Hunter Cup is next for Don Hugo

Champion harness racing driver, Luke McCarthy, knows the bar will keep rising for his newly crowned Inte Dominion hero, Don Hugo.

The four-year-old on Saturday night became the first pacer to complete the TAB Eureka/Inter Dominion double and gave McCarthy his first win in the sport’s most iconic race.

Now the pair will chase a feature race treble in the Group 1 Hunter Cup at Melton on February 1.

“I know it’ll be harder, much harder, because there was no Leap To Fame or Swayzee in this (Inter Dominion) race and they’ve been the benchmark for the past year or so,” McCarthy said.

“But my horse just keeps stepping up and getting better each campaign. He’s still only four and if he keeps improving, he can be very competitive with those superstars.

“You’d have to say on times (last night), he’s going to hold his own.”

Don Hugo obliterated the Menangle 2300m track record on Saturday night. His scorching 1min50.3sec mile rate for 2300m took 1.1sec off the previous mark.

“It’s by far the biggest challenge he’s had and he was up to it,” McCarthy said. “I thought Minstrel was always the horse to beat in the series. He’s such a seasoned stayer at the top level and he really came hard at me from the 700m,” McCarthy said.

“We were both full tilt on the home bend. He wouldn’t give in, but my guy kept finding for me when I asked. We put on a heck of a spectacle. It was a fantastic race to be part of.”

Minstrel’s driver Deni Roberts agreed.

“I sort of feel like I’ve won, just being part of such an amazing race. My horse was amazing. He gave everything. I thought I had Luke a few times, but Don Hugo had the answers,” she said.

Minstrel will return home to WA for a break ahead of the big $1.25mil Nullarbor and $350,000 Fremantle Cup double at Gloucester Park in April.

Don Hugo, who boasts 14 wins and almost $1.5 million, will get just a few quiet days before sharpening up for the Hunter Cup.

“It’s most likely I’ll give him a lead-up run here (Menangle) and just make a hit-and-run trip to Victoria,” McCarthy said. “He loves it so much at home, I’d rather prepare him from there.”

Leap To Fame, who missed his Inter Dominion title defence with a throat infection, is back in work and on target for a mid-January racing return and then the Hunter Cup.

The Menangle-trained Swayzee, winner of the past two NZ Cups and the Victoria Cup, will resume from a freshen-up in the Shirley Turnbull Memorial at Bathurst on Boxing Day.

The mighty stayer is chasing a new $1 million bonus for winning all five legs of the NSW Carnival of Cups. He’s won the first two at Parkes (September 20) and Young (November 8).

The third leg is at Tamworth on January 17, followed by Albury on February 14 and Penrith on March 15.

Meanwhile, Inter Dominion winner, The Locomotive, will also head to Victoria for the Group 1 Great Southern Star on Hunter Cup night at Melton.

“He cruised through this series and got better with each run. He’ll have a little freshen up, then head to Victoria,” trainer-driver Brad Hewitt said.

by Adam Hamilton, for Harness Racing Australia