By Christina Bossinakis
Javier Castellano, who nabbed the first race in this year's Breeders' Cup with Rushing Fall in the GI Juvenile Fillies, continued to make his presence felt through the remainder of the series, ultimately capturing the 15th Bill Shoemaker Award. In addition to his victory aboard the Chad Brown runner, he earned a second (Sprint–Imperial Hint), three thirds (Juvenile Turf–Voting Control; Filly & Mare Sprint–Carina Mia; and Classic–West Coast) and a fourth-place finish (Juvenile–Givemeaminit) over the course of the two-day championships. The Shoemaker Award is based on a 10-5-3-1 scoring system on first through fourth-place finishes in each of the 13 Breeders' Cup World Championship races.
Castellano finished with a total of 25 points, edging Jose Ortiz, Flavien Prat and John Velazquez, all of whom earned 23 points. Velaquez, who captured the award in 2004, 2011 and 2014, was the only rider to earn two races in the 13-race showcase. Past winners of the Shoemaker include Mike Smith, Ryan Moore and Garrett Gomez.
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