Former O'Brien Award winner Betterhavemymoney won his four-year-old qualifying debut on Tuesday morning (June 20) at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Wtih Pointto Sweet Lou refusing to start for a second time, the starting gate took the other five horses one lap around the track before picking up speed and releasing the field for the final qualifier of the morning.
Driver James MacDonald left from the outside with Betterhavemymoney and cleared into the first turn. He led the field in single-file fashion through fractions of :28.1, :58.1 and 1:27.2 before Last Beach began to edge out of the pocket and chased after the leader down the stretch in a :26.1 final quarter sprint. Betterhavemymoney prevailed by three-quarters of a length over Last Beach in the fastest of six qualifiers on Tuesday morning, stopping the clock in 1:53.3. JK Miki Mantle finished 3-1/4 lengths behind in third.
Betterhavemymoney, who was winless through 10 races during a four-month campaign last year, had banked $335,474 and was named the Two-Year-Old Pacing Colt of the Year in 2021. A four-time winner, he kicked off his career with a pair of Ontario Sires Stakes Gold victories and swept the Battle of Waterloo elimination and final. Nick Gallucci trains the homebred Betterthancheddar-Whosluckierthanme gelding for Millar Farms.
To view Tuesday's qualifying results, click the following link: Tuesday Results (Qualifiers) - Woodbine Mohawk Park.
A replay of the video stream from Tuesday's qualifying session is available below.