WHOA…Did Dunn win money title over Tetrick

On New Year’s Eve, harness racing driver Tim Tetrick pulled off an amazing afternoon at Harrah’s Philadelphia, winning a record-tying ten races on the pari-mutuel card.

After the dust settled on the afternoon, Terick pulled ahead of driver Dexter Dunn in winning the 2021 money winning title in the USA with $12,917,113 in purse earnings won by the horses he had driven. His amazing day put him ahead of Dunn, who finished off the year with $12,916,775 earning, just $338 short of Tetrick.

But now things have changed quite a bit with the Harnesslink news about Perfect Sting being disqualified from his being placed first in the $148,332 PASS June 26 at The Meadows. Perfect Sting was found to have an extremely high test for testosterone and has now been placed ninth in that race. Trainer Joe Holloway is appealing the Racing Commission fine.

Now we have to re-examine the final money totals for 2021 for Tetrick vs Dunn and look what we come up with.

With the refunding of the purse money won by Perfect Sting, Dexter Dunn, who drove Rockyroad Hanover in that race and won it, was placed fifth by the judges, but that now that race result will change with Perfect Sting being placed ninth and that moves Rockyroad Hanover up from fifth place to fourth place.

Fifth place was worth $7,416 to Dunn’s money totals in 2021. Now, with his placing from fifth to fourth place, the money earned rises to $11,866. Subtract that from the fifth place $7,416 and you end up with Dexter Dunn getting an additional $4,450 added to his money won total for 2021.

Subtract the $4,450 from the $338 that Tetrick won the title from Dunn, and you end up with Dexter Dunn winning the money title for 2021 with a $4,112 lead over Tim Tetrick.

If, in the event, that Joe Holloway loses his appeal on Perfect Sting to the Pennsylvania Racing Commission, then Dexter Dunn should get an asterisk by his name and will be recognized as money winning title holder in the USA for 2021.

This situation brings back memories from 1981 when Eddie Davis and Herve Filion battled for the driving title. Eddie Davis won five races on the final day of the year to take a one-win lead, 404 to 403 against Filion to win the National Dash Winning Championship. Then more than two years later, a court decision ended up seeing Filion’s horse placed from second to first. Thus, Filion and Davis ended in a tie for the 1981 dash title.

Now we will just have to wait and see how this story ends.

Here are other related stories.

Holloway: Perfect Sting never given testosterone – Harnesslink

Perfect Sting had positive test; Holloway appealing – Harnesslink

by Steve Wolf, for Harnesslink