Melbourne Cup 2014: Hero to heartbreak for Japanese star Admire Rakti There's tragic news from the Cup with two horses passing away, pre-race favourite Admire Rakti and fellow runner Araldo. Admire Rakti immediately after the finish of the Melbourne Cup. SECONDS before he saddled up for the most heartbreaking ride of his life, jockey Zac Purton warned Admire Rakti's rich Japanese owner that it wasn't going to be his day. No-one one may ever know for sure what caused the Melbourne Cup favourite to collapse and die just five minutes after finishing last in the Cup. But former Queenslander Purton appeared to be a worried man in a conversation with owner Riichi Kondo just before the race. "The track is hard, very hard for him,"" Purton told Kondo and connections, in a conversation overheard by The Courier-Mail. MOURNING AFTER: Deaths of two horses mar the Melbourne Cup CUP FASHIONS: Best and worst dressed at Flemington Kondo, a superstitious owner who instructed his entourage not to bet on Admire Rakti for fear of "using up too much luck," then had some private moments of reflection. He clasped his hands, bowed his hand and lapsed into quiet prayer. Kondo was also saying his prayers after the race which had taken a tragic turn with his horse dropping dead from either a heart attack or internal bleeding after being eased out of the race by Purton on the home turn. Shocked Flemington racegoers who went to see Cup winner Protectionist only two stalls away were in tears as the Japanese champion horse began to shake before collapsing and dying. Crowds five deep surrounded the bay holding Admire Rakti and stewards and race club officials placed a green tarpaulin over the horse's body. Crowds gathered outside Admire Rakti's stall. Picture: Tim Carrafa. Purton, triumphant aboard Admire Rakti in the Caulfield Cup last month, was convinced he could not be beaten yesterday but was fighting back tears after the race. "The owner (Kondo) is distraught and understandably so am I,"" Purton said. He was such a lovely horse and he gave me such a great thrill, it is a sad way to end things. I came here thinking that I would run a great race today. The way I was going, I didn't think they could beat me. Luckily, I started easing him down about 500m from home. If I had kept riding him hard, maybe he would have dropped on the track. "Once again, he has done his part, he has got me to the line and he got me home safe."" A member of the Japanese connection is visibly distressed after Admire Rakti's death. Picture: Jake Nowakowski. In more sad drama, stayer Araldo was returning to the mounting yard when a young boy waved a white flag in the horse's face. He jumped the steel rail, shattering a cannon bone and vets last night humanely euthanised the stayer. One of Araldo's owners queried why people waving flags were allowed in vicinity of horses on the biggest day in Australian racing with a crowd of 100,794. In an extraordinary race of tragedy and tears for many, Victorian Racing head vet Dr Brian Stewart said the circumstances of Admire Rakti's death were "very rare." "He wasn't euthanized, it was probably (a heart attack) or it could have been an internal haemorrhage,"" Stewart said. "Sometimes they will rupture a major blood vessel and bleed out, we won't know completely until the post mortem."" It is the second consecutive year in which a horse has died in the Melbourne Cup after French mare Varema was put down after snapping a cannon bone during the 2013 race. Originally published as It's a Rakti horror show