From tough beat to big dreams.

In the space of about 30 minutes Saturday at Laurel Park, trainer Michael Gorham first saw his first-off-the-claim filly Moon Cache disqualified from a Beyond the Wire Stakes win and then his improving three-year-old Pay Billy stamp himself the best two-turn sophomore on the grounds with a dominant Private Terms score.

“It’s the ups and downs of the game,” Gorham said. “It’s a cruel game at times, and then getting right back in action and get it done in the next race. That’s the way the game is, ups and downs.”

The Private Terms represented a major up.

It’s followed on the Maryland stakes calendar by next month’s Federico Tesio, a “win and in” for the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes May 17. That, Gorham said, is the likely route Pay Billy will follow, the Tesio next and, perhaps, if all goes to plan, the Middle Jewel thereafter.

Three starts into his career, Pay Billy, a colt by Improbable, hadn’t shown much to justify the $60,000 auction price RKTN Racing LLC had paid. Then Gorham put Raul Mena in the irons, and since, Pay Billy has won three of four and is a nose from a four-race win streak.

“He’s a really good horse,” Mena said. “I really love this horse.”

Three scratches slashed today’s Private Terms field to five runners. That suited Pay Billy’s connections just fine, as he originally was slated to break from the eight hole. Horses breaking from the eight- and nine-holes were a combined 0-for-8 entering today in 1 1/16-mile races at Laurel.

Even-money favorite Tony Eclipse broke well to gain the early advantage, and he led by a head after a half-mile in 47.43 seconds, with Baby Dukes perched just to his outside. Pay Billy was just a length behind the leader while three wide.

“I think I got the best position in the race,” Mena said. “I was the pressure on the speed, so I knew those horses were going to try to get position, and they were expecting my horse was going to try to be there. I made a little noise on the first turn, and they let their horses run a little bit. It was perfect.”

“We talked about it through the week, and now that it’s scratched down, we’ll let them run into the turn and get a position and tuck in the best you can,” Gorham said of the strategy.

Pay Billy came to join the lead duo on the turn, and Tony Eclipse gave way rather abruptly. Baby Dukes hung in there into upper stretch, but Pay Billy kicked away. The race was over by the eighth pole, and Pay Billy cruised home 3 ½ lengths clear in 1:44.93 for 1 1/16 miles on a fast main track.

The win was Pay Billy’s third from seven career starts and pushed his lifetime bankroll to $144,475. It was his first stakes win.

In his prior start, Pay Billy had led late but finished a tough luck second to Barbadian Runner in the one-mile Miracle Wood, a race in which Gorham believed his charge hadn’t seen his rival until it was too late. He opened the blinkers up a bit today, and in the event, there was no one for Pay Billy to see in the final furlong.

Pay Billy, favored for much of the wagering, went off the second choice and paid $5.80 to win. Sacred Thunder rallied from last into second, and Baby Dukes held third. Crab Daddy and Tony Eclipse rounded out the field.

It was the kind of performance that had Pay Billy’s connections thinking bigger.

“Nothing bothers him,” Gorham said. “It’s just, he’s able to relax during his races, and he’s got plenty of horse at the end. He’s just getting better all the time.”

One race prior, the Gorham-trained Moon Cache – making her first start for the trainer and owners Original 6 Stable following a $40,000 claim – led late and barely held off the charge of Safe Trust. But she drifted out in the shadow of the wire, bumping her rival, and the stewards placed her behind Safe Trust.

It was Safe Trust’s first stakes win and third victory overall from 10 outings for trainer Jose Corrales. She is a homebred for Barak Farm.

“She’s getting there,” Corrales said of his trainee, a Maryland-bred Mosler filly. “It’s a horse that needs to improve little by little and is doing well. And now, I think she’s going to get where I think she can: come from behind to be a better horse.”

Safe Trust paid $7.60 to win.