The $100,000 Gun Runner Stakes, a contest for 2-year-olds over 1 1/16 miles at Fair Grounds on December 20, witnessed Chip Honcho conquer the highly regarded Liberty National and the early leader Crown the Buckeye to claim victory.
It was fitting that Steve Asmussen, the trainer of the victorious horse, also conditioned Gun Runner, the 2017 Horse of the Year and future Hall of Famer, in whose honor the race bears its name. Asmussen has begun to amass a significant collection of wins in this particular event. His initial success came in the inaugural Gun Runner in 2021 with Epicenter, followed by a second win with Track Phantom in 2023, and now he has recorded a third triumph with Chip Honcho.
Despite widespread anticipation that Chip Honcho and his victorious jockey Paco Lopez would dictate the early pace, the duo instead maintained a second-place position for much of the race. Crown the Buckeye, a horse with two stakes victories in Ohio-bred competitions, surged past them to take the lead, clocking rapid fractions of :23.62, :46.66, and 1:10.98. Crown the Buckeye established a one-length lead around the middle of the stretch but ultimately tired in the final moments, completing the last sixteenth of a mile in :07.61.
“At the sixteenth pole, I’m like, where’s the wire? I needed it,” remarked Jareth Loveberry, jockey for Crown the Buckeye, while commending his mount’s performance.
Chip Honcho ultimately overtook the frontrunner. He crossed the finish line in 1:44.76 for the 1 1/16 miles on a fast track, returning $9.80 for a win ticket.
Liberty National, who launched a rally along the rail from fifth position within the six-horse field, managed to catch Crown the Buckeye by a head to secure second place, finishing three-quarters of a length behind the winner. His acceleration was not as swift as observed in a maiden victory last month at Churchill Downs, leading jockey Brian Hernandez Jr. to suggest post-race that the colt might have felt less comfortable on the inside. Liberty National continued to gallop out powerfully, ahead of the other competitors.
Crown the Buckeye managed to hold on for third, finishing ahead of Quality Mischief in fourth and Very Connected in fifth.
The top five finishers were awarded qualifying points towards the Road to the Kentucky Derby, presented by Woodford Reserve, allocated on a 10-5-3-2-1 system.
The victor, a 2-year-old progeny of Connect, owned by Leland Ackerley Racing, achieved his second win from three career starts. His prior success included a front-running maiden special weight victory over a mile at Churchill Downs on November 20, and he had finished as a runner-up in his debut over seven furlongs at Keeneland on October 16.
