With little more than three weeks left in 2025, Into Mischief looks assured of his seventh consecutive leading sire title. That means in the coming year he will be seeking his eighth straight stallion crown, a feat only previously achieved by Lexington, whose eighth (of 16) leading sires title was earned in 1868.
If Into Mischief's bid to match that historic feat is foiled, the two main candidates to do so appear to be Not This Time and Gun Runner , who are currently second and third on this year's table. To make the potential coming battle even more intriguing, all three stallions have very good crops of 2-year-olds.
Coming into the most recent weekend, Into Mischief had five 2025 juvenile stakes winners headed by expected champion 2-year-old male and Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) captor Ted Noffey. Filly Tommy Jo, successful in the Alcibiades Stakes (G1) and Spinaway Stakes (G1), and Satono Voyage—winner of the Cattleya Stakes, the first event on the Japan Road to the Derby—are other prominent 2-year-olds by Into Mischief.
Not This Time had nine juvenile stakes winners, including Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G1) scorer Cy Fair and graded winners Final Score, Imaginationthelady, and Unrivaled Time.
Gun Runner had seven, among them Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies (G1) heroine and likely champion 2-year-old filly, Super Corredora, and Del Mar Futurity (G1) winner and Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) third Brant.
As chance would have it, on Dec. 6, all three stallions had runners in the Remsen Stakes (G2)—a 9-furlong juvenile test which often showcases some classic type runners—and all three runners were involved in the climax. Turning for home the Not This Time son Balboa had the lead, pursued by Renegade (Into Mischief) and Paladin (Gun Runner). Balboa kept on in determined fashion, but couldn't hold off the challengers, eventually coming home in third, 1 1/2 lengths behind Renegade, who in turn hit the line 2 lengths in arrears of Paladin.
It was only the second start for Paladin, who on his debut had finished a head behind Renegade in a mile maiden at Aqueduct Racetrack, but was promoted to first after Renegade was disqualified for bumping him. Gun Runner himself was useful at 2, when he won twice and finished fourth in the Kentucky Jockey Club Stakes (G2); better at 3 when he won four graded stakes, including the Clark Handicap (G1), took second in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1), and third in the Kentucky Derby (G1) and Travers Stakes (G1); and exceptional at age 4, when he earned Horse of the Year after winning his final four starts, including the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1). He also added the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) at 5, prior to retiring to stud that year.
Gun Runner now has 51 stakes winners, 34 graded, from his first five crops, including Eclipse Award Champions Echo Zulu and Sierra Leone .
Paladin is the first winner from three starters out of the unraced Tapit mare, Secret Sigh. She is a half sister to the very good Japanese performer Mozu Ascot, winner of the Yasuda Kinen (G1) and February Stakes (G1), and to the Jersey Girl Stakes scorer, Kareena.
Secret Sigh's dam is India, a talented daughter of Hennessy who captured four stakes events, including the 2006 Cotillion Breeders' Cup Handicap (G2) and 2007 Azeri Breeders Cup Stakes (G3). India is a sister to Irish black-type scorer, Sing Softly. She is also half sister to the stakes-winning Deputy Minister mare, Pilfer, whose son, To Honor and Serve, took the Nashua (G2) and Remsen stakes in 2010 and subsequently added the Woodward Stakes (G1), Cigar Mile Handicap (G1), Pennsylvania Derby (G2), and Westchester Stakes (G3).
Pilfer is also the dam of the Chandelier Stakes (G1) victress Angela Renee, and to the stakes-winning and grade 1-placed stakes winner Elnaawi, and granddam of La Cara, one of the top 3-year-old fillies of 2025, successful this term in the Ashland (G1) and Acorn (G1) stakes.
Paladin's third dam, Misty Hour (Miswaki), is also a stakes winner, taking the Glorious Song Stakes at Woodbine. A half sister to grade 2-placed Roberto's Hope, the granddam of Canadian champion grass horse Rahy's Attorney, Misty Hour is out of Our Tina Marie, a daughter of Nijinsky II and Comely Stakes (G3) winner Java Moon. In turn, Java Moon is by Graustark, and is one of several important runners and producers sired by Graustark or his brother, His Majesty, from her dam, Golden Trail, or daughters of Golden Trail.
Overall, Java Moon is the ancestress of more than 50 stakes winners, including additional grade 1 winners Memories of Silver, Winter Memories, and Manaal. Other descendants of Golden Trail include the Kentucky Derby victor Monarchos; champion grass male Sunshine Forever; and major sires Dynaformer and Brian's Time.
Paladin is the 10th stakes winner from 51 starters for Gun Runner out of Tapit mares, the others including grade 1 winner Society, grade 2 winners Red Route One and Wicked Halo, and grade three winners Recharge, Il Miracolo , and Disarm .
Tapit is out of a mare by Unbridled, who brings in a third strain of Fappiano to go with the two in Gun Runner through Cryptoclearance and Quiet American (who has a similar pedigree background to Unbridled). Paladin is also inbred to Storm Cat, sire of Gun Runner's own broodmare sire, Giant's Causeway, and the Storm Cat duplication is found in 17 Gun Runner stakes winners, including Echo Zulu; Preakness Stakes (G1) scorer Early Voting , and other grade 1 winners Gunite , Vahva, and Gun Pilot .
