My Gun's Loaded turned Saratoga's 2026 Alabama Stakes into a reality check for Counting Stars, grinding past the odds-on star and holding off Measure in a neck decision that shook up the 3-year-old filly division. The Chad Brown trainee, ridden with icy patience by Manny Franco, covered the 1 1/4 miles in 2:04.87 and returned $8.74 as the second choice in a six-horse field, leaving the seemingly inevitable coronation of Counting Stars as champion filly very much an open question.
Run as the Grade 1, $600,000 Alabama Stakes presented by Keeneland Sales, the race unfolded almost exactly as handicappers expected through the opening mile, with Counting Stars clearing off to a comfortable lead while setting moderate fractions and traveling well within herself. My Gun's Loaded settled in mid-pack in the three- to four-path, allowing the favorite to dictate terms while Measure tracked in behind, waiting for room. Turning for home, Franco swung My Gun's Loaded to the outside, briefly floated wider by Counting Stars, then launched a sustained run that carried her to the lead inside the final furlong, where she outstayed Measure by a neck with Counting Stars another 1 1/2 lengths back in third and A.P.'s Girl, Ati Girl, and Nycon completing the order of finish.
The upset lands harder because of what Counting Stars brought into the race: back-to-back Grade 1 wins in the Acorn Stakes and Coaching Club American Oaks at Saratoga, both coming at the expense of Kentucky Oaks winner Always a Runner and both achieved with the kind of authority that had pundits penciling in year-end honors. Trained by Mark Casse and sent off around 1-4 as the clear public choice, she was bidding to sweep New York's Triple Tiara for 3-year-old fillies and reinforce her claim as the division's leader. Instead, after getting every semblance of her preferred trip on a fair surface, she simply ran out of answers late at a true mile and a quarter, raising new questions about how far her brilliance stretches when the distances get genuinely classic.
My Gun's Loaded came into the Alabama as a filly on the rise rather than a finished product, which made Brown's decision to fire a stakes shot at 10 furlongs intriguing even before the result. Pre-race analysis from multiple outlets noted that she was “streaking,” having built a small win streak in allowance and optional-claiming company that hinted at untapped upside as the distances stretched out. MyWinners' betting guide framed the Alabama as her stakes debut and suggested that the filly's stamina profile made her a live alternative to the heavy favorite at around 3-1 on the morning line, a view ultimately validated by the tote and the result. Franco's ride—keeping her in the clear, avoiding traffic, and committing to a long, grinding run rather than a short burst—perfectly matched that profile and made the most of a filly who appears to get stronger the farther she goes.
The race itself felt less like a fluky ambush and more like a genuine changing-of-the-guard type test at 10 furlongs, with class and stamina colliding in the final three-sixteenths. Chart comments from North American and UK-based racecards describe My Gun's Loaded traveling three to four wide, advancing six paths off the rail turning for home, and still having enough in reserve to seize the lead at the three-sixteenths pole, a pattern typical of true staying fillies at Saratoga. Measure's late rally down inside, while impressive, ultimately flattened when asked to match that sustained outside run, suggesting that both she and Counting Stars may be better suited to nine furlongs or less, where tactical speed can be protected and the emphasis on raw stamina is slightly dialed down.
From a divisional standpoint, the Alabama leaves handicappers and Eclipse Award voters with a far more complicated picture than seemed likely after the Coaching Club American Oaks. Counting Stars still owns a powerful résumé anchored by multiple Grade 1 scores and marquee wins over Kentucky Oaks heroine Always a Runner, and she remains a major player for races like the Cotillion and Breeders' Cup Distaff if connections choose to shorten her back up. My Gun's Loaded, meanwhile, has vaulted into the top tier of 3-year-old fillies with her first Grade 1 triumph, giving Brown another legitimate Distaff prospect and putting any fall targets—from the Beldame to a possible Breeders' Cup bid—firmly on the table. For bettors, the takeaway is clear: in a division this deep, even a filly with Counting Stars' credentials is vulnerable when the distance gets longer and a quietly improving rival like My Gun's Loaded shows up ready to fire at full range.
