Whenigettoheaven looks for Ben’s Cat hat trick
Pair of turf sprint stakes top Saturday card
The Biz
June 19, 2026
A pair of $100,000 turf sprints restricted to Maryland- and Virginia-bred or -sired runners take center stage Saturday at Laurel Park, where the Ben’s Cat Stakes and Jameela Stakes highlight the track’s Summerfest program.
Winners become eligible for Maryland Million “Win and You’re In” berths, part of a broader effort to reward state-bred participation throughout the season.
Kenneth Ramsey’s Whenigettoheaven enters seeking his third consecutive victory in the Ben’s Cat and appears poised for another major effort.
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Trained by Ramsey’s grandson Nolan Ramsey, the 7-year-old son of Street Magician has become one of the Mid-Atlantic’s most reliable turf sprinters. Following last year’s Ben’s Cat triumph, he added a restricted handicap at Colonial Downs and later finished a narrow second in the Maryland Million Turf Sprint.
After an unproductive trip to Gulfstream Park in January, Whenigettoheaven returned to Laurel and rallied from a difficult outside post to finish third in the King T. Leatherbury Stakes.
“It really impressed me,” Ramsey said. “We were looking at the King Leatherbury as more of a prep than anything. The far outside post did us absolutely no favors, and we got a bit of traffic trouble. That was probably one of his better performances.”
The 7-year-old is the 3-2 morning-line favorite.
His chief rivals are well-known names.
Witty, winner of the 2023 Ben’s Cat, returns off a victory in an off-the-turf allowance race and brings nearly $950,000 in career earnings. The Elizabeth Merryman trainee has overcome significant adversity during his career, including a serious eye injury and an ankle issue that sidelined him for much of the second half of last year.
Another major player is Had to Have Him, who finished third in last year’s Ben’s Cat before closing 2025 with victories in both the Laurel Dash and Maryland Million Turf Sprint. Though winless in two starts this season, trainer John Salzman Jr. hopes a return to restricted company will spark a rebound.
Tidewater, runner-up in the 2024 Ben’s Cat, also returns for trainer Anthony “TJ” Aguirre Jr.
“He gives me everything he’s got in every race,” Aguirre said. “He’s the sweetest-natured horse I have.”
If the Ben’s Cat centers on established stars, the Jameela may belong to one of racing’s most inspiring stories.
Big Earn lost her left eye in a freak stall accident at Pimlico in 2023 when she became startled and struck her head through the ceiling of her stall. The injury sidelined her for more than a year and threatened her racing future.
Instead, the Helen Marshall homebred has flourished.
Transferred to trainer Michael Trombetta, Big Earn has developed into a turf sprint specialist, winning four of seven turf starts for Trombetta, including a restricted allowance score last month.
“She’s a racehorse,” Trombetta assistant Tana Aubrey said after that victory. “She gives it her all every time she runs.”
Big Earn is listed at 6-1 on the morning line.
Among those standing in her way is Mopo, trained by Phil Capuano for Mopo Racing. The daughter of Great Notion defeated Big Earn in a restricted allowance in May and exits a strong runner-up effort against open allowance company.
“Last time out, speed was very favorable, and we just couldn’t run down the horse on the front end,” Capuano said. “This just looks like the right spot.”
The morning-line favorite is Boujee Bubblez, who has won three of her last four starts for trainer Hugh McMahon, including an open allowance in her seasonal debut. McMahon credits a move to turf with unlocking the filly’s potential.
“Once on the turf, she began to engage with competition and understand what it means to be competitive,” McMahon said. “I see a bigger, stronger horse. She’s just developed physically.”
McMahon also sends Malibu Hooch, while Sporting Lady, Gift of Gab, and Gold Digging Broad round out the field.
Named for two Maryland-bred legends, Saturday’s stakes celebrate the region’s rich breeding tradition. Ben’s Cat earned more than $2.6 million and was a four-time Maryland-bred Horse of the Year, while Jameela became the first Maryland-bred millionaire and later produced Hall of Famer Gulch.
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