of Cup horse, noting that he broke the track record by 2,400 meters at Goodwood before taking a bow at Flemington.

“I knew him very well and he had that pace and I think that’s what Vauban has as well. He’s got that pace; he’s got that acceleration which I think is vital in the Melbourne Cup.”

WATCH: Vauban’s last run

𝙏𝙃𝙀best stayer in training

𝑲𝒚𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒔 releases the Comer Group International Irish St. Leger for a second time at €600,000. @coolmorestud | @Ballydoyle | @curraghrace pic.twitter.com/33ShkicpuT

– Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 15, 2024

Melbourne has experienced wet weather at several meetings this spring, but Buick said Vauban was versatile in terms of handling track conditions.

“Like most horses, he would just prefer the terrain to be a good fast track, but barring extremes, I don’t think Willie and his team would worry too much about it,” Buick said.

Based primarily in Britain, Buick will fly to Melbourne after competing in the Breeders’ Cup meeting at Del Mar, meaning it will arrive in the United States the day before the Cup.

“This is the program I’ve done before, you take the night flight from Los Angeles and you sleep the whole way, so it’s become quite common in recent years and it’s quite feasible,” Buick said.

Sportsbet are offering Vauban at $9 in their market for this year’s Melbourne Cup.