Finter has eyes for another Country Cups Challenge Final

By Glenn Davis

Mount Isa trainer Damien Finter knows what it takes to win a Country Cups Challenge Final in Brisbane and is hopeful of adding his name to the honour roll for the second time in December.

Finter is best known for his feats with former bush champion Deadly Choices who won the Country Cup Challenge Final at Doomben in 2019.

Deadly Choices was one of the best horses ever to race in regional Queensland and went down narrowly in a Battle Of The Bush Final at Eagle Farm in 2019 before going on to claim a Cleveland Bay Handicap in Townsville the following year. 

Finter, who works full-time as a contractor in the Mount Isa mines, has only three horses in work and all will line-up at the Cloncurry meeting on Friday.

Former Toowoomba galloper Factory Warrior represents the stable in the Cloncurry Cup which is also a qualifying heat for the $200,000 Country Cups Challenge Final over 1600 metres at Doomben on December 2.

Stable mate Rebel Salute was also nominated for the Country Cups Challenge qualifier but Finter is keeping his fire-power separate by starting him in the Country Stampede Qualifier over 1000 metres.

Finter praised Racing Queensland’s initiative to develop both bush series' a few years back.

“It’s been a great initiative to run these races in the bush for the big prize money that’s available in Brisbane,” Finter said.

“The biggest problem for us out this way is trying to find suitable races once they qualify.”

Finter has never had a runner in the Country Stampede Final which is held in Brisbane on the same day as the Country Cups Challenge Final.

Factory Warrior and Rebel Salute have adapted well to dirt and sand racing in the bush.

Factory Warrior will be ridden by Dan Ballard on Friday at Cloncurry. 

After being moved on from Toowoomba trainer Mark Currie, Factory Warrior has won three of his seven starts for Finter.

He completed a hat-trick of wins at Richmond in early August and was second at Mount Isa over 1450 metres before making the long haul for the Birdsville Cup in which he beat only two home on September 2.

“It’s not ideal not having raced for six weeks but he wasn’t 100 per cent when he was due to run at Mount Isa three weeks ago,” Finter said.

“He had some slight filling in one leg but he’s fully recovered now and he should be hard to beat.”

Finter also is confident Rebel Salute can be in the finish in the Country Stampede Qualifier after a first-up win on his home track last month.

“He’s going good but his best distance is probably 1300 metres,” he said.

“He’s already won a qualifying race for the Stampede but he still needs to run in five non-TAB country races to fully qualify.”