Final 12 months I put collectively some professionals and cons for what figured to be a aggressive race for Horse of the 12 months, however Thorpedo Anna seems to be a reasonably sturdy favourite to win the highest prize on the 2024 Eclipse Awards, so let’s shift focus to the 3-year-old male division.
I first voted within the Eclipse Awards in 2006, so this 12 months will mark my 19th time submitting a poll. There are not any actual tips for find out how to vote for Eclipse Award winners and there’s no established factors system in North American racing, so there have been some very uncommon particular person votes over time. I sometimes attempt to construct a case for and towards every of the candidates in each division to form my ultimate resolution, so this train takes you behind my course of a bit. Nonetheless, I additionally included right here some perception into the narrative part. Narrative doesn’t issue into my Eclipse Awards selections, however it might be silly to assume the story behind every horse doesn’t play any position for some voters… particularly in notably shut races.
For the 3-year-old male class in 2024, I attempted to establish the 5 horses I imagine are most definitely to provide the three finalists for the class and listed the professionals and cons for every contender with out injecting my opinion into the combination.
Which horse will take residence the Eclipse Award for champion 3-year-old male on Jan. 23, 2025, at The Breakers Palm Seaside in Florida? Let’s discover the candidates in alphabetical order.
Dornoch
House owners: West Paces Racing, R. A. Hill Secure, Belmar Racing and Breeding, Two Eight Racing, and Pine Racing Stables
Coach: Danny Gargan
2024 Document: 6 begins – 3 wins – 0 seconds – 0 thirds
2024 Earnings: $2,169,875
Graded Stakes Wins: Grade 1 Belmont Stakes, Grade 1 NYRA Bets Haskell Stakes, Grade 2 Coolmore Fountain of Youth Stakes
Professionals: Earned victory in Triple Crown race with half-length Belmont Stakes win; two Grade 1 wins and three graded stakes wins tied for finest amongst this group; gained Haskell Stakes, arguably most essential race for 3-year-olds outdoors of Triple Crown and Travers Stakes; defeated Sierra Leone, Mystik Dan, and Seize the Gray in Belmont Stakes; title recognition as full-sibling to 2023 Kentucky Derby Offered by Woodford Reserve winner Mage with World Sequence champion Jayson Werth a part of possession group.
Cons: Lacked consistency of a few of friends with three unplaced finishes in six races; by no means confronted older horses; well-beaten in 10th-place end behind Mystik Dan in Kentucky Derby; completed 6 ½ lengths behind Sierra Leone in Toyota Blue Grass Stakes; misplaced by 8 ¼ lengths to Fierceness when fourth in DraftKings Travers Stakes.
Fierceness
Proprietor: Repole Secure
Coach: Todd Pletcher
2024 Document: 6 begins – 3 wins – 1 second – 1 third
2024 Earnings: $2,753,600
Graded Stakes Wins: Grade 1 DraftKings Travers Stakes, Grade 1 Curlin Florida Derby, Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes Offered by Mohegan Solar
Professionals: Excessive profile as 2023 champion 2-year-old male from prime barn and well-known proprietor; two Grade 1 wins and three graded stakes victories tied for finest amongst contenders right here; defeated Horse of the 12 months favourite Thorpedo Anna in memorable version of Travers Stakes; beat Sierra Leone in each Jim Dandy and Travers Stakes wins; defeated Dornoch in Travers Stakes; beat Seize the Gray in Jim Dandy Stakes; second in solely begin versus older horses in $7 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Basic.
Cons: Lacks a victory in any Triple Crown race; ran worst race of the 12 months on largest stage when 15th and crushed by 24 ½ lengths in Kentucky Derby; didn’t win a race towards older males; defeated by Sierra Leone in Breeders’ Cup Basic and by Mystik Dan in Kentucky Derby.
Mystik Dan
House owners: 4 G Racing, Lance Gasaway, Daniel Hamby III, and Valley View Farm
Coach: Ken McPeek
2024 Document: 6 begins – 2 wins – 1 second – 1 third
2024 Earnings: $4,070,050
Graded Stakes Wins: Grade 1 Kentucky Derby Offered by Woodford Reserve, Grade 3 Southwest Stakes
Professionals: Gained crucial race on this planet for 3-year-old dust horses when successful Kentucky Derby by a nostril, defeating Sierra Leone, Dornoch, and Fierceness amongst others; returned on two weeks relaxation to complete second within the Preakness Stakes; sturdy narrative part as trainer-jockey swept Longines Kentucky Oaks with Thorpedo Anna and Derby with Mystik Dan; ranks second amongst this group in purse earnings for the 12 months.
Cons: Just one Grade 1 win and two graded stakes wins for the 12 months; misplaced 4 races by 2 ¼ lengths or extra, together with a pair of unplaced finishes; well-beaten by Seize the Gray in Preakness and Dornoch in Belmont Stakes; didn’t race in any respect in second half of season and thus by no means confronted older males.
Sierra Leone
House owners: Peter Brant, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Westerberg, and Brook T. Smith
Coach: Chad Brown
2024 Document: 7 begins – 3 wins – 2 seconds – 2 thirds
2024 Earnings: $5,911,250
Graded Stakes Wins: Grade 1 Longines Breeders’ Cup Basic, Grade 1 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, Grade 2 Risen Star Stakes
Professionals: Defeated older males in $7 million Breeders’ Cup Basic for marquee big-stage win at World Championships; solely 3-year-old amongst this group with victory towards older males; chief amongst this group by purse earnings and tied for finest with two Grade 1 wins and three graded stakes victories; by no means worse than third in seven 2024 begins, all in Grade 1 or Grade 2 races; defeated Fierceness in Breeders’ Cup Basic and Dornoch in Blue Grass Stakes; second by a nostril in Kentucky Derby; third in Belmont Stakes.
Cons: Spent a lot of 12 months as bridesmaid in marquee division races; lacks victory in any Triple Crown race; crushed by Fierceness in back-to-back begins this summer time in Jim Dandy and Travers Stakes; misplaced to Mystik Dan in Kentucky Derby and Dornoch in Belmont Stakes; no vital narrative part to bolster profile.
Seize the Gray
Proprietor: MyRacehorse
Coach: D. Wayne Lukas
2024 Document: 9 begins – 4 wins – 0 seconds – 1 third
2024 Earnings: $2,324,800
Graded Stakes Wins: Grade 1 Preakness Stakes, Grade 1 Pennsylvania Derby, Grade 2 Pat Day Mile Stakes Offered by SAP
Professionals: Earned victory in Triple Crown race with 2 ¼-length Preakness Stakes win; defeated Kentucky Derby winner Mystik Dan in Preakness; two Grade 1 wins and three graded stakes wins tied for finest amongst this group; strong narrative part with Preakness win for in style 88-year-old Corridor of Fame coach D. Wayne Lukas.
Cons: Lacks consistency with 4 unplaced finishes from 9 begins; misplaced to Sierra Leone in Blue Grass Stakes, Dornoch in Belmont Stakes, and Fierceness in Jim Dandy Stakes whereas crushed by 10 or extra lengths in all three; closed out season unplaced in lone attempt towards older males in Huge Ass Followers Breeders’ Cup Grime Mile.
