Saturday’s The Bart Cummings winner Avilius has received a 1.5kg penalty for the Melbourne Cup following his win.

Avilius was originally allocated 53kg in both Cups, and has since won the Group 3 Kingston Town Stakes (where he was not eligible for a penalty) and now The Bart Cummings.

The European import has now been assigned 54.5kg for both races, and sits in first position in the Melbourne Cup order of entry. He also moves from 39th position to 20th spot in the Caulfield Cup order of entry.

Carpenter said: “Avilius is unbeaten in his four runs in Australia and has now won the Kingston Town and Bart Cummings Stakes since the original handicaps were released, and the 1.5kg penalty acknowledges the progression of his form since he was allocated 53kg.

“His hard-fought win over Jaameh on Saturday was impressive given he carried topweight of 58.5kg, conceding 4.5kg to the placed horses.”

Avilius heads the Melbourne Cup odds at $9.00.