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Withers, Toboggan, Ruthless Pegasus World Cup works Eclipse Awards Year in Review Santa Anita opening day |
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![]() Eclipse with Mr.Wildman & His Sons by George Stubbs Buy from Amazon.com |
Date: 01/23/2024
The 54th annual Eclipse Awards were presented Thursday night at The Breakers Palm Beach honoring the champions of North American racing in 2024. Of the 240 eligible voters represented by the NTRA, consisting of member racetrack racing officials and Equibase field personnel, the NTWAB, and Daily Racing Form, 208 (87%) took part in the voting. Finalists were determined in each category by voters' top three selections, using a 10-5-1 point basis. Eclipse Award winners are determined solely by first place votes.
![]() Thorpedo Anna winner of the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) |
![]() Sierra Leone winner of the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) |
There were two other horses who picked up votes for Horse of the Year. Sierra Leone was second in Horse of the Year voting, and was voted Champion Three-Year-Old Male. He gave Chad Brown his first Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) trophy, along with wins in the Blue Grass (G1) and Risen Star (G2) to go with second place finishes in the Kentucky Derby (G1) and Jim Dandy (G2) and third place finishes in the Belmont (G1) and Travers (G1). Brown said, "He had a very consistent season from start to finish. In the most challenging race of the year, in the richest race in North America against older horses in the Classic, he was able to defeat them. I think that solidified the championship for him. I am very proud of his season. I was disappointed by the outcome of the Kentucky Derby, but I have never been disappointed in any of his efforts." A distant third in Horse of the Year voting was Fierceness, who was a distant second in Three-Year-Old Male voting behind Sierra Leone.
![]() Moira winner of the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1) |
The closest voting came in the Male Turf Horse category, with Breeders' Cup Turf (G1) winner Rebel's Romance taking the prize with 89 votes over second place Johannes with 81. Rebel's Romance also won the 2022 Turf, but was second in Eclipse voting, but came back as the only Breeders' Cup winner in nonconsecutive years. Trainer Charlie Appleby said, "For the mileage he's done and to be campaigned at that level for so long, it takes a special horse." Godolphin COO Hugh Anderson added, "We've got huge faith in him and he is now one of Godolphin's greats. He's won on numerous continents and has been a superstar." Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1) winner Moira was named Champion Turf Female, after also winning the Beverly D Stakes (G2) to go with runner-up finishes in the Diana (G1) and E.P. Taylor (G1). Winning co-owner Tom Ryan said, "Everything came together at the right time. Kevin (Attard, trainer) peaked her at the right time. Donato (Lanni) wanted to keep this filly in training, bought her. ... I couldn't be more proud to be part of this ownership team." Attard added, "She's a very special horse, it was the highest of highs, a lot of firsts for me in my career."
![]() Citizen Bull winning the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) |
Sheikh Mohammed's Godolphin once again took home the most trophies on the night, getting trophies for Outstanding Owner, Outstanding Breeder, Male Turf Horse for Rebel's Romance, and Two-Year-Old Filly for Immersive. This is the fourth year in a row Godolphin took home both Owner and Breeder awards, and set a record for 13 titles, beating the previous record of 12 set by Frank Stronach/Adena Springs. Michael Banahan, bloodstock director for Godolphin USA said, "We're in the golden age at the moment. It's unbelievable the run of luck we have had the last several years. You wait for the wave to break and send you scrambling again, but you have another impressive year in a different area. We're so fortunate. The 2-year-olds were the captains of the team and led through this phenomenal golden patch in the fall. But Sheikh Mohammed put the tools in place for us stallion-wise and mare-wise and we're reaping the rewards from what he's sown. And when you work hard, you make your own luck. We have a great team in Kentucky getting the babies safely on the ground, rearing them, and getting them to our pre-trainers who do a great job. Then with our excellent trainers, if you give them the ammunition, they give you results on the racetrack."
Frank Taylor and the Stable Recovery Program were honoured with the Special Eclipse Award for service to the Thoroughbred industry. "This program has changed so many people's lives," said Tom Rooney, NTRA president and CEO. "Not only does Stable Recovery give recovering addicts a second chance, but the racing industry is fortunate to find very capable and talented horsemen as a result. Dependency is an issue that affects everyone, one way or another." Taylor said, "I feel like this program has been like a spiritual journey and that God has had his hands on it every step of the way. This program is solving a lot of problems – the addiction problem, the imprisonment problem, the homelessness problem, the labor problem in the sport, and on top of everything, it's reuniting families. It's just so good on so many levels, and I'm very proud of that."
