Gunite

The exceptional early achievements of Horse of the Year Gun Runner suggests strongly that he is going to be as great a Champion at stud as he was on the track. One of his major contributors has been the tough and fast Gunite, who figures among Gun Runner’s magnificent total of six first-crop Gr.1 winners. Gun Runner’s subsequent crops have maintained the flow of Gr.1 winners, with Gun Pilot and Vahva in his second crop and Gr.1 Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Sierra Leone and Gr.1 Breeders’ Futurity winner Locked in his third. With impressive career figures of 20-9-7-2, the resilient Gunite gained his first Gr.1 success when he took the 7f. Hopeful Stakes at Saratoga by nearly six lengths. Saratoga was also the scene of two of Gunite’s other important victories. At three he took the Gr.2 Amsterdam Stakes over 6½f. and at four he led virtually all the way in the Gr.1 Forego Stakes over 7f., to end the long winning sequence of Champion Sprinter Elite Power. Gunite’s dam Simple Surprise and 2nd dam Simplify were both stakes winners at Saratoga.

Gunite’s soundness can be attributed to his excellent conformation and bloodlines. Gun Runner retired sound after 19 races, many of them at the highest level. Also, Gunite is inbred 3x3 to Giant’s Causeway, who as a racehorse earned the nickname “The Iron Horse” and as a stallion topped the Blood-Horse’s general sires’ table in 2009, 2010 and 2012. Gunite can be expected to work well with the bloodlines which have brought Gun Runner so much success.

As Gunite’s two lines of STORM CAT will be back in the fifth generation of his foals’ pedigrees, a further line is possible, especially when his male line has worked so well with STORM CAT. Gunite’s grandsire Candy Ride owes 8 of his 115 stakes winners to daughters of STORM CAT, including champion 2yo Shared Belief. Gun Runner in turn also owes a lot of his success to mares with STORM CAT blood. Echo Zulu and Vahva are inbred 4x4, while Gun Pilot and Early Voting are 4x3.

SCAT DADDY, another member of the STORM CAT male line, is the broodmare sire of Gun Runner’s Gr.2 winner Pappacap, while HARLAN’S HOLIDAY sired the dam of Gr.1 winner Vhava. These two branches of the STORM CAT line should suit Gunite, as should daughters of INTO MISCHIEF.

PULPIT will be back in the fourth generation of Gunite’s progeny, so again a second line is well worth considering. From his first 33 starters out of TAPIT mares, Gun Runner has sired Gr.1 winner Society, Gr.2 winners Red Route One and Wicked Halo, Gr.3 winners Disarm and Il Miracolo, as well as three SWs. These eight BTWs represent 18% of Gun Runner’s foals out of Tapit mares. Tapit mares create 4x3 inbreeding to Pulpit with Gunite.PULPIT is by no means the only representative of the A.P. INDY/MR PROSPECTOR cross who is working well with Gun Runner. Gun Runner’s first starter out of a mare by FLATTER was the multiple Gr.1-winning Taiba while his first nine starters out of mares by MALIBU MOON include Gr.1 winners Sierra Leone and Locked and Gr.3 winners Runninsonofagun and Shotgun Hottie. MINESHAFT, another whose grandsires are Seattle Slew and Mr Prospector, is the broodmare sire of the Gr.1-placed Bendoog. BERNARDINI has also started well with Gun Runner. His daughters’ first 7 starters include Gr.2 winner Life Talk, and there is also a Listed winner and a Gr.2-placed winner with dams by A.P. INDY.

Mares from the DISTORTED HUMOR line should suit Gunite, as Gun Runner has sired the Gr.2 winner Intricate from one of his daughters, as well as the Gr.1-winning Cyberknife and Gr.2-placed McLaren Vale from grand-daughters.

Other branches of the MR PROSPECTOR line are also having success with Gun Runner. Gr.1 winner Gun Pilot has a dam by SMART STRIKE, while Gr.2 winner Gun Song has a dam by Mr Greeley.

Gun Runner is having success with INDIAN CHARLIE line mares. His 2023 Gr.2 2yo winner Chatalas is out of one of his daughters, while Listed winner Concept is out of a grand-daughter. Mares by UNCLE MO could therefore be ideal to reinforce Gunite’s speed.

TIZNOW sired the dam of Preakness winner Early Voting.