Mark Kavanagh’s Caulfield Cup hoodoo has continued after short-priced favourite December Draw ($3-$3.30 fav) finished last in this afternoon’s Group One feature.

Jockey Michael Rodd was at a loss to explain the poor performance other than to note that the horse was galloped on from behind.

December Draw“It’s a bit of a hollow feeling to see him run like that, something has to be wrong and the vets are going to go over him,” Rodd said before adding, “I just hope he is OK.”

“We had a lovely run, the pace was nice and solid for us and he travelled really sweetly. I was happy where I was.

“Coming around the half mile I was able to come out just next to Precedence and I bided my time there and waited for another horse to take off.

“Hawk Island then came around me and I moved it away but there was nothing there.

“It’s not like him. Normally he would gallop on the horse’s heels in front of you, that’s how keen he normally is but he just didn’t do that.

“He went back through the field and I gave him a couple of backhanders to see if he was bludging but he was completely gone and I eased up on him over the final 200 metres because I didn’t want to bash him.

“He just felt like he didn’t put in.

"He travelled sweetly but when it was time to go he felt like he didn’t want to do it. We know that’s not him because normally he wants to race.

“He did get galloped on from behind, Mark noticed that when he came back but for him not to let down and try obviously something else is going on.”

A post race veterinary examination of December Draw revealed no abnormal findings and a swab sample was taken for analysis.

December Draw's failure in today's Caulfield Cup comes on the back of Maldivian's late scratching at the barriers when a short-priced favourite in the 2007 Caulfield Cup.

Picture: Quentin Lang