In this year’s Annual Eclipse Awards, Horse of the Year was an easy decision and 99% of you will agree with me (there’s always that one). Champion Jockey was also pretty straightforward, as my selection set new records in two categories this year. We’ll see if you concur. As always, you may not agree with all of my opinions; in fact, I hope you don’t. That’s why we vote. If the choices were always clear-cut, we’d have a selection committee decide. In any case, here goes. And while it is too late to change my votes, I’d still like to hear from you and learn the rationale behind your own selections.

Two-Year-Old Male

1st – Abstain, 2nd – Abstain, 3rd – Abstain

Voters were asked to abstain from voting in any category in which they may have a conflict of interest (either in a financial or a promotional capacity), and because of the work I do with Starlight and StarLadies Racing, I abstained from voting in this division. Had I voted, I would’ve chosen Citizen Bull for the top spot based on the strength of his two Grade 1 wins, with the latter coming on the biggest stage in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Chancer McPatrick was a clear second choice for me as the only other two-year-old colt this year to pull off two G1 wins, but then he couldn’t overcome the lack of pace up front in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile. Henri Matisse won three graded/group stakes this year, with his last one coming in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf after an impressive and demanding late rally. 

Two-Year-Old Filly

1st – Immersive, 2nd – Lake Victoria, 3rd – Tenma

Immersive was an easy first selection. Four races this year, four wins, three of them were G1s, and her final start of the year was a scintillating win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies. Lake Victoria may actually be a better filly, but anyone who knows me and my voting record knows that, all things being equal, I vote with a preference for dirt form over turf form, primarily because the bulk of our racing in the United States is contested on dirt. That said, Lake Victoria will get many top votes, as she should. Five starts, five wins, three grade/group 1 wins, but only one U.S. start—a never-in-doubt win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. Tenma is the only other filly with more than one graded stakes win, winning the G1 Del Mar Debutante and the G2 Starlet. 

Three-Year-Old Male

1st – Sierra Leone, 2nd – Fierceness, 3rd – Dornoch

Sierra Leone and Fierceness won two G1s and one G2 each in 2024. Both horses are pace-dependent: Sierra Leone needs a face pace up front, while Fierceness needs a moderate pace. Both horses ran their eyeballs out in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. A very narrow margin splits their 2024 accomplishments, but at the end of the day, Sierra Leone finished the year by defeating the most formidable field either of them had ever faced. Yes, Fierceness ran a winning race and was gallant in defeat—but Sierra Leone won, beating older horses and securing my vote for three-year-old male. The third spot was a bit of a toss-up between Dornoch and Seize the Grey. They both won two G1s and a G2. However, while Seize the Grey never won a race that Dornoch was in, Dornoch won the G1 Belmont Stakes—a race in which Seize the Grey finished 7th.

Three-Year-Old Filly

1st – Thorpedo Anna, 2nd – She Feels Pretty, 3rd – Cinderella’s Dream (GB).

The top spot was the most straightforward selection of this year’s Eclipse Awards, and any voter who votes for anyone other than Thorpedo Anna needs to pass an aptitude test before voting next year. She Feels Pretty was also easy, with five starts this year, three wins, and two G1 wins. With her two graded stakes wins this year, Cinderella’s Dream (GB) would’ve gotten my vote for the second spot had she won the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (especially as a three-year-old!), but alas, she finished second by a narrow margin. 

Older Dirt Male

1st – Abstain, 2nd – Abstain, 3rd – Abstain

Starlight Racing has two horses in the running, National Treasure and Newgate, so I had to decline a vote in this category. I’m not mad about that. This was a muddy division because there were no standouts. Thirteen older dirt male horses scored at least one G1 win, but only National Treasure won two G1s, so he would be my top choice. Straight No Chaser would be my second choice because his one G1 win came at the Breeders’ Cup in the BC Sprint. The third spot? Who knows. And since I can’t vote in this division, I won’t spend too much time pondering this selection. 

