Horse of the Year

With plenty of tasty birthday cake in the offing, a cadre of newly-minted 3-year-old colts have blown out their candles and are ready for stakes action across four tracks on Saturday. Leading the charge at Santa Anita is the GII San Vicente Stakes, which is the annual renewal of the seven furlong dirt race. Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert has won 13 prior editions, including last year with Muth (Good Magic). In customary fashion, the Hall of Famer enters a pair of runners in Barnes (Into Mischief) and Romanesque...

While Runhappy has always been 'The Man' in Cordell Anderson's book, over the past two months, Thorpedo Anna (Fast Anna) has quickly become 'The Girl.' Anderson is best known for his steady presence in the sales ring. The Jamaican-born horseman has been a showman at Keeneland for the past 35 years, leading countless horses to seven-figure sales over the decades, but Anderson has also worked for various racing stables throughout his career. He worked for Kenny McPeek about 20 years ago before later moving on to Laura Wohlers of Gallery...

Knicks Go (Paynter--Kosmo's Buddy, by Outflanker), the 2021 Horse of the Year, will stand the 2025 breeding season at $12,500, S&N, Taylor Made Farm announced Wednesday. The 8-year-old stallion, whose first foals are yearlings this year, stood the 2024 season at $15,000. Knicks Go's first yearlings at auction include a colt who sold to CHC/Maverick Racing/Siena Farm for $425,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, and a filly purchased by Horseology for MyRacehorse for $200,000, also at Keeneland September. Breeding incentives to the five-time Grade I winner will be available....

Old Friends, the Thoroughbred retirement farm in Georgetown, Kentucky, welcomed to its retiree roster Cozmic One (Bernardini), the first foal out of 2010 Horse of the Year and Hall of Famer, Zenyatta, the aftercare non-profit said in a Wednesday release. The 12-year-old dark bay gelding arrived at the farm on Tuesday, Oct. 1, courtesy of his owner, Ann Holbrook, who along with her late ex-husband, Jerry Moss, have been long-time supporters of Old Friends. "We are thrilled to welcome Cozmic One to retired life at Old Friends," said John Nicholson,...

Golden Sixty (Aus) (Medaglia d'Oro--Gaudeamus, by Distorted Humor), a three-time Horse of the Year and 10-times Group 1 winner in Hong Kong, has officially been retired from racing, owner Stanley Chan announced Friday at the Sha Tin stables of the gelding's trainer Francis Lui. "Golden Sixty has been more than just a racehorse to me and my family; he has been a companion, a friend, and a true champion," said Chan. "Watching him compete has been one of the greatest joys of my life. "I want to thank everyone who...

Romantic Warrior (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), winner of five Group 1 races in three different jurisdictions in 2023-2024, was named Hong Kong's Horse of the Year during a black-tie ceremony held Friday evening in the Grand Ballroom of the Rosewood Hotel in Hong Kong. The human connections of the champion 4-year-old and two-time champion middle distance horse--owner Peter Lau and trainer Danny Shum--made the G1 W S Cox Plate their early-season objective and the 300,000gns Tattersalls October graduate was a sound fourth in the G1 Turnbull Stakes at Flemington before willing...

Cody's Wish (Curlin) was crowned both 2023 Horse of the Year and Older Dirt Male champion at Thursday night's 53rd annual Eclipse Awards ceremony, and when Kelly Dorman, the father of the late Cody Dorman, accepted the evening's highest honor on behalf of owner/breeder Godolphin, the crowd at The Breakers Palm Beach in Florida met his brief pause to shed a few bittersweet tears with a standing ovation that gave him time to collect his thoughts and let the gravity of the moment sink in. On the track, Cody's Wish...

It was an evening to remember for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum's Godolphin team, as the worldwide operation accumulated no fewer than five statuettes over the course of the evening at Thursday's 53rd Annual Eclipse Awards Presented by FanDuel TV, John Deere, Keeneland and The Jockey Club, honoring and recognizing excellence in Thoroughbred racing. And they saved the best for last, as Cody's Wish (Curlin), whose story resonated with nearly every fan of Thoroughbred racing and beyond, was named Horse of the Year and champion older dirt male for...

Cody's Wish (Curlin), whose attachment to 17-year-old Cody Dorman attracted followers from well outside the horse racing world, was crowned Horse of the Year Thursday night at the 53rd annual Eclipse Awards Ceremony at The Breakers Palm Beach in Florida. Cody's Wish scored an emotional second win in the GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile with a gritty display at Santa Anita in November and the victory was made even more poignant when Dorman, who suffered from a rare genetic disorder and after whom the colt was named, died the following...

The winners in 10 equine and seven human categories will be revealed beginning around 7:30 Thursday evening at the 53rd Annual Eclipse Awards at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida. A who's who of the American Thoroughbred industry will be dressed to the nines as the newest group of champions is announced. Of the equine divisions--as is frequently the case--the majority feature little suspense, while there exists a fair bit of intrigue and arguments to be made for multiple horses in the older dirt male division, the female sprint division,...

The finalists for the 2023 Eclipse Awards will be announced live on FanDuel TV Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024, at noon ET, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB) and Daily Racing Form (DRF) announced Thursday. Eclipse Award ballots were due by Jan. 3. The awards, which honor excellence in Thoroughbred racing, are voted upon by the NTRA, represented by member racetrack racing officials and Equibase field personnel, NTWAB and DRF, and are produced by the NTRA. The announcement of the Eclipse Awards finalists on...

What I wrote in Monday's TDN, that Idiomatic (Curlin) should be Horse of the Year, well, never mind. It took the tragic news of the passing of Cody Dorman for me to wake up and realize that while Idiomatic had a terrific year, voting for her for Horse of the Year would mean not voting for Cody's Wish (Curlin), and what a mistake that would be. Everything I had to say about the on-track credentials of the two remains the same. Both won a Breeders' Cup race, both won three...