The 2023 Melbourne Cup jumps at 3 pm on Tuesday November 7 at Flemington Racecourse, and early signs are for warm, sunny weather in the high twenties.

NOTE: THIS STORY WAS PUBLISHED ON NOVEMBER 1. FOR OUR NOVEMBER 6 LATEST UPDATE, CLICK HERE

The maximum temperature should reach pretty close to 30°C and it may even be a little humid with the slight chance of an afternoon thunderstorm. But if any rain arrives, it should be well after the main event. 

Image: Melbourne Cup Carnival ambassador Demi Brereton demonstrates the often-overlooked art of not spilling your drink on Cup Day. Source: AAP Image/James Ross.

Weather conditions have fluctuated wildly from year to year on Melbourne Cup Day over the course of history, and especially in recent years.

• The 2020 and 2021 Cups were both run in fascinator-friendly 30-degree weather
• The 2002 Melbourne Cup was a miserable affair, with local horse Gold Trip taking the prize in weather which was definitely not golden. Indeed it was showery with a maximum of just 13.3°C, while it was 13.2°C as the Cup was run.
• For those who love stats, the hottest Melbourne Cup Day was 35.1°C in 1902.
• Melbourne's hottest November day on record was 40.9°C in 1894 while its coldest was 11°C in 1913.

As you can see, Melbourne's weather gods will deliver pretty much whatever type of weather they want, even just a few weeks out from summer.

Fortunately, this year it appears they will be in a good mood on Melbourne Cup Day, so remember the sunscreen.

As for the winner of the race, we'll leave it to you to decide whether any local horse beat the French favourite Vauban. Predicting the weather is challenging at times but it's a lot more scientific than picking winners at the track!