Jockey Chris Munce made sure of the $2.8m prize by pushing his mount on after being initially passed by the second-placed Champagne one furlong out.

BBC Sydney Correspondent Michael Peschardt surveys Australian anxieties over foreign entrants

Jezabeel is the first horse to have won the Melbourne Cup and the Auckland Cup.

Persian Punch, ridden by Richard Quinn, gave the best performance by a horse from the UK by finishing third. He had led briefly on the turn for home but ran out of steam in the tight finish.

Row over foreign entries

Another English horse, Faithful Son, which had been the favourite, finished seventh.

The field included a total of five English horses and two from Singapore and their presence upset some local trainers.

The race is limited to 24 entries, so two Australian horses - who had qualified - were rejected by the Victorian Racing Club to make way for two English mounts.

Faithful Son: Seventh-placed favourite

The disappointed Australian trainers condemned the decision describing the situation as both pathetic and disgusting.

Last week the President of the Australian Trainers Association called for restrictions to overseas entries.

An English trainer countered by questioning if they did not stop cricket teams coming over, why should they stop international horses.

Each year 100,000 spectators flock to the Flemington track, and have done so since the race started in 1861.

It is virtually a public holiday in Australia as the country comes to a standstill to watch and bet on the biggest handicap race in the calendar.

The arrival in force by the English contingent has been helped by the lifting of a European Union ruling which restricted European horses to a stay of four weeks.