Chunk of Gold

Chunk of Gold began his career as a 2-year-old with a maiden win at first asking in a six-furlong race on the all-weather surface at Turfway Park on Dec. 19, 2024. He then tried stakes company at Turfway Park when stretched out to a mile for his second start, which resulted in a second-place finish in the $125,000 Leonatus Stakes in his first start as a 3-year-old on Jan. 18, 2025.

Chunk of Gold was brought to Fair Grounds for the third start of his career to try dirt for the first time in the Grade 2 $500,000 Fasig-Tipton Risen Star Stakes going 1 1/8 miles on Feb. 15. He was sent off at odds of 43.30-1 in a field of 12 but showed ability on the main track and closed well enough to finish a distant second. The Risen Star Stakes was a points race on the road to the Kentucky Derby, and with his runner-up finish, Chunk of Gold earned 25 qualifying points to stamp himself a legitimate contender to make it into the Kentucky Derby starting gate.

Chunk of Gold's next start resulted in another second-place finish in the $1 million Grade 2 Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby, thereby completing the Lecomte, Risen Star, Louisiana Derby Fair Grounds’ road to the Kentucky Derby with three straight runner-up finishes. In the Louisiana Derby, Chunk of Gold stalked the pace mid-pack in the field of 10 and finished well enough for a non-threatening second, beaten 2 1/4 lengths by the drawing-off Tiztastic. The second-place finish was worth 50 qualifying points on the road to the Kentucky Derby.

In the Kentucky Derby, Chunk of Gold finished a respectable ninth, and he followed that with a solid second behind Mo Plex in the Grade 3 Ohio Derby June 21. He was fitted with blinkers for his start in the Aug. 3, Grade 3 West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park, and in that race he changed his running style by jumping out to the lead and setting the pace. Chunk of Gold was kept to task and routed his opponents, winning by 4 ¼ lengths in a breakthrough performance.  

Chunk of Gold is trained by Ethan West. He was bred in Kentucky by the sire Preservationist out of the mare Play for Gold, by Cairo Prince. Stakes winner Band of Gold is Chunk of Gold's full-sibling (same dam [mother], same sire [father]).