Older Dirt Female

1st – Idiomatic, 2nd – Adare Manor, 3rd – Raging Sea

Idiomatic is a beast. Five starts in 2024, four in G1 races, three wins, two second-place finishes, and she tries her best every time.  Adare Manor only managed four starts in her abbreviated year (March to August), but she came away with wins in two G1s and a G2. I was torn between Raging Sea and Sweet Azteca for the third spot. They both won four of six starts, and each won a G1, but all of Raging Sea’s wins were graded stakes, whereas only three of Sweet Azteca’s wins were graded.

Male Sprinter

1st – Straight No Chaser, 2nd – Cogburn, 3rd – Mullikin

I had a tough time choosing between Straight No Chaser and Cogburn. Cogburn’s body of work on the year is better than Straight No Chaser’s, but he did not win a G1, whereas Straight No Chaser won the most important race for sprinters of the year: the G1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint. With this decisive win, he gets my vote for the number one spot. Cogburn was one of the most exciting horses to watch all year, but a questionable ride compromised his Breeders’ Cup performance. I have massive respect for Irad Ortiz, Jr., but I bet this is a race he’d like to have a do-over in. Opening up on the field in a 43.3 half-mile time proved to be more than even the mighty Cogburn could handle. Mullikin managed four wins from six starts, and while he was no match for Straight No Chaser in the BC Sprint, his other races in 2024 were impressive. 

Female Sprinter

1st – Soul of an Angel, 2nd – Sweet Azteca, 3rd – Ways and Means

Several accomplished fillies and mares are in the Female Sprinter category, with six of the contenders winning a Grade 1, but none won more than one G1 this year. Soul of an Angel, Sweet Azteca, and Ways and Means each won multiple graded stakes races this year, and they all won a G1, but Soul of an Angel was the most consistent, even though her races spanned distances from 7 to 9 furlongs, and she’s the one who came away with the win in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint. She gets my top vote. Sweet Azteca won four of her six starts in 2024, while Ways and Means raced as many times, coming up with the “V” three times. 

Male Turf Horse

1st – Rebel’s Romance (Ire), 2nd – Carl Spackler (Ire), 3rd – Johannes

Rebel’s Romance (IRE) gets the top spot. His five wins (from six starts) in 2024 came in five different countries! He only needed one North American win to qualify for the Eclipse Awards, and he proved that he was the best male turf horse in North America with his victory in the Breeders’ Cup Turf. Carl Spackler was brilliant all year but threw in a clunker in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. As for the third spot, I was torn between Far Bridge, Johannes, and Measured Time, with Far Bride and Measured Time both securing two G1 wins while Johannes only had one. However, Johannes won five of his six starts on the year and was overall more consistent than the other two. 

Female Turf Horse

1st – She Feels Pretty, 2nd – Moira, 3rd – Cinderella’s Dream (GB)

Three-year-old filly She Feels Pretty gets my top vote. Yes, she only faced three-year-old fillies, but she’s the only filly (or mare) in this category who won more than one Grade 1 race in 2024, and she devasted the competition in one of those—the G1 Queen Elizabeth II stakes at Keeneland. Five-year-old Moira is still a legend; her win in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf validated that. But it was her only grade one win in 2024. I was torn between Cinderella’s Dream (GB) and Beaute Cachee (Fr), as their 2024 past performances are relatively comparable. However, the one time that Cinderella’s Dream faced my top horse here (She Feels Pretty), she won. That said, had Cinderalla’s Dream won the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf instead of running second by a half-length, she would’ve been my top pick in this division. 

Horse of the Year

1st – Thorpedo Anna, 2nd – Sierra Leone, 3rd – Fierceness

Thorpedo Anna for the Horse of the Year was an easy choice. She simply had the most brilliant year of any horse racing in North America in 2024. The second and third positions were not so easy. In going with Sierra Leone and Fierceness, I’ve left out other stars from the 2024 racing season, such as Idiomatic and Rebel’s Romance. But Sierra Leone had seven starts on the year and never ran a bad race, then capped his season with a scintillating win in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. And since deciding between Sierra Leone and Fierceness in the three-year-old male division felt a bit like splitting hairs, I felt like if I picked Sierra Leone for second, Fierceness had to be right there with him. 

