LEADING Change became the 16th Grade 1 winner for Gun Runner (Candy Ride) last weekend at Saratoga with his dramatic victory over Napoleon Solo (Grade 1 Preakness Stakes hero) and Grade 1 Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner Golden Tempo in the $1.25 million Travers Stakes.

He played the lead role in a memorable weekend for Wathnan Racing who had three other Group 3 winners within 24 hours. The four big race successes came in four different countries.

The most lightly-raced colt in the field of 10 three-year-olds that lined up for the Travers, Leading Change had made just two starts before last Saturday, but both were wins; a maiden debut success in early June, followed by a game victory in the Grade 3 Indiana Derby about five weeks later.

“We’ve always thought he was a big-time talent,” said Leading Change’s trainer Brad Cox. “He showed it before today in his first two starts and he was able to get it done today. I said coming into it that he’s light on seasoning, but we were hoping he could make up for it with talent, and he was able to do it.” Cox holds the colt in the highest regard, but seems to be ruling out a Breeders’ Cup run this year at least.

Leading Change was bred in Kentucky by WinStar Farm LLC and has earned $934,196 in his three wins. He is an $800,000 Keeneland September Yearling Sale graduate, and if he continues to improve at his current rate, he could be a monster at four. He has a readymade stallion pedigree.

Leading Change is the last recorded progeny of his dam, her tenth foal, and all seven of those that made it to the track are winners, two at Grade 1 level since the weekend.

Starship Warpspeed is the dam of Leading Change, and she was from the first crop of Congrats (A.P. Indy). After retiring from racing, he was sent to Cloverleaf Farms in Florida to stand in 2007, and Starship Warpspeed was in his first crop. The following year, Congrats was sent to Vinery Stud and later to WinStar Farm in 2013. He died last year back in Florida, where he was sent after being retired from the covering shed.

Finest hour

Congrats was a little below top-class as a racehorse, though he won seven of 26 starts, running fifth in the 2005 Dubai World Cup. His finest hour came in the 2005 Grade 2 San Pasqual Handicap for Richard Mandella and his owners and breeders Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider. He placed that year in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap, runner-up to Rock Hard Ten, and Grade 1 Hollywood Gold Cup. During his stud career Congrats shuttled to Australia.

A year on since Congrat’s death, 2026 saw him get his 50th stakes winner, and he is much better known for his daughters than his sons. He got four Grade 1 winners, all fillies, and the best by far was from his first crop, Turbulent Descent. She won four times at the highest level, including the Ballerina Stakes, Hollywood Starlet Stakes and Santa Anita Oaks.

The other three were Ballerina Stakes captress Haveyougoneaway, Alcibiades Stakes winner Wickedly Perfect, and Prioress Stakes winner Emma’s Encore. Meanwhile, Congrats has shone as a damsire, and his elite performers number Breeders’ Cup Classic hero Forever Young and the Japanese Derby winner Danon Decile, produced by his daughters.

Outperformed

Starship Warpspeed won a maiden claiming race on the dirt at Belmont Park at the sixth time of asking, and was claimed for $40,000. This was just $1,000 more than she brought as a two-year-old, and eight times what she sold for as a yearling. She raced twice more for WinStar Farm, but failing to show much they quickly decided to retire her to stud after two more starts. Since then she has outperformed her track record, and produced two exceptional runners of her own.

Though Leading Change has placed himself among the leaders of this year’s classic generation, he has a way to go to emulate the achievements of his half-sister, Shedaresthedevil (Daredevil). Sold for $100,000 as a yearling, she won at two and placed in a Grade 3, and traded that November for a nice profit, $280,000. She went on to join Brad Cox, and turned inside out.

She raced for Qatar Racing and others and won three Grade 1s, including the Kentucky Oaks and La Troienne Stakes. Whisper Hill Farm bought into her when she sold for $5 million in 2021, and Mandy Pope bought out her partners a year later, when the ring price was again $5 million.

Gun Runner stood this year at Three Chimneys for $250,000.

FOUR years ago, Mick Murphy and Sarah O’Connell spent €60,000 to purchase a Zoustar (Northern Meteor) filly at the Goffs Orby Sale, consigned for Tweenhills Stud by Jamie Railton. The couple signed for her under their Longways Stables. At the time she was a half-sister to six winners, the first six foals out of An Ghalanta (Holy Roman Emperor).

The following spring, the filly resold at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze Up Sale for 210,000gns, bought by Ted Durcan. She joined Owen Burrows, was named Miaharris, and won nicely on her debut before adding the Listed St Hugh’s Stakes next time out. She had her first foal in March, from the first crop by City Of Troy (Justify).

It was no surprise that the couple would at least look at the Showcasing (Oasis Dream) yearling half-sister to Miaharris when she was sent for sale by Tweenhills last year, and Longways Stables was again the listed purchaser when bidding in Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale reached 140,000gns. Mick and Sarah sent her for resale to Arqana, a venue that has a special connection for them. It was there that they sold the European champion juvenile Gewan, though on that occasion it was not a profitable transaction!

This year they brought a strong draft, and the top lots among them sold to Blandford Bloodstock’s Richard Brown, and both were great pinhooking successes. Having given 98,000gns for a Blue Point (Shamardal) colt last year, they got €800,000 for him in May. Named Royal Heritage, he won first time out in the silks of Wathnan Racing and was less than a length back in third to Great Barrier Reef on his only other run in Royal Ascot’s Group 2 Coventry Stakes.

Handsome profit

The Showcasing filly was also among the top six lots at the same sale, realising a handsome profit when selling for €625,000. She too was for Wathnan Racing, got named Light Of Dawn, won first time out and was two lengths off Libertango, with Sun Goddess second, in the Group 3 Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot. She placed next up in group company in France, but has now a well-deserved pattern race success in the Group 3 Prestige Stakes at Goodwood. Precise won this race 12 months ago.

The future looks bright for both of these Longways graduates, and especially Light Of Dawn. She is stakes winner number 76 for Whitsbury Manor Stud’s 19-year-old Showcasing.

The Kavanagh’s Kildaragh Stud bought An Ghalanta two years ago carrying a Dark Angel (Acclamation) filly who is Lot 356 in Book 1 next month at Tattersalls. An Ghalanta now has 11 winners with her first 11 foals, and there is a Sioux Nation (Scat Daddy) filly foal back in Kildaragh.