Brett Pelling has only been training Confederate – one of the top-rated sophomore pacing colts in North America – for a brief time but already he's learned enough to know how to deal with the son of Sweet Lou. "He likes to be happy," Pelling said about last year's Breeders Crown runner-up that made his racing debut in a qualifier on May 2 at Harrah's Philadelphia, finishing second behind the Crown champion Ammo. "I really didn't know what to expect of him," said Pelling of Confederate's qualifier. "I had only trained him in 2:05." The speed shifted radically in the morning trial at Harrah's Philadelphia and for a moment on the opening turn Confederate took some bad steps. "I wasn't concerned," said Pelling. "He's such a quick horse and was just shifting gears." Confederate's arrival into the Pelling stable, already deep in sophomore pacing talent, added a new dimension, and the trainer found himself in a position he rarely had to deal with. "He just didn't like the program my horses are on," said Pelling, who is more concerned with the strength of his horses than their speed. "He didn't like it that much and his heart rate ranged higher than my other horses." With time of the essence and no way to turn the clock back, Pelling was faced with a predicament that required either the horse or trainer change course. In this case it was the trainer. "We went back to the American way of training for him," said Pelling. "Had I had him for a longer time it would have been different maybe, but he needs to be happy, so we'll do it his way for now." Essentially that will mean more speed training for Confederate, and Pelling recognizes the benefits in this specific case, as he plots a strategy to debut Confederate and prepare him for the sport's biggest prizes. Pelling's eyes opened wide when he took Confederate to Harrah's for the qualifier. "He was just a different horse with the race bike on," said Pelling of the change he saw compared to training. Pacing in 1:51 2/5 in that qualifier, an effort that saw driver Tim Tetrick holding Confederate back in the stretch, was impressive, yet in some ways concerning to the conditioner. "That was a big drop going from 2:05," said Pelling. "That's why I wanted to give him some extra time before qualifying him again." It was Diamond Creek's Adam Bowden that decided to move Confederate to Pelling with the sophomore stakes season approaching, and the trainer is hoping that it will pay off for both as the season commences. "I think Confederate has a chance to be the first horse they've [Diamond Creek] bred and that could become a stallion," said Pelling in full understanding of what the expectations are. He recognizes just how fast a horse he has in the stable but at the same time knows that the actual proof for Confederate can only take place with money on the line. "I think the North America Cup is going to be interesting," said Pelling. "I wouldn't be surprised if there were four eliminations for the race this year." Such is the potential depth or lack of leadership in the sophomore division at this time of the year. Last year Confederate scored an impressive wire-to-wire victory in his Breeders Crown elimination at Woodbine Mohawk Park and then spotted the field 10 lengths in the opening quarter in the rich final, making up all but a half-length on the wire for a runner-up position to longshot Ammo. Pelling recognizes that races contested for 3-year-olds are likely to have a dramatically different dynamic and one that Confederate will need to adapt to in order to succeed. "You can't just take back and out-sprint horses," Pelling said. "They race all four quarters and a horse has to be able to do that every start." ► Sign up for our FREE DRF Harness Digest Newsletter While Confederate was away from the track this past Tuesday, Pelling revealed a few sophomores in the May 9 qualifiers at Harrah's Philadelphia, with a pair of stakes stars from last year winning. The half-sister to Pure Country, Charleston, who finished second to division winner Sylvia Hanover in both the Breeders Crown and She's A Great Lady last season, debuted with a 1:55 mile out-sprinting multiple stakes winner My Little Captain on the wire. "She was a very good filly last year but on the small side," Pelling said. The Downbytheseaside-sired lass has not grown much according to the trainer and was a cause for concern on how well she'll match up with bigger and stronger rivals this year. On the colt front, Combustion sprinted off in 27 flat for his final quarter, completing a 1:53 1/5 mile with something to spare. "I'm excited about him and looking forward to racing him this season," said Pelling of the Captaintreacherous-sired colt that finished third in the Breeders Crown and earned over $292K during his first year on the track. Perhaps a little off the radar but a talented sophomore nonetheless is Command, another son of Captaintreacherous that makes his stakes debut on Sunday (May 14) in a division of the Pennsylvania All-Stars at Pocono. "I'm very happy with the way he's come back this year," said Pelling, who raced Command in Kentucky much of last year, with the highlight a fourth-place finish to Confederate in the $400,000 championship at The Red Mile. Command has made two starts this year, with his last one on Friday (May 5) a 1:50 victory, using a 25 4/5 final quarter. In his first outing he was a strong second behind a horse Pelling has a ton of respect for – It's My Show. "I think Linda's [Toscano] horse It's My Show is one of the best 3-year-olds I've seen this year," said Pelling, who recognized the half-brother to 2019 Meadowlands Pace winner Best In Show is an eligible to the North America Cup but not the Meadowlands Pace. Still a few weeks away from qualifying are a pair of older pacers that have proven themselves at the top of the class for years. Test Of Faith and Allywag Hanover will likely qualify at Harrah's Philadelphia as they slowly make their way back towards stakes competition. "There isn't much to race them in, so I'm not rushing," said Pelling, who hopes to have his premier older pacers primed to tackle divisions that are radically different in 2023 than they were a year ago. For Test Of Faith the older pacing mares division appears quite deep with the arrival of last year's top sophomores Niki Hill and Treacherous Dragon. On the male front, Allywag Hanover will not have to deal with a now-retired world champion Bulldog Hanover. Perhaps somewhere under the radar for Pelling is Earthwindfire, the American Ideal-sired half-sister to Niki Hill. "She'll probably qualify with the other two [Test Of Faith and Allywag Hanover], said Pelling, who added that Earthwindfire is likely to be kept off the Grand Circuit, but that's more a function of dual eligibility. "She's got the New York Sire Stakes, and she's eligible to some of the New Jersey races," Pelling said of the options available without racing Grand Circuit company.