All the winners for 2024 are listed below with the actual vote totals. A link to a full profile is given for each winner. You can look up past year's winners here. You can see how the awards are decided here.
Horse of the Year: Thorpedo Anna
Voting: Thorpedo Anna, 193; Sierra Leone, 10; Fierceness, 5.
Two-Year-Old Male: Citizen Bull
Voting: Citizen Bull, 204; Chancer McPatrick, 2; Henri Matisse (IRE), 1; Voter Abstention, 1.
Two-Year-Old Filly: Immersive
Voting: Immersive, 202; Lake Victoria (IRE), 6.
Champion Three-Year-Old Male: Sierra Leone
Voting: Sierra Leone, 169; Fierceness, 34; Dornoch, 2; Seize the Grey, 1; Voter Abstentions, 2.
Champion Three-Year-Old Filly: Thorpedo Anna
Voting: Thorpedo Anna, 208.
Older Male: National Treasure
Voting: National Treasure, 148; Full Serrano (ARG), 19; Kingsbarns, 7; Senor Buscador, 6; Mullikin, 5; Next, 5; Subsanador (ARG), 4; Straight No Chaser, 4; Post Time, 3; Newgate, 2; Voter Abstentions, 5.
Older Female: Idiomatic
Voting: Idiomatic, 144; Raging Sea, 38; Adare Manor, 23; Soul of an Angel, 1; Sweet Azteca, 1; Voter Abstention, 1.
Male Sprinter: Straight No Chaser
Voting: Straight No Chaser, 125; Cogburn, 38; The Chosen Vron, 23; Mullikin, 11; Raging Torrent, 2; Starlust (GB), 2; Gun Pilot, 1; Locked, 1; Post Time, 1; Voter Abstentions, 4.
Female Sprinter: Soul of an Angel
Voting: Soul of an Angel, 168; Sweet Azteca, 11; Ways and Means, 10; Society, 8; Ag Bullet, 6, Emery, 2; Kopion, 1; Vahva, 1; Voter Abstention, 1.
Male Turf Horse: Rebel's Romance
Voting: Rebel's Romance, 89; Johannes, 81; Carl Spackler (IRE), 15; More Than Looks, 14; Cogburn, 6; Far Bridge, 2; Trikari, 1.
Female Turf Horse: Moira
Voting: Moira, 176; She Feels Pretty, 21; Cinderella's Dream (GB), 8; Didia (ARG) 1; Gina Romantica, 1; Sacred Wish, 1.
Steeplechase: Snap Decision
Voting: Snap Decision, 182; Carloun (IRE), 7; Freddy Flintstone, 3; Too Friendly (GB), 1; Voter Abstentions, 15.
Owner: Godolphin LLC
Voting: Godolphin, LLC, 193; Brookdale Racing, Inc., Mark Edwards, Judy Hicks, and Magdalena Racing, 5; Klaravich Stables, Inc., 4; Coolmore and Partners, 1; SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, LLC, Robert E. Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, Waves Edge Capital, LLC, and Catherine Donovan, 1. Voter Abstentions, 4.
Breeder: Godolphin
Voting: Godolphin, 176; Judy Hicks, 21; Calumet Farm, 3; Brereton Jones, 2; Coleswood Farm, Inc., 1; Voter Abstentions, 5.
Trainer: Chad Brown
Voting: Chad Brown, 101; Kenny McPeek, 88; Brad Cox, 9; Steve Asmussen, 8; Bob Baffert, 1; Voter Abstention, 1.
Jockey: Flavien Prat
Voting: Flavien Prat, 202; Irad Ortiz Jr., 5; Brian Hernandez Jr., 1.
Apprentice Jockey: Erik Asmussen
Voting: Erik Asmussen, 168; J.G. Torrealba, 15; Gabriel Moldonado, 8; Sofia Vives, 8; Manuel Americano, 1; Pietro Moran, 1; Voter Abstentions, 7.
The Media Eclipse Awards were announced January 8. The articles can be read and photo viewed here.
How the Awards are Decided
The old three-bloc voting system was replaced in 2003 with a one vote per person system, where every voter's selection is weighted equally. Voters rank their top three selections in each of the 16 voting categories and points are awarded on a 10-5-1 basis. The voting point system determines the three finalists in each category, but the winner is determined by first-place votes only.
More about the Eclipse Awards:
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