IT has been 15 years since a Hewitt has managed to claim the Oberon Cup, but come Friday night at the Bathurst Paceway the family has two red hot shots at ending their wait.
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Both Georges Plains trainer-driver Bernie Hewitt and his son Doug will be in the gig for the annual feature, which this year will be run over 2,260 metres and carry $14,840 in stakes.
Bernie Hewitt has the job aboard Lets Katchmeifucan, the last start winner of the Hewitt Memorial in Goulburn, while Doug Hewitt will steer talented mare Royal Story. She already has five wins from nine starts this season.
Bernie Hewitt is a two-time winner of the Oberon Cup, saluting in 2003 with Veloce Cavallo before backing it up 12 months later aboard By The Left.
He has had runners since, most recently in 2016 when Kenny Dee Dee was ninth to Mouse In The House.
Friday night will mark Doug Hewitt’s first drive in the feature and while he knows marking his debut with a win will be tough, the prospect of doing so excites him.
“I’ve got a big job, but I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
“It’s fairly evenly spread with the field, there’s about 15-16 different ways the race can pan out, so I’m not sure how to approach it just yet, but we’ve both got nice horses that should be able to finish the race off no matter how it pans out.
“I reckon it will be an unreal race to watch, it’s one of those races where anything can happen.
“The thing that’s so attractive about the race is that it’s an open class, but it’s a random barrier draw, you could draw anywhere.”
Doug Hewitt feels that both members of his father’s team are good chances. Lets Katchmeifucan will be lining up for his sixth start since switching to the Georges Plains stable, while Royal Story resumes after a spell of just over a month.
The Always A Virgin x Leagueoferown mare won five of her last seven starts before that spell, including the Bankstown City Council Cup which was run over a similar distance to Friday’s assignment.
“Lets Katchmeifucan, we haven’t had him that long, only since the end of last year, but he’s a horse who is going ahead in leaps and bounds and his win last weekend was massive. He’ll be one of the ones to beat in this race along with many others,” he said.
“Royal Story, she’s been a champion for us. She’s had a bit of time off, had an embryo transplant, she’s just come back from that but she hasn’t missed a beat, her work and trials have been as strong as ever.
“She went out in red hot form, had a month off and if anything, it’s freshened her up and she’s come back ready to get back into it again.”
Royal Story will go from barrier three at 8.33pm, but with speed on his inside with favourite Jonah Jones drawing one, he’s not yet sure of his tactics.
“Sometimes drawing in close like that can actually be a punishment in the end because you don’t know how hard you’re going to have to burn to hold a spot, or if you sit down and let them do the early burn,” he said.
“If you do that, you’ve still got to get into the race somehow. I’ll guess I’ll see how it goes.”