A STOP-START crack at three-straight wins with Cooter Cha Cha should come to an end at Kilmore on Sunday for Bendigo trainer Daryn Drust.
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The seven-year-old gelding has been scratched at least twice in the past two weeks, including from Wednesday's Hamilton Cup, since making it back-to-back wins at Hamilton on September 14.
Those scratchings came on top of the Hamilton Cup, which was won by the Mount Gambier-trained galloper Muntham Missile, being rescheduled from last Saturday to Wednesday due to last week's heavy rainfall.
Drust confirmed Cooter Cha Cha would have been 'a certain starter' had the Cup went ahead last weekend on a heavy 10.
The trainer will now take his chances of career-first three-straight wins - for both himself and Cooter Cha Cha - in a benchmark 64 over 2000m at Kilmore.
Drust said he and major owner Shelley Thompson had toyed with the idea of starting Cooter Cha Cha in this Saturday's $25,000 Avoca Cup (1860m), but agreed Kilmore was an easier option.
"It's been terribly frustrating, I was really gutted when Hamilton was abandoned (last Saturday), and gutted, even more when the track was starting to dry out as quickly as it did this week," he said.
"But we're glad in one way we didn't go back on Wednesday on the soft 6, our boy wouldn't have let down properly on it.
"He's never really produced on a 6, and if it had have been drier than a 6, I don't know how he would have gone.
"The colder and wetter the more he likes it, and we have rain coming.
"I have been watching the weather closely over the last few days while deciding which meeting we would head to, and I'm thinking Kilmore is definitely going to be a heavy track.
"That's definitely a factor. More importantly, it's a track that he has won on and he's never raced at Avoca or Hosham (Sunday)."
Cooter Cha Ca has raced twice at Kilmore, winning his maiden there in September 2017 on a soft 7 over 1800m.
He set up his tilt at three-straight wins with victories at Hamilton on September 14 and Wangaratta on August 22.
Cooter Cha Cha will be aiming to join the Josh Julius-trained Highclass Harry, the Bob Donat-trained Tatunka and the Neville Kennedy-trained Don't Make Me Wait as Bendigo-trained horses to have achieved three-straight wins in 2020.
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