Woodbine Mohawk Park is ready to dish out more than $2.5 million in purses for Saturday’s Pepsi North America Cup card.

The $1 million Pepsi North America Cup is certainly the main event of Saturday’s 13-race card, but is complimented by several prominent stakes throughout the evening. Below is a look at some of the key storylines and contenders in Saturday’s stakes.

Race 10 - $420,000 Grade 1 Fan Hanover Stakes – Three-Year-Old Filly Pace

World champion Loua Dipa leads a deep field for the Fan Hanover. The Ron Burke trainee was one of three elimination winners, posting a near track record clocking of 1:48.3.

The elimination win was just the second start of the season for Loua Dipa, who had suffered a narrow loss in her season debut on May 1. It was also the return to the track (Mohawk) where she won two Grade 1 races at age two (Shes A Great Lady and Breeders Crown).

“Nothing surprises me about her,” said driver Ronnie Wrenn after Loua Dipa’s elimination win. “She grew up a little bit [from age two] and they changed her bridle. She feels like her old self and she was awesome.”

Be Perfect BG enters the Fan Hanover with a perfect nine-for-nine career record. The Tony Beaton trainee is the expected second-choice, which would be the first time in her career she wasn’t the favourite.

Already a winner of the New Jersey Sires Stakes this season, Be Perfect BG was making her first jump into Grand Circuit action by entering the Fan Hanover eliminations. She passed the test with flying colours, winning in a lifetime best 1:48.4.

“She did everything that was asked of her last year and in impressive fashion,” said Be Perfect BG’s driver Dexter Dunn after the elimination. “Just looking at her physically, she really bulked up this year and she’s come back better than ever. She was doing it pretty easy. We came to three-quarters and she started to pick the tempo up herself. She’s a real racehorse; she really wants to do it.”

Perfect Thought was an 11-1 upset winner of the other elimination. She is owned by TheStable Perfect Thought and will have a large rooting section with many members of the fractional ownership group TheStable.ca planning to be in attendance.

The post position draw wasn’t kind to last year’s O’Brien Award winner A Clean Deal, who drew post 10 after finishing third behind Loua Dipa.

Race 8 - $320,000 Grade 1 Roses Are Red Stakes – Mare Pace

The Roses Are Red for older pacing mares is highlighted by Chris Ryder’s award-winning one-two punch of Miki And Minnie and Twin B Joe Fresh.

The 2024 U.S Horse of the Year Twin B Joe Fresh is looking for her third straight win in the event, posting a 1:48 win in 2024 and a 1:48.4 victory last season. The six-year-old was making her season debut last Saturday and finished fourth in her elimination.

Twin B Joe Fresh is co-owned by driver Dexter Dunn, which in turn opened up the drive on the well-accomplished Miki And Minnie. The top pacing filly of the last two seasons partnered with Mohawk's top reinsman James MacDonald to win her elimination in 1:50.2.

Now a four-year-old, Miki And Minnie looks like a serious win contender in her first major race of the season again older rivals. A victory over older rivals isn’t new to the Ryder trainee, as she stepped up to defeat veterans in last year’s Fan Duel Mare Pace in November.

Per Engblom trainee Louies Girl N has been racking up the wins this season, making seven visits to the winner’s circle from nine starts. She captured her elimination in 1:49.4.

Race 7 – $215,000 Grade 2 Armbro Flight Stakes – Mare Trot

The Armbro Flight did not require eliminations and will have an overflow field of 11 clash on Saturday.

Dan Patch Award winner Warrawee Michelle will make her season debut for trainer/driver Ake Svanstedt. Her biggest win of last season’s award-winning campaign was a triumph in the Breeders Crown at Mohawk.

Svanstedt will be well represented, as he also sends out Nelsonbriteagle NO and last year’s Armbro Flight winner Dial Square S.

The top local hopeful is Stormont Beautiful for trainer Kevin Benn. The four-year-old showed well in Grand Circuit races last season in her O'Brien Award-winning campaign, finishing second in the Grade 1 Elegantimage and Grade 1 Breeders Crown. She’s winless in three starts this season, but has been rising with each start, including a hard-closing third in her most recent start, individually timed in 1:51.3.

Race 3 - $240,000 Grade 2 Goodtimes Stakes – Three-Year-Old Trot

The Svanstedt stable could get Saturday’s card off to a hot start if Magic Punk can pick up another stakes win in the Goodtimes.

Following up a win in the Grade 3 Dexter Cup at The Meadowlands on May 2, Magic Punk cruised to a 1:52.1 victory in his Goodtimes elimination for driver Yannick Gingras.

“Ake [Svanstedt] said he’d be a little aggressive in the post parade and race two-fingered,” said Gingras after the elimination win. “He had a lot of trot; push-button in the race. I used him a couple of times the way the race shook out, but he was well in hand."

Magic Punk just missed a Grade 1 win last season at Mohawk, finishing second in the rich William Wellwood Memorial.

Gingras also won the other Goodtimes elimination, guiding Neighver Punt to his first win of the season. It was a sparkling career best effort of 1:51.4 for the Marcus Melander trainee.

Dexter Dunn has been the primary driver of Neighver Punt and takes back the controls for Saturday’s final, while Gingras stays with Magic Punk.

Ontario Sires Stakes standout Touchedbyanangel just got picked off by Neighver Punt in the elimination and will look to rebound for the Fellows stable.

Race 9 - $100,000 Grade 3 Mohawk Gold Cup Invitational – Open Pace

The Mohawk Gold Cup always provides fireworks on North America Cup night.

A field of the 10 best Open pacers in the sport will clash, led by last season’s O’Brien and Dan Patch Award winner Ervin Hanover. The Dave Menary trainee had a stellar 10 wins and $1.1 million earning season in 2025. He returned to the races last Saturday to win the Open in 1:49.1. Dexter Dunn pilots Ervin Hanover.

The tough Prince Hal Hanover will get another crack at older foes for trainer Dr. Ian Moore. The four-year-old already has five starts this season, posting three wins, a second and a third. His most recent start was a narrow runner-up in last Saturday’s Battle of Lake Erie at Northfield Park. Prince Hal Hanover will reunite with driver Todd McCarthy for the Gold Cup.

Trainer Per Engblom will send out a pair of starters. Coaches Corner has fought in all the big races over last year and into this season, while Lou Hill is entering off a win in the Camluck Classic at Western Fair Raceway.

Post time for Saturday’s 13-race card is 6:30 p.m. 

To view Saturday's complete entries, click the following links: Woodbine Mohawk Park - Saturday Entries || Saturday Program Pages (courtesy TrackIT).

To find out where you can watch Saturday’s North America Cup card, click here.

(Woodbine; photo of undefeated Fan Hanover contender Be Perfect BG winning her elimination)