Louisville, Ky. – Trainer Chad Brown got the scary call last fall that Always A Runner had a serious case of pneumonia, something that would keep him from racing at age 2.
“This filly was struggling,” Brown said. “Her career was really up in the air.”
After more than a month in a veterinary hospital and hyperbaric chamber treatment, he began his racing career in February. On Friday night, Always A Runner once again showed her toughness by winning the Kentucky Oaks against some of the best 3-year-old fillies in the 152nd edition of the race and the first race under the lights in prime time at Churchill Downs.
“This filly is very resilient, very tough,” Brown said after winning the Oaks on her debut. “She wasn’t supposed to be here today. She didn’t need to race again. She could never run that easily. I’ve done that with a lot of horses. The fact that she not only overcame it and got here today as an undefeated horse in the Oaks is remarkable.”
Ridden by Jose Ortiz, Always a Runner made a move around the final turn and required every effort to pass Bob Baffert’s Explora and Michael McCarthy’s Meanie before the finish line of the 1⅛-mile race.
Meaning was in second place by 1¼ lengths and Counting Stars was in third. Always has a runner finish in 1:48.62 and pays $13.04 to win, $7.46 to place and $5.44 to show.
“We were there every step of the way,” McCarthy said. “Congratulations to Chad, that filly came running. We were second best.”
Always a runner, she impressed Ortiz, who had never ridden her in a race before the Oaks – just a morning workout. He is now 3-for-3.
“Chad had full confidence in him,” said Ortiz, who won five races Friday at Churchill Downs. “He knew what he had. He told me, ‘Just go there, get to know him at work and you’ll feel like a sports car, like it’s a Ferrari.’ And he was right. I love the way he works and here we are. We won.”
Brown will try to win the Oaks-Kentucky Derby double on Saturday with Emerging Markets, who also had pneumonia at age 2 and has raced only twice. He has never even won a derby.
“I’m sticking to the things that are working,” Brown said. “So, two starts, we should be good.”
The first night of the Kentucky Oaks was one for the history books, but it also took place in front of a large number of empty seats. Many of the more than 100,000 fans who were in the grandstands and at the track from late morning to afternoon had left before sunset. The Oaks is usually run before 6pm
“It’s been a very long day for me,” Ortiz said. “It was amazing. Nice atmosphere. It’s for the public. If they have fun, that’s good for me.”
Brown regretted not being able to take the trophy in the infield, as the tradition of the Oaks and Derby had been moved to the paddock due to time. Apart from this he had no complaints.
Brown said, “It was a really cool experience, and it’s nice to use this facility with the lights and other features and I would definitely do it again. Obviously, my horse ran great.” “[The ceremony] The only negative was. Everything else about it today was an incredible experience with this post.”
