Morisset-raised Jack Callaghan will wait until Monday morning's barrier draw before deciding which regional final winner he will drive in the state decider after a group 1 double on the weekend.
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Callaghan claimed his second Hunter Championship Final (2030m) in three years on Friday night at Newcastle Paceway when taking off early on Far Out Bro en route to a 17m win.
The Sydney-based reinsman then produced a similar front-running drive, wearing the same colours, on Saturday night to take out the Metropolitan Final (2300m) with Lets Get Rockin at Menangle for trainer Michael Doltoff.
Lets Get Rockin, the $2.80 favourite, had an early back and forth battle for the lead before gaining control to set up a 7.6m win.
Both victories were for owners the Xerri family, under the banner of Sloys Company, and came just days after the death of patriarch Tony Xerri. Callaghan now likely has the choice of drives in the state final, another $100,000 group 1 at Menangle, on Saturday night.
"They will be probably give me the pick, and I don't think there's a lot between them," Callaghan said on Sunday. "I'll just decide that after the barrier draw. There will be a few better ones from all the other finals as well, so I'm sure it will be a good race."
Far Out Bro's win gave Sawyers Gully horseman Adam Ruggari a first group 1 victory as a trainer.
The $2.50 favourite from a second-row draw was taken around the field and to the front by Callaghan once the field settled. He then led in 28.1-second middle quarters before sprinting clear in the back straight to open up a huge margin.
He cruised to an easy win ahead of the Geoff Dorn-trained pair of Sergei and Oleg in a mile rate of 1:55:7. It was a second Hunter final victory for Callaghan, who won the inaugural race in 2020 with Clayton Harmey-trained Kanye Crusader.
Ruggari claimed a group 1 win as a driver, with New York Fashion in 2009, but he said the victory on Friday night - six months in the planning - was extra special, especially given the passing of Xerri just two days earlier.
"It's a weird feeling because I've been super confident for six months going into the race," Ruggari said.
"I knew he had the locals' measure, pending no bad luck, and then the one from Queensland [Scotch En Ice] came down and I wasn't 100 per cent sure about it, but he's a really good horse and he showed it tonight.
"I was a little bit worried [when he took off in the back straight]. He did the same thing at Maitland [in the Inter City Pace Final] and got run down, but he got run down by a really good horse [Chevrons Art] that night and there's was nothing like that chasing him tonight.
"This one meant a lot, with Tony passing. It was special."
Ruggari was confident of another strong performance in the state final. Sergei also qualified. Oleg is first emergency.
"He still had the plugs in so there might have been something left," he said of Friday night's run. "I think he's got as good a chance as any with the right run."
It was the third edition of the Hunter Regional Championship. Geoff Harding's The Choreographer won in 2021.
Earlier on Friday, Ellalong trainer-driver Michael Formosa won the Hunter consolation with Ultimate Force ($2.30 favourite), which came from a sit behind the leader to edge out Itsallaboutjack by a neck. Ruggari-trained Mannho was third.
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