Trainer Gary Clarke may not start Finke in Darwin Cup

DARWIN trainer Gary Clarke is happy to wait until the weekend to decide if Finke will take his place in the $200,000 Carlton Mid Darwin Cup (2000m) at Fannie Bay on August 1

Finke, ridden by jockey Brendon Davis, cruises to victory in the Darwin Guineas. PICTURE: Elise Derwin

DARWIN trainer Gary Clarke is happy to wait until the weekend to decide if Finke will take his place in the $200,000 Carlton Mid Darwin Cup (2000m) at Fannie Bay on August 1.

After taking out the Hot 100 Darwin Guineas (1600m) on July 2 and the Ladbrokes NT Derby (2000m) last weekend, the three-year-old gelding is in line to win the Darwin Cup Carnival’s Triple Crown.

Worth a cool $100,000 to the winning connections courtesy of Ladbrokes, Finke, a $4 favourite to win the 60th edition of the Cup, could become just the third horse to win the Triple Crown if he salutes on the first Monday in August.

If Finke should start in the Cup and win, he will follow in the footsteps of Brinney (1989) and Ventilago (1996).

“Finke had a tough run in the Derby, and although he seems to be picking up since Saturday I’d like to wait until the weekend before deciding if the will start in the Cup,” Clarke said. “I’ve never been in this position before as far as winning the Triple Crown is concerned, but the horse’s welfare comes first.

“I’ve been training in Darwin for the past 12 years or so and I may never have another horse like Finke again, but I won’t be pushing him. If he gives every indication that he is back to his best by the weekend and he is feeling well within himself, then we’ll keep going to the Cup. We’ve got to get it right because you can only go to the well so often.”

The former jockey from Barcaldine in western Queensland arrived in the Top End in 1996, so to win the Triple Crown would make for a wonderful 20th anniversary.

Clarke knew that he potentially had a good horse at his disposal when he defeated the Kerry Petrick-trained Statue of Warriors in a race for three and four-year-olds at Fannie Bay over 1300m in February.

“A few weeks later Statue Of Warriors went on to record an impressive win in the St Patrick’s Day Cup before producing consistent form in Darwin and Alice Springs, so it was clear that Finke must have had some ability,” Clarke said.

Clarke brought Finke, who failed to run a place in its first four starts in South Australia for Adelaide trainer Kristi Evans, back to the Territory in January and since then the horse has yet to taste defeat.

Three wins in Darwin were followed by three wins in the Red Centre during the Alice Springs Cup Carnival, which included the NT Guineas (1600m) at Pioneer Park.

“Abu Dhabi ran second behind Finke in the Guineas and Derby, and I will be interested to see how he performs in the Metric Mile on Saturday,” Clarke said. “That may also have a bearing as to whether or not Finke will start in the Cup.’’

The Lloyd Kennewell-trained Abu Dhabi has to win the Metric Mile to qualify for the biggest race in the NT.

Clarke, who trained Lightinthenite to an emphatic Darwin Cup win last year, agrees that it’s an open Cup this year.

“Apart from carrying 63kg in the Cup, I’m not all that sure about Lightinthenite this year,” he said. “However, I have been impressed with the efforts of Whistle Stop and Montalto during the Carnival.”

Clarke also has his eye on the $135,000 bet365 Palmerston Sprint (1200m) on July 30 where stable star Handsome Tycoon is the one to beat.

“I’ve also got Captain Punch, who hasn’t done anything wrong, in the race, as well as Prince Harada and King’s Pardon,” Clarke said.