LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Chad Brown got the scary call last fall that Always a Runner had a serious case of pneumonia, something that would keep her from racing as a 2-year-old.
“This filly was struggling,” the veteran trainer said. “Her career was really up in the air.”
After more than a month in a veterinary clinic and treatment with a hyperbaric chamber, she began her racing career in February. And on Friday night, Always a Runner showed her toughness once again by winning the Kentucky Oaks against some of the best 3-year-old fillies around in the 152nd edition of the race and the first run under the lights in prime time at Churchill Downs.
“This filly is very resilient, very tough,” Brown, 47, said after winning the Kentucky Oaks for the first time. “She didn’t have to be here today. She didn’t have to run again. She could have never run, easily. I’ve had it happen with several horses. The fact that not only did she overcome it and ended up here today as an undefeated horse in the Oaks is just remarkable.”
Ridden by Jose Ortiz, Always a Runner made a move around the final turn and needed every bit of the stretch to pass Bob Baffert’s Explora and and Michael McCarthy’s Meaning before the finish line of the 1 1/8-mile race.
Meaning was second by 1 1/4 lengths and Counting Stars third. Always a Runner finished in 1:48.62 and paid $13.04 to win, $7.46 to place and $5.44 to show.
“We were there every step of the way,” McCarthy said. “Kudos to Chad, that filly came running. We were second best.”
Always a Runner impressed Ortiz, who had never ridden her in a race before Friday — just a morning workout. Now she’s 3-for-3.
“Chad was very confident in her,” said Ortiz, who won five races Friday at Churchill Downs. “He knew what he had. He told me, ‘Just go out there, get to know her in the work, and you’re going to feel like (you’re driving) a sports car, like she’s a Ferrari.’ And he was right. I loved the way she worked, and here we are. We won.”
Brown will try to pull off the Kentucky Oaks-Kentucky Derby double Saturday with Emerging Market, who also had pneumonia as a 2-year-old and has raced just twice. It would be a first victory in the “Run for the Roses” for Brown — although he does have a pair of Triple Crown Series race wins, both in the Preakness Stakes (2017, 2022) — who has been second in the Kentucky Derby twice since 2018.
“I stick with things that are working,” Brown said. “So, two starts, we should be good. But that’s another horse that’s just doing well.
“Like this filly, she was giving off signs all week here at Churchill to everybody that she was training well, and the betting public saw it and she went off at least favored or co-favored. My other horse is training just as well.”
The first night edition of Kentucky Oaks was one for the history books, but it also took place in front of large swaths of empty seats.
Many of the 100,000-plus fans who filled the grandstand and the track from the late morning through the afternoon had departed before sunset. The showcase race for fillies at Churchill Downs has typically been run before 6 p.m.
“For me it’s just a very long day,” Ortiz said. “It was just amazing. Good vibe. It’s for the public. If they have fun, it’s good to me.”
Brown lamented not being able to get presented with the trophy in the infield, a tradition for the Kentucky Oaks that was moved to the paddock because of the time. Other than that, he had no complaints.
“It was a really cool experience, and it’s nice to utilize this facility with the lights and all, and I would definitely do it again. Obviously, my horse ran terrific,” Brown said, adding that the ceremony “was the only negative. Everything else about it was an incredible experience today with this post time.”