BERNIE Hewitt added another feature winning drive to his resume on Sunday when guiding Experia to victory in the 2021 edition of the Banjo Paterson Cup.
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The Orange Harness Racing Club's annual feature was moved to the Bathurst Paceway after rain on Friday and Saturday had left Towac Park's grass track sodden.
It was a small but quality field of five runners which lined up for the feature, with Hewitt given the drive on Jason Grimson's four-year-old gelding Experia ($4.60).
While it was just his second run of the year, Experia having placed ninth in the Group 2 Hondo Grattan Stakes eight days earlier, he had won his two previous starts at Bathurst.
He flew out from barrier one, stringing the field out behind him. A third quarter split of 26.8 seconds saw Experia turn for home with the lead, but his rivals were coming.
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Ellmers Image, driven by 2020 Banjo Paterson Cup winner Amanda Turnbull, had moved up on his outside after punching forward from the rear as the bell sounded.
Maximus Red, who had run at Menangle Park the previous evening, was guided into the sprint lane by Steve Turnbull.
But the end Experia held on to win by a head over Ellmers Image in a 1.54.4 mile rate. It was his seventh win in 18 starts for Grimson, while it handed Hewitt another feature win.
