Asmussen confident in Gun Runner at Breeders' Cup Classic distance
By Christine Oser
Gun Runner has never won at the distance over which he’ll be tested in the Nov. 4 Breeders’ Cup Classic, but trainer Steve Asmussen has no concerns his stable star can get every bit of 1 1/4 miles.
Where’s that confidence coming from?
“Just the way that he’s run all year and the way that he has trained,” Asmussen said Wednesday on a Breeders’ Cup media teleconference. “I feel he’s at a very high level the way that he’s running — as fast as he’s running.”
Gun Runner’s four Grade 1 wins have come at 1 1/8 miles. He enters the Classic off a three-race win streak, taking the Clark Handicap, the Whitney Stakes, and the Woodward Stakes.
A positive record shipping also has the Hall of Fame trainer hopeful Gun Runner, a 4-year-old by Candy Ride, will take to Del Mar’s surface.
“As far as Del Mar and never running over the racetrack, he has accepted quite a few racetracks. He has traveled well,” Asmussen said.
Leading up to the Classic, Asmussen plans to ship Gun Runner from Santa Anita Park to Del Mar on Friday and “most likely” post his final workout Monday.
Asmussen won the 2007 Classic with Curlin, who followed that up by winning the Dubai World Cup. Gun Runner nearly had a World Cup victory of his own before run down by Arrogate last March — notably, in a 1 1/4-mile race.
Strategy in the Classic will be left mostly to jockey Florent Groux, but Asmussen mentioned reviewing Shared Belief’s 2014 victory in the Grade 1 Awesome Again. Then undefeated, Shared Belief was pushed wide throughout but got a nose in front at the wire.
“I think Florent deserves a tremendous amount of credit for the horse that Gun Runner has developed into,” Asmussen said. “Florent’s a quality horsemen as well as jockey.”
As for the type of horse Gun Runner is right now, “From the Razorback [Handicap in February] on he has trained like a machine,” said the trainer added, “and I thought his work Monday at Santa Anita was more of the same. We’re very excited.”