My Gun's Loaded Comes Out Firing in Alabama

My Gun's Loaded (Gun Runner) made a menacing move while floated out five wide by Counting Stars (Honor A. P.) at the top of the stretch and kept on coming with massive strides down the lane beneath Manny Franco to outbattle Measure (Essential Quality) in dramatic fashion by a neck in Saturday's GI Alabama S. at Saratoga.

Counting Stars, the 1-4 favorite following statement-making victories over My Gun's Loaded's Chad Brown-trained stablemate and GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Always a Runner (Gun Runner) in the GI Acorn S. and GI Coaching Club American Oaks, had to settle for third after setting an easy pace.

My Gun's Loaded, a perfect two-for-two at Saratoga going seven furlongs and one mile this season June 6 and July 24, was off at odds of 3-1 while making her stakes debut in the 1 1/4-mile Alabama.

“I'm so proud of the horse,” Brown said. “I'm so appreciative of (winning owner) Douglas Scharbauer, who gave me this horse to train over the winter, and of course, she is three-for-three for us and she's three-for-three at Saratoga. She really likes it here. Going from a mile to a mile and a quarter is a big ask, but the thing that gave me some confidence was we won the Alabama a few years ago with a horse named Randomized that did the same thing, so it has been done.”

Brown continued, “Counting Stars is a great horse. I had the benefit of a fresh horse today. I mean take nothing away from the way she (Counting Stars) fought, she's danced every dance from the Oaks on through, and I needed a fresh horse to beat her, goes to show you how good she is.”

As for what's next, Brown added, “I'm going to talk to Mr. Scharbauer and his manager Donny, great team back at the farm he has that selected this horse. They have a close-knit team. They selected her and with them managing her, they are wonderful to deal with. Off the top of my head, races like the Beldame (at Belmont Park) or the Spinster (at Keeneland) versus older horses might be in play. She is lightly raced and her numbers are fast.”

Traveling nicely in third as Counting Stars led through fractions of :24.55 and :49.44, My Gun's Loaded made her move approaching the quarter pole. My Gun's Loaded came rolling down the center of the course in the stretch while hanging on her left lead, fought her way past Counting Stars after switching over and had more to give to defeat the latter's Mark Casse-trained stablemate, who enjoyed the run of the race with a beautiful rail rally down the lane.

“She (Counting Stars) ran hard,” Casse said. “She's been dancing for a long time. I'm proud of her. When they run hard, I don't get disappointed, would I like to have won? Of course, but no, it takes a lot to get me disappointed, so I'm proud of her, she ran hard, we were third best today.”

Pedigree Notes:

My Gun's Loaded, a $650,000 Keeneland September yearling, becomes the 41st graded/61st stakes winner for leading sire Gun Runner. He is now responsible for 15 GISWs. Chad Brown also tightened the girth on Gun Runner's brilliant 2024 GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner Sierra Leone and this year's GI Kentucky Oaks heroine Always a Runner. The stakes-placed Congrats mare Strive brought $220,000 from winning breeder Corser Thoroughbreds at the 2019 Keeneland November sale. My Gun's Loaded is bred on the same Gun Runner x Congrats cross as two-for-two GIII Indiana Derby winner Leading Change. My Gun's Loaded is the eighth Grade/Group 1 winner for broodmare sire Congrats.

UPSET IN THE ALABAMA!

MY GUN'S LOADED earns her first stakes win in the G1 Alabama Stakes pres. by @keenelandsales under @jockeyfranco for trainer Chad Brown! pic.twitter.com/7R2qEjdseg

— NYRA (🎪) (@TheNYRA) August 22, 2026

Saturday, Saratoga
ALABAMA S. PRESENTED BY KEENELAND SALES-GI, $600,000, Saratoga, 8-22, 3yo, f, 1 1/4m, 2:04.87, ft.
1–MY GUN'S LOADED, 122, f, 3, by Gun Runner
            1st Dam: Strive (SP, $130,327), by Congrats
            2nd Dam: Solo Survivor, by Pleasant Tap
            3rd Dam: Dactique, by D'Accord
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN, 1ST GRADE
I WIN. ($650,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP). O-Douglas Scharbauer;
B-Corser Thoroughbreds LLC (KY); T-Chad C. Brown; J-Manuel
Franco. $330,000. Lifetime Record: 4-3-0-0, $460,500.
Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Measure, 122, f, 3, by Essential Quality
            1st Dam: Fateer, by Eskendereya
            2nd Dam: Tamar, by Indian Charlie
            3rd Dam: V Sign, by Robellino
($140,000 RNA Wlg '23 KEENOV; $250,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP).
O-Gary Barber, Bridlewood Farm and Eclipse Thoroughbred
Partners; B-Town & Country Farms (KY); T-Mark E. Casse.
$120,000.
3–Counting Stars, 122, f, 3, by Honor A. P.
            1st Dam: Paynterbynumbers, by Paynter
            2nd Dam: Ruth and Neva, by Cherokee Run
            3rd Dam: Tap for Gold, by Pleasant Tap
($13,000 Ylg '24 KEESEP; $150,000 2yo '25 OBSAPR). O-West
Point Thoroughbreds; B-HRH Prince Sultan Bin Mishal Al Saud
(KY); T-Mark E. Casse. $72,000.
Margins: NK, 1HF, 2 3/4. Odds: 3.37, 10.76, 0.38.
Also Ran: A. P.'s Girl, Ati Girl, Nycon. Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.