Our man on the street says the word is it's all about Thomas Hobson

The race stops a nation on Tuesday, but the parade stops a city for a few hours on Monday.

There is something surreal about seeing Willie Mullins sitting on the back of an old vintage car and waving at the Melbourne crowd which, in some areas, was four or five people deep against the barriers.

Nobody was asking who he was either. They all knew. Only in the back bar of the Lord Bagenal is he more revered.

Mullins is more than just a trainer down here. He is the man who has embraced Australia's proudest sporting event more than anyone. Max Dynamite was cruelly denied in 2015 but it has not left a sour taste in his mouth and has merely heightened his appetite.

The whole camp, including the super shrewd David Casey, seem to think Max Dynamite travelled over better, looks better and has been working better than he did two years ago. That might be good enough. And if it isn't, Thomas Hobson might be. And how is Wicklow Brave 66-1? Bonkers. He probably won't win but it's bloody bonkers.

Not as bonkers as Olivier Peslier mind you. He will have his first ride in the Melbourne Cup on Tiberian and was at Werribee on Sunday morning for breakfast. You seldom get a giggle out of me before 8am, but he had me in stitches. The guy is good.

He has let the cat out of the bag and tells us he has a master plan to overcome stall 23, but only the whiskers get out the bag. He leaves us hanging. Nobody knows what the plan is. You wonder whether Peslier even knows himself or is just playing with us.

Thomas Hobson looks to go one better than his stablemate Max Dynamite in the Melbourne CupCredit: John Grossick Racing Photography

Hugo Palmer has arrived. Boy, he has a polished personality. Charming, confident and capable of getting from Del Mar to Werribee in a day – that's impressive. Wall Of Fire is moving impressively too. As is Marmelo, who Hughie Morrison has just told us is the best horse he's ever had.

Nick Williams, son of Lloyd, thinks Johannes Vermeer might be the best of their brigade but then changes his mind and opts for Almandin. If he doesn't know what chance have we got?

Last week was a funny, old one. It started with a hair-raising experience. I needed to sort my head out. Enough was enough. It was time to get a grip, or should I say a snip. I hopped into a cab and told the driver to take me to the nearest barber. It was creeping over my ears.

We arrived in South Yarra. Mirror in front of me. Girl with razor and scissors in hand behind me. It was pobably the wrong time to wonder how much she was going to charge. "It is $60, sir," she says. I wouldn't have jumped out quicker if it had been an electric chair.

Leaving the barber's with my tail, and the ends of my hair, between my legs, the receptionist calls me aside and whispers: “There is a place down at the end of the street which only charges $28.” Now there's a winning tip and a half.

The following morning, looking sensationally smart with my $28 haircut, I'm standing in the Flemington stands watching trackwork. Max Dynamite and Thomas Hobson are first out at 6am. Early has a whole new meaning down here.

You know what time James Cummins gets up at every morning? 3.03am. Every single morning. Owls sleep longer at night than the man in charge of Godolphin's Oz operation.

Cummins tells us all exactly how Hartnell will be ridden in the Cup, provided all goes to plan of course. Trainers are so open and honest down here. They keep nothing to themselves.

The Australian trainers and jockeys are well used to publicity and when a microphone or a camera comes their way, they perk up.

Yours truly is a bit like that. I made my Australian TV debut on After The Last and poor old racing.com presenter Shane Anderson had no idea that brevity was not my strongest subject. Smack bang in the middle of my Marmelo rant his eyes widened as he began to wonder whether any ad breaks would squeeze into the show.

"What wins, David? In a word," asks Anderson. I needed two. Of course I did. Thomas Hobson.

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