Churchill Downs, home of the famous yearly horse race known as the Kentucky Derby, has been through a lot this year. All of these things were seen, from the controversial deaths and injuries of famous horses to the unknown Mage beating the pre-race picks in the 2023 Derby. Churchill Downs staged many additional races than the Kentucky Derby before it was suspended while an inquiry into the deaths of horses was conducted. Just after the Kentucky Derby, the track hosted an Allowance race in which the 4-year-old Giant Game demonstrated his readiness for the Grade 3 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap.

Giant Game raced well at Churchill Downs, then had a lengthy layoff before coming back to Prairie Meadows, Iowa, to compete in the Cornhusker Handicap (Grade 3). The horse’s comeback was so impressive that news of his victory in a supposedly Grade 3 event spread like wildfire over the internet.

Probably had the blessings of the site of the Kentucky Derby

Up to the wire, there was a lot happening in the $300,000 Cornhusker Handicap (G3). The 1 1/8-mile race began with Promise Keeper giving Giant Game enough to do. Giant Game, ridden by Martin Garcia, took the lead after the first turn, although Promise Keeper and Fleetridge stayed close behind. The same three horses controlled the circuit’s middle until Skippylongstocking picked up the pace on the last bend and slid between them. Ain’t Life Grand and Call Me Fast joined Skippylongstocking in their pursuit of catching up to the race’s leader, Giant Game.

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Despite its best efforts, Skippylongstocking couldn’t topple Giant Game and placed second. Third place, Ain’t Life Grand, was another 1 1/4 lengths away, while fourth place, Call Me Fast, was another 1 1/2 lengths up the course. On the fast dirt track, all eyes were on the 4-year-old stallion Giant Game, who won with a time of 1:49.86.

The stallion’s previous victory at the Kentucky Derby track set the stage for a string of victories that would continue thanks to this one. The horse, having established himself as a star performer, may now look forward to even greater things in the future.

Soon to become a million-dollar horse

Giant Game has always felt at home at Churchill Downs. Even if the horse didn’t win the Maiden Special Weight race at the yearly Derby venue in 2021, it was still the first race the animal had ever participated in at that location. Later that year, he finished third in another Grade 1 race, the TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance.

However, the stallion’s 2022 season was a failure since he ran in just two races and performed poorly in both of them. Giant Game won his first race in almost two years on May 11, 2023, at Churchill Downs after competing in several Allowance races this year. After that, he went to Prairie Meadows, where he won the Cornhusker Handicap (Gr. 3) to add some dollars to his $530,500 career earnings.

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