U.S.S. Valor and Gaudreau meet again in the $500,000 Champagne Stakes (G1) at Belmont Park on Saturday, headlining a day that features three other Breeders' Cup Challenge Series "Win and You're In'' races.
The 1-mile Champagne drew a field of six 2-year-olds, with the winner earning a fees-paid berth to the $2 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) at Keeneland on Oct. 30.
The other "WAYI" races on the Belmont Park undercard are the Futurity Stakes (G3), the Miss Grillo Stakes (G2) and the Pilgrim Stakes (G2).
U.S.S. Valor comes into the Champagne off an eye-opening 13 ¼-length victory at Saratoga on Sept. 5 in his second career start. A month earlier, the War of Will colt ran third to Gaudreau in the debut races for both colts.
Gaudreau, meanwhile, makes his second start for trainer Brad Cox after his half-length win over Coach Pope, with U.S.S. Valor three-quarters of a length back in third.
Owned by Team Valor International, U.S.S. Valor is the 3-5 morning-line favorite Saturday, with Gaudreau at 8-5. Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey trains U.S.S. Valor and Manny Franco has the call from post 5. Gaudreau will be ridden by Flavien Prat from post 3.
The Champagne also awards the top five finishers 10-5-3-2-1 respective qualifying points toward the Kentucky Derby (G1) in May at Churchill Downs.
Also entered are Johnny Hockey (30-1), Raku (12-1), Club Reign (8-1) and Earth Song (15-1).
With his win at 7 furlongs, U.S.S. Valor earned a 105 Beyer Speed Figure, the highest of any 2-year-old this year. The colt dueled for the lead with the pacesetter and then drew off with ease under Franco. In his debut, he rallied from sixth of eight and was steadied at five-sixteenths
“I think he was [ready], but I didn’t want to run him three-quarters [6 1/2 furlongs]; I just wanted to run him. Then he drew the one post, so I thought it was a very good learning experience,” McGaughey said. “He came out of it really good, and obviously he ran very well the next time. I was expecting him to run well, but I didn’t expect him to run like that.”
Gaudreau, a son of Nyquist, pressed a fast pace in his debut, and through a half mile he kicked clear, straightening for home and then dug in to hold off Coach Pope, who is the 4-5 favorite in Saturday's Breeders' Futurity (G1) at Keeneland.
Gaudreau most recently worked 4 furlongs in 49.83 seconds on Sept. 26 over the Oklahoma training track at Saratoga.
"He's doing well and had his final piece of work in Saratoga,'' Brown said. "We're looking forward to running him back here, and that's been the plan all along.”
The Louisiana-bred is named for the late seven-time NHL All-Star Johnny Gaudreau.
“He's a good-looking horse, typical of the sire -- he throws good horses and really stamps them, and he's no different, this fellow,” Brown said. “Athletic, strong, good-moving horse. Always trained really well."
Club Reign could be a threat for trainer Whit Beckman. The colt, co-owned by Super Bowl-winning quarterback Russell Wilson (Three Brand Racing), won by six lengths in his only race, on Aug. 29 at Saratoga. He should also press the pace under returning rider Edgard Zayas.
Earth Song won in his career debut by 11 ¼ lengths on Sept. 7 at Monmouth, beating two rivals (he is cross-entered in Saturday’s Rocky Run at Delaware Park); Raku ran second by a nose last time out in the two-turn Sapling Stakes at Monmouth on Sept. 5; and Johnny Hockey (also named for Johnny Gaudreau) is 1-for-6, winning at fifth asking and running fifth in the Skidmore Stakes on turf at Saratoga on Aug. 27.
Post time for the Champagne, race 8, is 3:53 p.m. ET
| # | Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Odds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johnny Hockey (KY) | Katie Davis | Antonio Arriaga | 30-1 |
| 2 | Raku (KY) | Paco Lopez | Kelly J. Breen | 12-1 |
| 3 | Gaudreau (LA) | Flavien Prat | Chad C. Brown | 8-5 |
| 4 | Club Reign (KY) | Edgard J. Zayas | D. Whitworth Beckman | 8-1 |
| 5 | U. S. S. Valor (KY) | Manuel Franco | Claude R. McGaughey III | 3-5 |
| 6 | Earth Song (KY) | Ricardo Santana, Jr. | Jorge Delgado | 15-1 |
Last Updated on 10/01/2026
Richard Rosenblatt is an award-winning journalist and former Associated Press Horse Racing Editor. Currently, he serves as the news editor at US Racing, overseeing exclusive content from contributors worldwide.
