Gun Runner tops Pegasus field

Gun Runner will start from the No. 10 post in Saturday’s Pegasus World Cup Invitational — a lessthan-ideal situation even for the top horse in the sport right now.

Gun Runner’s connections wanted him in the inaugural edition of the Pegasus a year ago, only to have their entry denied. There was concern that Gun Runner, who was stabled at Fair Grounds — which had barns under quarantine because two other horses were ill with a highly contagious virus — should not be permitted to be around the Pegasus field because of the potential health risk.

This time, there was no denying Gun Runner’s path to the Pegasus. The only question is if any of the other 11 horses in the field can deny him the $7 million winner’s share of the $16 million purse as the newly crowned Horse of the Year will be the heavy favorite to win what will be his final race before retirement.

The field for the 11⁄8-mile test at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., is loaded with firepower, with five of the top six finishers from November’s Breeders’ Cup Classic — Gun Runner, Collected, West Coast, War Story and Gunnevera — meeting again. And that doesn’t even include Sharp Azteca, the likely second choice in the wagering and a horse that has finished no worse than third in 13 of his last 14 starts. In other news: • Stipe Miocic will defend his heavyweight title against light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 226 in Las Vegas. The rare matchup of two reigning champions July 7 will cap the seventh annual UFC International Fight Week. Miocic and Cormier both defended their titles last Saturday at UFC 220 in Boston.