The Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Del Mar final Saturday, in addition to offering numerous memorable moments and improbable races, went a great distance towards deciding the winners of the Eclipse Awards. First held in 1971, the Eclipse Awards are racing’s year-end awards, given out to the champions of every main division. Voting will quickly get underway, and the winners will be revealed on Feb. 10 at Santa Anita Park.
There’s little doubt about many of the winners. Knicks Go stamped himself as champion older male and Horse of the Yr with a dominant Longines Breeders’ Cup Classic win. Letruska, regardless of a disappointing efficiency within the Longines Distaff, did sufficient earlier within the yr to clinch the award for champion older feminine. The respective Juvenile race winners, Corniche and Echo Zulu, additionally shall be topped Eclipse Award champions.
Maybe essentially the most fascinating division with some doubt is among the most glamorous: the 3-year-old male division. All the most important 3-year-olds within the Basic have been defeated, leaving the end result of the Eclipse voting doubtful. Let’s check out the most important contenders for the award.
Heading into the Basic, nearly everybody thought-about Important High quality the division chief. He gained 5 graded stakes on the yr, together with the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets and the Runhappy Travers Stakes. He grew to become the sixth horse within the final 30 years to win each races. He additionally gained the Southwest Stakes, the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, and the Jim Dandy Stakes.
Backers of Important High quality will level to these races as the middle of his case. No 3-year-old gained as many graded stakes, and the Belmont-Travers double is actually a uncommon and prestigious feat. Final yr, he gained the TVG Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Presented by Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance and was voted champion 2-year-old male. Though his races final yr don’t have any direct bearing on his credentials this yr, his spectacular 2-year-old marketing campaign will maybe be on the minds of voters.
The issue with Important High quality’s case is that he misplaced the 2 most necessary races of his season. As the favourite within the Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve, he was flat within the stretch and completed fourth. He was as soon as once more favored within the Basic however completed third, crushed 3 ½ lengths by Knicks Go. These defeats will definitely be held in opposition to him within the voting. If he couldn’t ship on the most important levels, some voters will assume, how may he be thought-about the perfect 3-year-old?
He gained the most important 3-year-old race of all of them, successful the Kentucky Derby by a half-length in gate-to-wire model. After a third-place end within the Preakness Stakes, he went to the sidelines for a number of months. He returned with victories within the Shared Perception Stakes at Del Mar and the Awesome Again Stakes, then completed second within the Basic.
Medina Spirit has a couple of benefits within the Eclipse Award race in contrast with Important High quality. He beat older horses within the Grade 1 Superior Once more, which Important High quality by no means did. He additionally completed forward of him twice, within the Derby and within the Basic. If you happen to primarily based your vote strictly on head-to-head information, Medina Spirit could be your alternative. And, after all, he crossed the end line first within the greatest race for his division.
Nonetheless, the Derby would possibly find yourself costing him some votes. A couple of days after the Derby, it was introduced that Medina Spirit examined optimistic for betamethasone, an anti-inflammatory steroid that may solely be used therapeutically in Kentucky, and requires a two-week withdrawal time. As such, his Derby win stays in authorized limbo. This case could trigger him to lose favor with some voters and will result in them voting for Important High quality over him.
Whereas Important High quality and Medina Spirit are the clear favorites for the Eclipse, a brand new identify entered the dialog after Breeders’ Cup weekend.
On the early a part of the Derby path, Life Is Good was the consensus high prospect. He gained the Sham Stakes over Medina Spirit, then soundly defeated him by eight lengths within the San Felipe Stakes. A couple of weeks after that race, Life Is Good was recognized with an ankle chip and missed the Triple Crown sequence. He was a hard-fought second within the H. Allen Jerkens Stakes behind Jackie’s Warrior, then gained the Grade 2 Kelso Handicap in opposition to older horses because the overwhelming favourite.
Life Is Good asserted his dominance within the Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile. Because the 7-10 favourite, he led each step of the best way for a powerful 5 ¾-length win. That efficiency earned a 109 Beyer Pace Determine and a 120 mark on the Equibase scale.
Whereas Life Is Good could be essentially the most proficient member of his crop, his credentials don’t stack up with these of Important High quality or Medina Spirit. He’s gained only one Grade 1 race on the yr, in distinction to the 2 gained by Medina Spirit and the three gained by Important High quality. The truth is, the sector Medina Spirit beat within the Superior Once more was most likely as robust, if not more durable, than the one Life Is Good defeated within the Grime Mile.
It’s doable Life Is Good additional establishes himself as a dominant power subsequent yr, however his resume this season doesn’t stack up with the others.
Important High quality and Medina Spirit loom as the most important gamers within the Eclipse Awards race. Neither one will race once more this yr, however their credentials will certainly be debated additional for the following three months earlier than the Eclipse Awards votes are revealed.