Steeplechase Horse

1st – Snap Decision, 2nd – L’Imperator (Fr), 3rd – Rampoldi Plan

I generally abstain from this category because I don’t watch Steeplechase racing enough to hold a firm opinion if it’s a close call between horses. However, Snap Decision was the only horse with more than one grade one win—so he was an easy decision. Of the other nine horses under consideration, seven of them won a grade one this year, but it was L’Imperator (Fr) who was the most consistent among them, never finishing off the board in his seven starts this year. Rampoldi Plan only raced thrice in 2024, but he came away with a G1 win and a narrow defeat in another grade one race. 

Owner

1st – Godolphin, LLC, 2nd – Klaravich Stables, Inc., 3rd – Juddmonte

There was no reason to get creative here, so my votes align with the “Leading Owners, Ranked by Earnings” list. Godolphin stole the show by amassing $20,234,455 in earnings, with the next leading owner (Klaravich) earning $8,375,757. And while Juddmonte only won one more race than Repole Stable, Juddmonte started 79 fewer horses and earned $1.3 million more than Repole Stable. In 2023, Godolphin won the Eclipse Award for Leading Owner for an unprecedented fourth time. They will extend that record this year. 

Breeder

1st – Godolphin , 2nd – Jones, Brereton, C., 3rd – WinStar Farm, LLC

I assessed the leading breeders the same as the top owners—for the most part. Again, Godolphin was a clear leader in this category, with more than $22 million in earnings. But while Calumet Farm was second with a little over $13 million in earnings, Calumet was represented by 173 more starters than Brereton Jones and 207 more starters than WinStar, so they gained the second spot on the list by sheer numbers, and I respect quality over quantity when making my selections in this category. 

Jockey

1st – Prat, Flavien, 2nd – Ortiz, Jr., Irad, 3rd – Hernandez, Jr., Brian

What a year to remember for Flavien Prat! I don’t think there will be many dissenting votes here. Prat led the nation’s jockeys in money-won, stakes races won, and graded stakes races won while setting single-season records in the latter two categories. Irad Ortiz, Jr. is still winning races at a phenomenal pace. He won the Eclipse Award in five of the past six years and will likely win it in the future—but not this year. While Brian Hernandez, Jr. finished sixth on the earnings list for jockeys in 2024, it’s possible that I would’ve put him on top of this list if not for Prat’s remarkable year. Hernandez won thirteen graded stakes this year, most notably the Kentucky Oaks, Kentucky Derby, and Breeders’ Cup Distaff. 

Apprentice Jockey

1st – Erik Asmussen, 2nd – Gabriel Maldonado , 3rd – J.G. Torrealba

Erik Asmussen’s $6+ million in purse earnings top those earned by Gabriel Maldonado ($2.6 million) and Torrealba (nearly $5.3 million), but J.G. Torrealba won more races. Asmussen, however, rode on a more demanding circuit than the other two, who rode mainly on the apprentice rider-friendly circuits in Maryland, Delaware, etc. Some will say, “Yes, but Erik rode for his dad (who won more races this year than any other trainer in the United States).” Fair. But I rode for Steve Asmussen many years ago, and he is not easy to ride for! He’s not unreasonable—he just expects a perfect ride every time, and while that is not possible, a rider will learn a lot while riding for him, or they won’t ride for him anymore. So, the fact that Erik managed to ride for his dad all year says a lot about his horsemanship and potential. It is also worth noting that Erik’s uncle (Steve Asmussen’s brother), Cash Asmussen, won the Eclipse Award as an apprentice 45 years ago (1979). This last note, however, had no bearing on my vote. 

Trainer

1st – Chad Brown , 2nd – Steve Asmussen, 3rd – Brad Cox

In this category, I voted in the same order they finished on the national leaderboard. Very little separated the top three in earnings, but Chad Brown managed to come out on top, and he ended the year with a win in the Breeders’ Cup Classic with his Sierra Leone. Steve Asmussen won an eye-popping 400+ races—but that was from 2,288 starts compared to 925 from the Chad Brown stable and 919 from Brad Cox’s barn. The fact is, all of their win and earnings records were impressive this season, and they all deserve an award for it—but two of them will have to settle for just making a tremendous amount of money! 

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