The fields for the 14 races that comprise the Breeders’ Cup World Championships really begin to come into focus in summer and fall. This regular feature will offer a snapshot profile of one of the previous weekend’s standout stars, usually a Breeders’ Cup “Win and You’re In” Challenge Series winner, and exploring their chances to win a targeted race Nov. 1-2 at Del Mar.

Last weekend, arguably one of the best sprinters in the history of California racing reeled off his sixth win in a row and 14^th in his last 15 starts. The Chosen Vron solidified his credentials as a leading contender for the Nov. 2 Breeders’ Cup Sprint and earned a starting-gate spot in that $1 million race with a repeat victory in the $400,000, Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes at Del Mar.

Accomplishments: After competing mainly in stakes races restricted to California-breds through the middle of 2023, The Chosen Vron broke through and garnered national attention with a gritty head victory over Anarchist in the Bing Crosby last summer. Trainer Eric Kruljac decided to forego an additional start prior to the 2023 Qatar Racing BC Sprint at Santa Anita Park and The Chosen Vron ran evenly to finish fifth of eight starters in his first test against the best sprinters nationwide.

Since then, he’s been perfect, winning six stakes races from November 2023 to last Saturday. Three of the stakes have come against California-breds, but the other three have been against open company – a one-length win in the Grade 3 San Carlos Stakes Presented by FanDuel TV at Santa Anita in March, a three-quarter length triumph in the listed Kona Gold Stakes in April, also at Santa Anita, and then his decisive win in the Bing Crosby.

In this year’s Crosby, The Chosen Vron raced three- and four-wide early on and kept that position through the turn before taking over at will at the top of the lane under regular jockey Hector Berrios and settling matters with a burst of speed, winning by 2 ¼ lengths and finishing six furlongs in 1:08.99. He easily defeated West Coast-based graded stakes winners Anarchist (fifth) and Happy Jack (sixth) and was not threatened by runner-up Closethegame Sugar, who had shipped to Southern California from Kentucky after impressively winning two sprint stakes at Churchill Downs.

Simply put, The Chosen Vron has nothing left to prove within the California sprint division. The waiting game thus begins for another shot at the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, which will be held at Del Mar on Nov. 2. The Chosen Vron is 4-for-6 racing on Del Mar’s dirt track, and has a perfect running style for sprint races as he’s versatile enough to take the lead from the outset if that’s what the pace scenario requires, or sit just off of the early speed and pounce at just the right time. The gelding is 14-for-16 paired with Hector Berrios, who also rides The Chosen Vron in workouts and obviously has a special relationship with his mount.

The Chosen Vron and Berrios. (Eclipse Sportswire)

Speed Figures: The Chosen Vron earned a career-high Equibase Speed Figure of 121 in the 2024 Bing Crosby, jumping up from a 103 he earned in his prior race, the Thor’s Echo Stakes against Cal-breds in late May, and a 115 in the Kona Gold prior to that. He also tallied a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 105 in the Bing Crosby, up from a 90 and 102 in the aforementioned races. For comparison’s sake, The Chosen Vron earned an ESF of 113 and a Beyer of 96 in the 2023 Bing Crosby. He’s better than ever right now at age 6 and his current speed figures put him right in contention with the historical standard in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Looking Ahead: Yesterday, Eric Kruljac told Daily Racing Form’s Steve Andersen that he had made a mistake in 2023 by easing up a bit on The Chosen Vron’s training between his 2023 Bing Crosby win and his start in the Qatar Racing BC Sprint, stating that “I’m going to be a little more aggressive than last year, I backed off of ‘Vron’ more than I should have.” He left open the possibility that the fan favorite would make one start in between his July 27 Bing blowout and the BC Sprint a little over three months from now, which could be in the Grade 2 Santa Anita Sprint Championship Sept. 29.

Even if he doesn’t have one more prep and trains up to another try in the Sprint, The Chosen Vron should be considered a main win threat come November. He’s in peak form and like last year will have a “home field” advantage over most of his opponents in the World Championships. Perhaps most importantly, Elite Power, the reigning back-to-back champion sprinter who won nine of his final ten races including two BC Sprints, is now enjoying life as a stallion at Juddmonte Farms in Kentucky (2023 Qatar BC Sprint runner-up and dual Grade 1 winner Gunite has also transitioned to a stud career). All of these reasons make The Chosen One a definite “buy” as a potential Breeders’ Cup Sprint victor, which if accomplished would certainly cinch an Eclipse Award for his connections as well.