The four-year-old gelding, part-owned by Canberra NRL stars Jarrod Croker and Sam Williams, became the first to go inside a two-minute mile rate over 2422m at Maitland, winning heat two on Saturday night in 1.59.8.

Hewitt’s uncle, Bernie Hewitt, took heat one with Royal Story (2.00.6) and KerryAnn Turner’s I Am Serengeti (2.02.7) won the third. All overcame interference in fierce battles for the lead. Mark Jones-trained mare Delightful Memphis was the other standout, overcoming a check and three-wide run to challenge Royal Story.

Our Triple Play, a C4, will draw outside the other contenders for the final.

“He seems good, but obviously it’s a long trip [to Maitland] and it was hot today,” Brad said. “He’s had five starts back so I’m hoping he’ll come through it better than Bern’s mare. She was first-up and it’s a big trip for her too. It's my only hope, because she’ll draw inside me.”

Clayton Harmey’s Jimmy The Editor and Apollo Thirteen and Mick Formosa’s Mondooley Heaven will carry Hunter hopes in the final.

Other qualifiers are Quick Income, Megs Monaro and The Times A Changing. Mark Of Integrity is the emergency.

The barrier draw will be held Wednesday night at The Windsor Castle Hotel. 

Brad Hewitt said he was “dead-set lucky to get through” the first-turn interference in his heat.

“I thought I was going to get tipped out, let alone just cop the interference,” he said.

“But once we got through that, he got to the front and he was always going to be hard to beat.”

Hewitt, who was second with I'm Jay Tee behind when Luke McCarthy’s All Eyes On Us won in 2015, will chase his first Inter City Pace title. Bernie Hewitt is also after a maiden victory in the group 3 event, now in it’s 55^th edition.

Bernie Hewitt and Ashlee Grives, who drove Delightful Memphis, said their finalists had come through unscathed from checks in the heats.

Maitland reinsman Guy Chapple (Derringer, heat two) was given a 14-day suspension for causing interference and was the only driver to cop time out of the heats.