Victoria Racing Club veterinary stewards inspected champion Universal Prince, the probable favorite for Tuesday's Melbourne Cup (Aus-G1), early Monday morning and said the colt's connections had until Tuesday morning to prove his fitness to take part in the 141st running of the prestigious race at Flemington Racecourse.

The four-year-old son of Scenic (Ire) pulled up sore after Saturday's Mackinnon Stakes (Aus-G1) and jockey Justin Sheehan said Universal Prince had felt so bad in his action that he almost pulled him up during the race.

Universal Prince apparently knocked a rear stifle as he left the starting gate and also bruised three hooves on the hard turf course at Flemington, which was labeled good at the start of the program but upgraded to fast later in the afternoon.

Although Universal Prince remains in the two-mile race, several bookmakers and Victoria's pari-mutuel suspended betting on last season's champion three-year-old colt.

Three runners share the overnight favoritism for the Melbourne Cup at odds ranging from 6-to-1 to 8-to-1. The group includes Caulfield Cup (Aus-G1) winner Ethereal, 1999 Caulfield Cup winner Sky Heights, and South Australian Derby (Aus-G1) winner Big Pat.

Overnight rain is forecast for Melbourne but is expected to clear out by mid-afternoon.—Delamere Usher