2019 West Virginia Derby Winner
February 27 - Mr. Money
To round out our day with 6 birthday horses, how about Mr. Money racing in Chester Thomas's Allied Racing? This is one of two stakes’ winners he raced by Goldencents, who was from the first foal crop of Into Mischief. Goldencents was a great sprinter taking down the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile twice in a row. Ironically, those early years (oh, how we forget) started the belief that Into Mischief only produced speed and not stamina, not classic distance. I kept saying, "He's by Harlan's Holiday, he can produce the distance." Well, nobody doubts that now with winners at every distance, including the Kentucky Derby winner, Authentic. Ok >> Harlan's Holiday >> Into Mischief >> Goldencents >> Mr. Money . . . got that? Pedigree 101
Mr. Money was a hot running three year old of 2019 who put together one of the best summer streaks in racing. He was foaled in 2016 and trained by W. Bret Calhoun for Allied Racing Stable. His sire was Goldencents, the two time Breeders Cup Dirt Mile winner, and his dam was Plenty O'Toole, a daughter of Tiznow. He carried both speed and stamina in his pedigree and showed both at the highest level.
Mr. Money ran on the 2019 Triple Crown trail but did not crack the top tier of three year olds early in the year. He finished 14th in the Kentucky Derby behind Country House and got his career back on track when his connections turned him toward the major three year old races outside the classics.
The summer of 2019 belonged to Mr. Money. He started his big run with a win in the 2019 Pat Day Mile at Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby day. He followed that up with a win in the Matt Winn Stakes in June, then took the Indiana Derby at Indiana Grand by 3 lengths in spite of a loose horse on the track in mid race. He capped his summer with a powerful win in the 2019 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park, beating quality competition on the way to four straight Grade 3 wins. Few three year olds have ever put together a streak like it in such a short time.
He came back as a four year old in 2020 and added another Grade 3 win in the Ack Ack Handicap at Churchill Downs before being retired. Mr. Money ended his career with 6 wins from 14 starts and earnings of over 1.6 million dollars. He went to stud at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky, where he became a popular regional sire. Mr. Money is remembered as the horse who made the summer of 2019 one of the most exciting on the three year old circuit, a tough campaigner who kept finding the winner's circle every few weeks for Bret Calhoun and Allied Racing.
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