Since childhood, Michelle Payne (Teresa Palmer) has an almost impossible dream: to win the Melbourne Cup, the toughest two-mile horse race of all. Raised among her ten brothers by her father, she left school at fifteen to dedicate herself to horse riding full time with her dream as her sole objective. Despite taking time to get the technique, Michelle manages to become a true rider, but a family tragedy and a fatal fall with her horse make all hope end. With the support of her father and brother Steve, she decides to try again, even against her doctors and the rest of her brothers.