Gunna Wanna and Corey Cushing topped the final round of the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity's rein work, finishing fourth overall for a $75,000 payout, and less than 3 hours later, the mare stepped onto the grounds of Solo Select in Whitesboro, Texas, to join the Select Genes offering of superstar mares standing to the public. She will be offered to pre-screened buyers and programs for $30,000 in 2024.
Gunna Wanna and Cushing also topped the rein work in the preliminary round for $5,000, and the mare's final-round cow-work run was worthy of a hat-toss from Cushing, who's won every major title in the sport.
"The fact that this mare always wanted to please every single day made her exceptional" Cushing said. "She doesn't have a bad day. Thinking back to how she trained, she always wanted to please and took everything very serious. At the Snaffle Bit, the cow work was tough for me, but Gunna Wanna was the very last horse to work in that pen, and that cow tried climbing up in my lap and it never even bothered her. She didn't even know it happened. She was so pure on where she needed to go, and her overall class in the show pen—whether she's walking down the street or in the performance arena—she draws your attention. I hadn't gotten along with a mare like that in a long time. You enjoy being around her, she wants to be your friend. I can't say enough good things about her.
Gunna Wanna—by Gunnatrashya and out of Chics Vintage Flair by Smart Chic Olena—added another $5,000 to her LTEs by winning the NRCHA's Mare Incentive as the highest-placing mare in the finals.
"Marepower is the future of the horse business," Melanie Smith, Solo Select founder, said. "Gunna Wanna was a no-brainer for us. She's everything we look for in a mare. With over 280 entires, she had the highest score in the rein-work for both the prelims and the finals. There's a lot to be said for that. She is going to cross beautifully on the cutting studs we have lined out for her. Gunna Wanna will stand for $30,000 in 2024. We will be very picky on the person buying the aspiration(s) out of her - we intend to set this mare up for success, and verifying the resulting foals will be in the right programs is certainly crucial to that."
Cushing picked the mare out as a 2-year-old at Clint Allen's, and he called Western Bloodstock's Jeremy Barwick to buy her for him to show.
"She has been special all year," Barwick said. "Corey has loved her from the get-go. Every time I talked to him, he raved about how good she was. I did like the way she was bred, because you can breed her to everything. She's exceptional in every event, and she'll do great things as a broodmare down the road. Melanie is going to do big things with her."
For Cushing, Gunna Wanna's sale to Select Genes is best-case scenario for the mare's future.
"Breed her to anything," Cushing said. "When I heard Ty and Melanie bought her, I was so excited. They know all the best in the industry, and they'll give her the best chance possible. I am sure I'll be calling Ty in a little bit here and asking for her back, but I understand the business side of it. It wouldn't bother me if they never sent her back, because they'll allow her to be a great broodmare. I want her to have the best possible chance, and I want her to continue to be the buzz she was the last three weeks. There will be great things come from her. As the old saying goes, 80% is the mare and 20% is the stud. And I believe that."
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