The front end was the place to be for Sunday's $7,500 Brad Gunn Breeders Stakes elims at Century Downs, but the two winners had much different stories to tell on how they got to the winner's circle.

In the first Brad Gunn elim, Outlaw True Grit (Phil Giesbrecht) used his rail position to forge to the front through a calvary charge of four horses off the gate. That rush left Spikes Revenge (Brandon Campbell) caught on the outside and forced to race first up through a :27.2 opener and :57.1 half. When that bid started to falter, Custards Laststand (Dave Hudon) resumed that pressure while favoured Exit Smiling (Jamie Gray) was poised second over through a 1:25.3 third station. Custards Laststand was able to get to within a quarter of a length at the top of the stretch but no closer as Outlaw True Grit lived up to his name and repelled all rivals for the 1:55.1 lifetime best score.

Exit Smiling rallied off cover to claim second with Custards Laststand and Mortgage My Villa (Nathan Sobey) also advancing to the $50,000 Brad Gunn Final slated for one week from today.

Trained and co-owned by Rod Starkewski along with Clauzette Byckal off Onoway, Alta., Outlaw True Grit sports a 2-1-0 summary from six seasonal starts. Lifetime, the Blue Burner - Gunslingin Gal gelding boasts six wins and more than $76,000 in earnings.

Favoured Cheddar Jack saw much less competition during his gate-to-wire Gunn score. The quickest off the gate from post four, Cheddar Jack and Paul Davies set uncontested fractions of :28.4 and :58.2 before Freedoms Rescue (Dave Kelly) commenced an outer-flow attack down the backside. As the challenger moved to within a length as the third quarter was checked in 1:26.1, Davies gave Cheddar Jack his cue to accelerate. The sophomore responded with a sharp :28 closer to pull away from his competition and hit the wire more than four lengths to the good, stopping the clock in 1:541 and earning a new speed badge in the process.

Its A Great White (Sobey), Freedoms Rescue and Yankee Up (Gray) finished second through fourth respectively and also punch tickets to next week's Brad Gunn Final.

A son of Betterthancheddar-Bababababarbarapan, Cheddar Jack is trained by Rod Hennessy for Lorne Duffield of Edmonton and Diane Harries of Falun, Alta. From nine starts in 2018, Cheddar Jack carries a 5-1-1 summary with earnings north of $20,000.

In non-stakes action, American Passion returned from a week off to once again defeat the best older pacing mares in the province with a gate-to-wire 1:56 score in the $9,000 Fillies & Mares Open Pace. Team Campbell -- driver Brandon and trainer Sanford -- helped engineer the victory for the eight-year-old American Ideal - Felicia Hanover mare, now a winner of 31 lifetime starts along with $228,422 in purses for owner Ray Henry.

To view the results from Century's Sunday card, click the following link: Sunday Results - Century Downs.