Stampede on offer for sprinters

RACING: A new series from Racing Queensland to coincide with the Country Cups Challenge is set to feature throughout the spring and early summer.

The $50,000 Country Stampede Final (1110m) will be the culmination of 16 heats held in country venues, with the feature to be held on December 5 at Eagle Farm in line with the Group 3 George Moore Stakes.

Qualifiers get under way at Taroom, Longreach, Ewan and Mount Isa on September 26, with Clifton set to race on October 24, Charleville on November 3 and Roma on November 21.

Both the Stampede and $105,000 Country Cups Challenge (1600m) will be restricted to horses with no metropolitan wins in the past two years and have started in at least one of the qualifiers.

# PUNTERS found it tough to open the card at Allman Park yesterday, with Dydee’s Girl ($91) causing a boilover in the Maiden Handicap (2000m).

Trained by Springsure’s Vic Heading, who succeeded with Petite Elle at Clifford Park on Saturday night, Dydee’s Girl broke through to break her maiden at her 39th career start.

The mother-son training duo of Kylie and Corey Geran partnered with husband and father Gary to see Stazzana ($5.50) get off the mark in the Maiden Handicap (1200m).

Gary launched the fiveyear-old approaching the bend, before racing away to score at start 19.

Battle Through ($2.80 fav) made his first run for Toowoomba trainer Jake Capewell a winning one, scoring in the QTIS Three-Years-Old Benchmark 60 Handicap (800m).

The gelding made it two wins from as many starts in his resumption from a spell. Allman Park results appear on page 35.