Whenigettoheaven, a 6-year-old gelding trained by Nolan Ramsey, snapped a six-race losing streak to reclaim his crown in the state-restricted $100,000 Ben’s Cat Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday. Driving past 3-2 favorite Determined Kingdom in the final furlong, Whenigettoheaven became the first two-time winner of the race since it was renamed in 2016. He is the latest in a long line of local runners who have found the race restorative; Ben’s Cat, the late gelding and namesake of the stakes, won it six straight times between 2010 and 2015 when it was called the Mister Diz. “This race was always the plan with him,” Ramsey said. “Today, back at a track that he likes and a distance I think he really prefers, he showed up.” Whenigettoheaven may have been winless in six starts after winning last year’s Ben’s Cat, but Ramsey blamed the lack of success on tough luck and ambitious placement. Two of his defeats in handicaps last year were by less than a length, and the gelding made his 2025 debut in the $100,000 King T. Leatherbury and ran well in those deep waters to finish third. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. While his trainer believes the gelding prefers six furlongs on the turf, he has encountered those circumstances only twice in his 27-race career. Both were in the Ben’s Cat, and he is now 2 for 2 at the longer sprint distance on grass. When Whenigettoheaven first entered Ramsey’s barn in 2024, he instantly transitioned from a closer to a stalking type and has employed that style in every start since. On Saturday, he and jockey JG Torrealba settled into third behind early leader Tidewater, who completed the opening quarter-mile in 23.73 seconds. When the speedy outsider began to give in after a half-mile in 46.14 seconds, Determined Kingdom, the favored 6-year-old gelding trained by Mike Trombetta, got the first crack at him from second and drove past to lead by 1 1/2 lengths in the stretch. Whenigettoheaven and Torrealba were still two lengths back turning for home, but they quickly made up ground to pull alongside Determined Kingdom and Mychel Sanchez near the three-sixteenths pole. Both horses were stubborn near the wire, but Whenigettoheaven had the momentum and edged away to a 3/4-length victory. Had to Have Him, a 4-year-old gelding trained by John Salzman Jr., finished a half-length behind Determined Kingdom in third but never seriously challenged the top two. Whenigettoheaven finished in 1:09.57 and paid $10.00 to win. “I couldn’t ask for a better ride,” Ramsey said. “I thought [Torrealba] positioned him perfectly. He timed it well and responded when he was asked. Hats off to the rider. Great, great trip today.” Torrealba’s stakes victory Saturday marks a return to form after a difficult period last week, in which the rider was involved in a car accident and fell off a horse at Laurel in the span of four days. The 23-year-old rider walked away from both incidents without serious injury. Last year, Ramsey sent Whenigettoheaven to Colonial Downs after his Ben’s Cat victory, keeping him on a Maryland-bred, Virginia-certified circuit that culminated in the $100,000 Maryland Million Sprint at Laurel in October. The trainer confirmed that race as the long-term target again this year. The $125,000 Punch Line at Colonial on July 18 is one of several potential stops before then. Lifelovenlaughter wins Jameela Stakes The $100,000 Jameela Stakes was supposed to settle longstanding rivalries at Laurel Park on Saturday. Instead, a newcomer stole the show, as 5-year-old mare Lifelovenlaughter cut back to six furlongs for the first stakes victory of her career. The mare, trained by Mike Trombetta, had not raced at a sprint distance since her debut in August 2022 and had not run in stakes company since August 2023. Her trainer thought she could handle a new challenge after a sharp allowance victory at 1 1/16 miles last time out, but he wasn’t hoping for more than a finish in the money Saturday, “Honestly, we were just trying to get her some stakes placing,” Trombetta said. “For her to jump up and win was a bonus.” When Bosserati, the pacesetter and 9-5 favorite, began to fade after a half-mile in 46.27 seconds, the six-horse race suddenly became a wide-open stampede in the stretch. Lifelovenlaughter stuck a head in front at the top of the stretch, but stakes-winning sprinters Alla Breve and Hollywood Walk were not far behind. When Hollywood Walk, Trombetta’s more highly regarded runner in the field, flattened out in the final furlong, it seemed like Alla Breve would have a prime chance to earn her second Jameela victory after taking the race last year. The Michael Matz runner closed from sixth and came flying between horses in the stretch, but she couldn’t get any closer after moving into second. Lifelovenlaughter never gave in and kicked away from her more experienced sprinting rival, holding on to win by a length. She finished the six-furlong race in 1:10.01 and paid $14.60 to win. Cut From Class, a 31-1 longshot trained by Caitlin Keil, never threatened Alla Breve for second but managed to edge past Hollywood Walk for third. After grinding away in routes as an open-company allowance runner for the better part of a year, Lifelovenlaughter may be settling into a new discipline. Trombetta has a lot to figure out before he nails down her next start, as her stakes victory on Saturday opens things up considerably. “It opens up a few more doors for some other choices,” Trombetta said. “We’re not just locked into the two-turn races. If we find something that’s [six or seven furlongs], it just gives us a few more options.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.