2YO champ has 1:54.1 qua

Donato Hanover posted his second straight 1:54-and-change qualifier Thursday morning at the Meadowlands, and trainer Steve Elliott told harnessracing.com shortly afterward that the defending Dan Patch champion is ready to make his pari-mutuel debut.

“So far we’re doing pretty good for no money, aren’t we?” answered Elliott with a laugh when asked about Donato Hanover’s readiness following his 1:54.1 qualifying win Thursday that followed a 1:54.3 effort May 24. “He was very well within himself both times. Ronnie (driver Ron Pierce) says there is plenty left in the tank.”

Elliott says he is not concerned with the two quick qualifiers taking any early toll on Donato Hanover, who won eight of his nine starts last year at two and earned $662,587 on his way to divisional honors.

“In this day and age, pacers qualify in 1:51 and trotters qualify in 1:54,” he said. “I’d rather be in my position than somebody else’s, let’s put it that way.”

In Thursday's qualifier Pierce sent his charge to the front and posted fractions of :28, :57, 1:26.1 before reaching the wire in 1:54.1, three-quarters of a length ahead of Xactly Hanover. As for Donato Hanover’s first “official” start, Elliott said, “I am going to give him next week off and then look for a race for him, and if we don’t find a race I’ll qualify him. But I’m going to stay at the Meadowlands. Hopefully they’ll write (a 3-year-old open) and we can go in there. Then the Historic toward the end of the month, the Dancer and then it’s on to the Hambo.”

With a victory in the Peter Haughton Memorial last year, Donato Hanover appears to be on target to make a bid at breaking the “jinx” and become the first Haughton winner to come back the following year to win the Hambletonian. Elliott said earlier that he was “going to try and break that jinx…I’d rather have to worry about breaking that jinx than have to worry about being the one who stops it.”

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