The Chosen Vron Repeats in Bing Crosby Stakes, Earns Breeders’ Cup Sprint Berth

July 27th, 2024 by Tracy Gantz

Content provided by BloodHorse

The Chosen Vron Hector Berrios Eric Kruljac Breeders’ Cup Sprint Del Mar Closethegame Sugar Jackstown horse racing sprinter gelding winning streak

With Hector Berrios riding, The Chosen Vron rolled through the stretch to win the Bing Crosby Stakes for the second consecutive year on July 27 at Del Mar, securing a berth in the 2024 Breeders’ Cup Sprint. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Fabled California-bred gelding The Chosen Vron dominated the $400,000 Bing Crosby Stakes July 27, posting an easy victory as he won the key Southern California sprint at Del Mar for the second year in a row.

Trained by Eric Kruljac and ridden by Hector Berrios, The Chosen Vron was three to four wide the entire race, pressing the pace then leaving the competition behind midstretch to post his sixth consecutive victory and 14^th win in his last 15 starts. The final time for six furlongs on a dirt rack rated fast was 1:08.99.

“Hector hasn’t come back and told me, but I just know he felt like he had tons of horse and tons of confidence in the horse, and it was just awesome,” Kruljac said. “I didn’t give him any instructions. He’s been on the horse every time we work him. Hector is a big part of this horse.”

Kentucky shipper Closethegame Sugar finished 2 ¼ lengths back in second after battling between horses for much of the race. Jackstown, the Bob Baffert trainee who came in undefeated in two lifetime starts, finished third.

With the Crosby being a Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series event, The Chosen Vron earned an automatic, fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, to be run Nov. 2 at Del Mar. He finished fifth in last year’s BC Sprint at Santa Anita Park.

The Chosen Vron, a 6-year-old son of Vronsky, is owned by a partnership consisting of Kruljac, John Sondereker, Richard Thornburgh, and Robert Fetkin. He improved his career record to a superb 19 wins from 24 starts, with one second and two thirds. Eighteen of those victories have come in stakes. His lifetime earnings increased to $1,659,678.