2009 winner Shocking has drifted in betting for the Melbourne Cup and October's Caulfield Cup after being slugged an extra 6kg when Cup weights were released on Wednesday.
Lloyd Williams pair Alandi and Efficient may head the weights with 58kg each for both the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups, but it is the Mark Kavanagh-trained Shocking's lift to 57kg that is sure to be the major talking point.
While Shocking will be aiming to become just the fifth horse in 150 Melbourne Cups - behind Archer (1861-2), Rain Lover (1968-9), Think Big (1974-5) and Makybe Diva (2003-4-5) - to go back to back, Racing Victoria Chief Handicapper Greg Carpenter says the increase is justified.
"The 6kg increase given to Shocking includes the weight-for-age component of 1.5kg providing, in effect, a net penalty of 4.5kg," Carpenter said.
"It acknowledges his win in the Melbourne Cup and the Group 3 Lexus Stakes (Hotham Handicap, 2500m) since weights were released in September 2009."
"It is the same weight (57kg) allocated to 2008 Melbourne Cup winner Viewed last year, a weight he carried to victory in the Caulfield Cup."
Betting agencies aren't so sure that Shocking can cart such a big weight to another victory, with Betstar's Michael Eskanker immediately winding him out from $26 to $34 for the Caulfield Cup and from $13 to $15 for the Melbourne Cup.
"Greg Carpenter certainly hasn't missed him," Eskander said.
"Given they're all saying this year's race is going to have plenty of depth, a 6kg rise is a lot in anyone's language."
"Overall, today's release of the weights had little impact on our existing market but Shocking has lost his spot as equal favourite with So You Think."
The other significant move in Eskander's Melbourne Cup market was to slash the Dermot Weld-trained Rite of Passage's odds from $34 back to $26 after he was given 57kg.
"I'm also very wary of Dermot Weld's horse, Rite of Passage," Eskander added of the best hope for the Irish trainer who has already taken the Cup twice previously with Vintage Crop (1993) and Media Puzzle (2002).
"He is a very good horse, having won seven of his 10 starts and I know Dermot is very keen to have a big crack at the 150th Cup."
"With 57kgs, I think they've virtually given him an invitation to run as he's never carried so little weight in his career so we've wound him in to $26."
Having already won the Melbourne Cup three times previously, including with Efficient in 2007, Williams will be hoping to add a fourth in the 150th running of the Cup with both Efficient and 2009's dominant European stayer Alandi highly rated.
"Efficient is the best-performed stayer amongst the Australian entries and Alandi was the dominant stayer in Europe last season," Carpenter said.
"Each has earned their place at the head of the 2010 Cup weights."
Looking to become the first horse in Cup history to win the race three years apart having not contested the two in between, Efficient has not raced since taking out the Group 1 Turnbull Stakes (2000m) last October at Flemington.
Powerful racing stable Godolphin also has several entries at the top end of the list with last year's English St Leger winner Mastery and stable mate Cavalryman slugged 57.5kg each and Campanologist, fresh from successive Group 1 wins over 2400m in Germany, given 56kg.