Berube scores 3,000th win opening day at H3R

Harness racing driver Pascal Berube started the 2023 opening day at the Hippodrome 3R in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec Sunday (April 30) afternoon the same way he ended the race meet in 2022, winning.

And by the end of the afternoon, Berube had won his 3,000th career trip to the winner’s circle. Earlier this season he surpassed $9 million in purses won by the horses he has driven over his career.

Rain had ended before the start of the race card, but the track was still listed as slow with a one second allowance by the Stewarts.

Berube, 51, of Portneuf, Quebec, started off opening day at H3R by winning the very first race opening day with Hooter Shooter (Badlands Hanover). They took the lead after the first quarter and wired the field in a romp by four and three-quarter lengths in 2:02.

This was win #2,999. Just one more needed for Berube and eight races to go.

“I was very excited to win the first race of the year at H3R,” Berube said. “It was a good way to start the day.”

Race fans knew Berube was gunning for his 3,000th win so, they bet him down to 1/5 in the 2nd race with Ladycorona, but she finished third.

Berube was not in the hunt for the next three races and then he had Goldinthebadlands in the 6th race pace, who was wagered down to 1/9 and they were parked out first-over from the start of the race. They finally cleared to the lead as they came down the stretch only to be caught at the wire by P L Gyro (Francis Picard) by a quarter of a length in 2:01.

Next up was the 7th race Preferred Trot and Berube had another big favorite to driver, Stella Alpha. She was an 11-race winner last year and set a track record at H3R for Berube. This looked to be the milestone winner.

It didn’t work out that way.

Stella Alpha and Berube went off as the 2/5 race favorite and worked their way to the lead over Morally Flexible (Stephane Brosseau) after a :29.4 first quarter.

Also, stuck on the outside was A R Hercule and owner, trainer, driver Jean-Paul J Rousse and they came after Stella Alpha, pressing the mare to the half mile in :59 where A R Hercule actually had the lead on the outside but Berube would not let them clear to the front.

Rousse kept the pressure on with A R Hercule down the backstretch, again on the lead on the outside at the three-quarters in 1:29.3, but Berube would not let them clear by Stella Alpha. And all the while, Morally Flexible is boxed in along the pylons in third place.

As they started down the stretch, Brosseau had clearance to pull out as A R Hercule could no longer keep up. Poor Stella Alpha was beaten up and barely could hold her lead and then all it took was a :32.4 last quarter for Morally Flexible (Break The Bank) to beat Stella Alpha to the wire by one length in 2:02.3.

Berube was denied win #3,000 once again.

Now came the 8th race Preferred Pace and Berube was driving Delicate Sound (State Treasurer), who went off as the 6/5 favorite.

Berube took no chances and sent Delicate Sound right to the lead but once against was challenged by on the outside, this time by D Gs De Vito (Jonathan Lachance), who was first-over a head away from the lead through fractions of :29, 1:00.2 and 1:29.2.

But this time Berube had some power between the shafts of his racebike as Delicate Sound dug in and shook off D Gs De Vito to win by three-quarters of a length in 1:59.1.

Pascal Berube got his 3,000th career victory.

“I was still happy with the effort provided by my two horses with whom I thought I would win and who finished second,” Berube added. “But I still had my horse in the 8th race whom I trusted. He was my Joker in case of not having done it before him.

“As I had said before,” Berube concluded about his 3,000th win, “For me personally it’s a milestone to which I am proud to arrive.”

Berube is coming off his best season ever in 2022 as he won 206 races with 163 second and 132 third place finishes. His UDRS or “batting average” last year was .388 and earnings of nearly $1 million.

By the end of the race card, both Pascal Berube and Francis Picard scored driving doubles as did trainer Marc-Andre Simoneau. Both of Simoneau’s training wins were driven by Pascal Berube.