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Rookie Rankings for Dec. 23: Leading 2026 Kentucky Derby Contenders

Three prep races for the 2026 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve contested in two different countries promised to shake up Week 4 of the Rookie Rankings. But the impact was smaller than expected.

The two stateside qualifiers yielded intriguing results, but the winners weren’t quite strong enough to make the Top 10 cutoff.

Chip Honcho, prospect, Kentucky Derby, Gun Runner Stakes, Fair Grounds, jockey, trainer, Paco Lopez, Steve Asmussen, pedigree, Connect, Curlin, Miss My Rose, speed figures, Beyer, Equibase, bloodline, prep, Triple Crown, horse racing, ABR

2026 Kentucky Derby Prospect Profile: Gun Runner Stakes Winner Chip Honcho

Welcome to Kentucky Derby Prospect Profiles, where we take a look each week at a recent winner of a race on the Road to the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve schedule offering qualifying points for the 1 ¼-mile Derby May 2, 2026, at Churchill Downs.

Remington, Springboard Mile, Kentucky Derby, Express Kid, Jose Alvarez, jockey, trainer, Wade Rarick, Arctic Beast, upset, Bodexpress, horse racing, longshot, ABR

Express Kid Joins Kentucky Derby Trail with Springboard Mile Upset

Express Kid, a 2-year-old California-bred colt who was purchased for only $2,000 as a yearling, joined a growing group of prospects the road to the 2026 Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve with a 34.50-1 upset win in the $300,000 Remington Springboard Mile Stakes during the late night of Dec.

Chip Honcho, 2025 Gun Runner Stakes, Fair Grounds, Steve Asmussen

Chip Honcho on Target in Gun Runner Stakes Win at Fair Grounds

Chip Honcho outran favored Liberty National and front runner Crown the Buckeye to win the $100,000 Gun Runner Stakes for 2-year-olds going 1 1/16 miles Dec.

Eclipse Awards, champion, older dirt male, Breeders’ Cup Classic, Forever Young, Japan, Fierceness, Sierra Leone, Mindframe, voting, Saudi Cup, Whitney Stakes, Stephen Foster, Pacific Classic, stakes, horse racing, ABR

Forever Young or Not Forever Young: An Older Dirt Male Eclipse Awards Conundrum

Eclipse Awards debates have been a part of the process since the inception of the awards in 1971. Some of the 2025 divisions are open-and-shut cases, but one category sure to generate some heated arguments this year is the older dirt male division.

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