Stud announces Gunner B death

Gunner B, sire of the 2002 Grand National winner Red Marauder and 1992 Champion Hurdle hero Royal Gait, has died at the age of 30.

The horse, who was believed to be the oldest active thoroughbred stallion in Europe, is thought to have suffered a heart attack before dying peacefully in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Peter Hockenhull, manager of the Shade Oak Stud in Shropshire where Gunner B stood since 1989, said: “It’s daft to say considering he was 30, but it has come as a bit of a shock.

“He was a marvellous horse and without him we wouldn’t be what we are today. His efforts paid for the developments at Shade Oak and we owe him a hell of a lot.

“We only bought him as a stop gap in 1989 when we fetched him back from Germany.

“The plan was for him to cover for two or three years, but Royal Gait won the Champion Hurdle the year after we bought him and that was that.”

Gunner B was trained by Henry Cecil to win the 1978 Eclipse Stakes at the age of five and he finished out of the first three in just six of his 33 starts.

“I suppose he was remarkable for his resilience and that’s certainly a trait he has passed on down the line,” Hockenhull continued.

“As a racehorse he won five Group races in a year so when people talk about ‘iron horses’ nowadays they shouldn’t forget him.

“Like a lot of success stories he was criticised by those who didn’t think he had the best of legs or short of the right ‘bone’ required for a chaser.

“But he proved everyone wrong and it’s fitting that he won the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association award for leading active sire for the last four years.

“He was a really tough, genuine horse who excelled when conditions proved too much for his rivals. I think he won over all the serious doubters in the end thanks to the pressure of his success and he produced the goods year after year.”

As well as Red Marauder and Royal Gait, he has produced the likes of Red Striker, Bobby Grant, Gunner Welburn, Barrow Drive and talented novice hurdler Iris’s Gift.