Shooting a .38 revolver quickly is an American tradition. Names like Frank Hamer and Ed McGivern built the early lore, and modern competitors such as Julie Golob, Jerry Miculek, and Todd Crow continue to teach us what a wheelgun can do when you learn to work the double-action. Ruger’s GP100 is already a reputation-bearing platform for durability and straightforward performance. With the Match Champion variant Ruger has leaned into the idea of a revolver that can be both a fun competition tool and a sensible defensive option. I spent time with the Match Champion to see how those claims hold up on the clock and in the field.
Ruger Match Champion DNA
Ruger was founded in 1949 by William Ruger and Alexander Sturm. The company made a name for itself producing rugged, value-forward firearms that used modern manufacturing techniques, like investment casting, to keep costs down without sacrificing reliability. The GP100 arrived in 1985, meant to replace the Security-Six family, and it was engineered as a slab-sided, no-nonsense workhorse you could feed .357 Magnum to for decades. Ruger’s design choices are conservative and effective: no sideplate to flex over time, a transfer bar safety for modern safe carry, a double-locking cylinder to reduce end-shake, and a robust crane-to-frame mating that keeps the action tight.
That mechanical backbone is exactly where the Match Champion starts. Ruger didn’t reinvent the wheel here, they refined what matters: durability, consistent lockup, and a frame that can stand up to repeated heavy use. For a shooter, that translates into a gun that will behave predictably when you ask it to run fast or when you ask it to be precise.
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Champs Attitude
At first glance the Match Champion looks like a hybrid of the practical GP100 and a sport-oriented handgun. It ships with a Hogue Monogrip in walnut, which is serviceable, but my immediate preference was for Badger custom grips with a single indexing point forward on the grip that makes getting your hand aligned quickly and repeatably. Making it much easier when you draw and present the pistol to your eye. That quick index is a small detail that becomes huge when you are shooting strings against a timer.
Where this gun surprised me is the sighting package. Ruger fitted a dovetail Novak-style 1911 rear on top of a wheelgun and paired it with a green fiber-optic front, both dovetailed to standard 1911 dimensions. I admit I was skeptical that transplanting 1911-style sights to a revolver would be more than a gimmick, but in practice they feel very natural if you come from a background of hammer-fired 1911 pistols. The rear is a full blackout 1911 dovetail and measures .320 thousandths across, while the front fiber-optic sits on a .235 thousandths dovetail to center of the fiber. For rapid target acquisition and follow-up shots these sights are intuitive and repeatable, and they mitigate snag compared to taller adjustable target sights.
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Match Champion’s Details
Internally and mechanically the Match Champion stays true to the GP100 lineage. It’s a six-shot revolver in .357 Magnum, built for hard use. The action is well timed out of the box and the lockup occurs well before the hammer reaches full travel. I measured the double-action pull at 8 pounds 14 ounces, and the single-action at 2 pounds 12 ounces across six pulls. Those are good factory numbers, with a clean, even pull throughout. The trigger return is a touch heavy in this sample, and if I keep the gun long-term a modest action job to soften the return spring would be the first upgrade I would consider, trimming roughly two pounds off the trigger return to improve cadence without sacrificing safety or risking the dreaded short-stroke.
The gun’s weight is well balanced for its intended role. In the configuration I tested it weighed 2 pounds 7.4 ounces, which helps control recoil and aids follow-up accuracy when shooting full-power loads. The barrel finish includes nine serrations across the top and a recessed crown, with a chamfer running down to the rifling. That recessed crown protects the muzzle and makes for durable accuracy. The barrel is capped and nicely crowned, which matters when you are chasing repeatable groups and the gun is getting tossed around a lot.
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Dovetail Idea
There is a practical reason the 1911-style dovetail works on this wheelgun. If you consistently shoot both 1911-pattern pistols and revolvers, your sight picture is trained a certain way. Ruger put a familiar reference on top of a wheelgun so shooters who move between platforms don’t have to re-learn sight alignment. That reduces cognitive load under the timer and makes the gun feel like an extension of the shooter, not an unfamiliar tool. For match shooters moving into ICORE or wheelgun divisions, that continuity is valuable.
Shootability & Defensive Credibility
On the range the Match Champion behaves as a gun built to be worked fast. The double-action pull is serviceable for speed; the single-action break is crisp enough to hand-hold for accuracy strings. I fed the gun HSM 158 grain JSP, a consistent load that proved point of aim versus point of impact was tight. I also ran defensive rounds from Lehigh and chrono’d everything with a Garmin Xero; the Match Champion digested modern loads without complaint, and the timing and lockup stayed true across heavy strings.
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One feature that puzzled me at first was the retained hammer spur. For true speed shooters and match-only users the single-action spur can feel unnecessary, because the double-action is what drives scores on a clock. I don’t know why Ruger retained it on a gun that should run fast. For a defensive gun there’s no reason to have it either. For a competition gun I can see it gives you an extra tool if you choose to use it, though I don’t see anyone doing that. If I were optimizing solely for speed I would recommend a bobbed hammer on the GP100 MC.
Ergo, Reloads & Accessories
Speedbeez LGP 38-06 speedloaders run smoothly in this gun and make reloads quick and reliable when you are moving between targets. Grip selection matters here; the factory Hogue Monogrip is comfortable for many, but it lacks the index definition some shooters want for a faster draw. The Badger grips fix that, tightening the hand in the right spots and making speedloader seating quick and consistent (just get the speedloader cut from the factory).
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There are a few small production details I would tweak. The barrel serrations terminate where the barrel threads into the frame, and I prefer them to continue onto the frame. That is cosmetic and preference-based, not a functional failure. Another tweak I would consider for the long-term owner is chamfering the charge holes to make rapid reloads even smoother. None of these are factory-level failures; they are simply small improvements that make a great gun even better for dedicated users.
Match, Defense & Value
What is interesting about the Match Champion is its cross-role potential. Ruger has built a gun that will run well on the clock in a competitive environment, but the same features make it a credible defensive firearm. Novak-style sights reduce snag when drawing from concealment, and the solid action and balanced weight make rapid, confident doubles more likely. A capable IWB holster, such as those made by Side Guard Holsters, can turn this into a concealed option for someone who values wheelgun reliability.
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For competition shooters new to ICORE, the Match Champion is an excellent entry point. It brings familiar sighting and handling conventions from the 1911 world into a wheelgun package, removing some of the friction that comes with learning a new platform. For the working shooter or defender who wants a tried-and-true revolver that can also be fun to run on the clock, it fills a void.
At an MSRP of $1,269 Ruger is keeping this gun squarely in the value-to-performance sweet spot. You will pay more for boutique custom work, and you can spend less for stripped-down utility, but the Match Champion gives you match-minded features without forcing you to buy custom parts to get there.
Final Shots
The GP100 Match Champion is an appealing package for shooters who want a wheelgun that is at once practical and quick. Ruger kept the engineering conservative and reliable, then added user-centric features such as dovetail 1911 sights and a grip geometry that can be rapidly indexed. If you pick one up, my first mods would be a set of thin Badger grips, a chamfered charge hole polish, a modest softening of the trigger return spring, and optionally a bobbed hammer if you are purely a speed shooter.
This gun will make a great entry tool for ICORE competitors, a reliable match gun for those who want to dabble, and a sensible defensive revolver for the practitioner who appreciates a hammer-forged, properly timed action. Ruger did not try to make a bespoke boutique gun here, and that is the point. The Match Champion is a practical, well-thought-out wheelgun that gives you the tools to shoot well, and it gives you the flexibility to make it your own.