JOCKEY Craig Williams will have to wait until at least this afternoon before he knows if he can ride Dunaden in tomorrow's Melbourne Cup.

An application by Williams for a stay of proceedings arising from a careless riding suspension has been delayed in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal due to the unavailability of one of the tribunal members.

Williams rode Dunaden to victory in the Geelong Cup and connections are keen for him to retain the ride but have placed French rider Christophe Lemaire on standby.

Lemaire, who rode in Tokyo yesterday, is en-route to Melbourne and is expected to arrive later today.