Red Route One returns to defend Cornhusker Handicap crown
Saturday's card at Prairie Meadows features four stakes including the featured graded-stakes race of the meet. That race is the 28th running of the Grade 3, $300,000 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap. The race is open to 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/8 miles.
The Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap drew seven runners, including last year’s winner and multiple graded stakes winner Red Route One. The race also attracted 2024 Indiana Derby and West Virginia Derby winner Dragoon Guard.
Click here for Prairie Meadows entries and results.
Red Route One is trained by Hall of Fame conditioner Steve Asmussen for owner and breeder Winchell Thoroughbreds.
A 5-year-old son of Gun Runner out of the Tapit mare Red House, he has logged one victory, the Essex Handicap (G3) at Oaklawn Park in March, from five starts in 2025. Over his career Red Route One is 27: 6-4-3 with career earnings of $2,159,107.
Asmussen has also entered the Winchell Thoroughbreds stablemate Unload, second to Red Route One here last year, for another try in the Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap. A 5-year-old son of Gun Runner out of the Tapit mare Untapped, Unload seeks his first win since the Governor's Cup at Remington in August. His career record stands at 16: 3-1-4 with $288,119 in earnings.
Dragoon Guard, a four-year-old trained by Brad Cox for Juddmonte, put together a four-race winning streak in 2024, breaking his maiden at Keeneland last April before going on to win state derbies in July and August. His lifetime record is 7: 4-2-1 with $766,060 in career earnings.
2025 Cornhusker Handicap G3
| No. | Silks | Horse / Sire | Rating | Trainer / Jockey | Last Start / Next Start | ML |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gould's Gold Goldencents |
6.27 | Kenneth G. McPeek Brian J. Hernandez, Jr. |
1st, CD AOC (05/17/2025-R10) | 9-2 | |
| Last Race | 1st, CD AOC (05/17/2025-R10) | |||||
| 2 | Red Route One Gun Runner |
7.20 | Steven M. Asmussen Ben Curtis |
9th, 2025 Pimlico Special G3 | 6-1 | |
| Last Race | 9th, 2025 Pimlico Special G3 | |||||
| 3 | Unload Gun Runner |
6.09 | Steven M. Asmussen Walter De La Cruz |
5th, LS AOC (06/07/2025-R7) | 12-1 | |
| Last Race | 5th, LS AOC (06/07/2025-R7) | |||||
| 4 | Jokestar Practical Joke |
0.00 | Gary M. Scherer Jareth Loveberry |
1st, PRM AOC (05/16/2025-R3) | 10-1 | |
| Last Race | 1st, PRM AOC (05/16/2025-R3) | |||||
| 5 | Heroic Move Quality Road |
6.09 | Robertino Diodoro Harry Hernandez |
3rd, 2025 Steve Sexton Mile G3 | 7-2 | |
| Last Race | 3rd, 2025 Steve Sexton Mile G3 | |||||
| 6 | Dragoon Guard Arrogate |
7.04 | Brad H. Cox Florent Geroux |
2nd, CD AOC (05/22/2025-R1) | 7-5 | |
| Last Race | 2nd, CD AOC (05/22/2025-R1) | |||||
| 7 | Cornishman Curlin |
4.87 | Dan L. McFarlane Glenn W. Corbett |
2nd, Jim and Sandra Rasmussen S. | 8-1 | |
| Last Race | 2nd, Jim and Sandra Rasmussen S. | |||||
Saturday’s eleven-race Festival card also features the $100,000 Prairie Gold Juvenile for 2-year-olds at 5 1/2 furlongs, the $250,000 Iowa Derby for 3-year-olds at 1 1/16 miles, and the $225,000 Iowa Oaks for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/16 miles.
Seven 3-year-olds signed on for the Iowa Derby, headed by Magnitude, another Winchell Thoroughbreds and Steve Asmussen runner, who upped his lifetime earnings to $466,165 in winning the $500,000 Risen Star (G2) by almost ten lengths in early February at Fair Grounds in New Orleans. He was taken off the Kentucky Derby trail shortly thereafter with a bone chip, and the Iowa Derby marks his return to the races.