It’s still March, and the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup is still three months away, but eligible three-year-olds are beginning to qualify. One horse that made its impressive lifetime debut in late December qualified this morning (Wednesday, March 23) and hit the wire first.

The aforementioned horse is a colt by Roll With Joe that goes by the name of Rollaroundtheworld. He paced his first career charted lines during qualifying races at the Meadowlands Racetrack in late November and early December.

It was December 19 at the Big M when Rollaroundtheworld made his pari-mutuel debut in a conditioned race. After having sat well off the early tempo, he came three-wide and got up to post a nose victory in 1:52.3.

After that, Rollaroundtheworld did not surface until last Wednesday (March 16), when he triumphed in a Pocono Downs qualifier in 1:55.

The bay took part in this morning’s qualifying session at Pocono and started from Post 8 in Race 3 with pilot David Miller steering for trainer Nancy Johansson.

Miller worked out a four-hole trip through the opening fractions, which were cut in :29.3 and 1:00.1. Rollaroundtheworld was first up in the third panel and was one length back of the pacesetter when the timer flashed in 1:28.1.

The duo actually lost a bit of ground in the lane – they were two and a half lengths back in third at the head of the stretch – but they were leading when it mattered most: at the wire.

When everything was said and done, Rollaroundtheworld closed with a :28.1 final quarter mile and posted a half-length victory in 1:56.3.

Rollaroundtheworld was bred by White Birch Farm of Allentown, New Jersey and attracted a successful $115,000 bid at the 2014 Lexington Selected Yearling Sale. He is owned by Adriano Sorella of Milton, Ont.

Rollaroundtheworld is the second foal of the Artsplace mare Inanotherworld, who is an unraced nine-year-old.

To view the list of 58 horses that have been nominated to the NA Cup, click here.