In-Depth Look At Eclipse Awards 2-Year-Old Male Finalists

Eclipse Awards: Two-Year-Old Male Of The Year

By: Claudia Lorena

What is it that makes a two-year-old really stand out from the bunch? Is it individual performance, style, or ability to persevere in vastly diverse scenarios against top notch competitors? Perhaps it’s a bit of everything. But when a voter casts a vote, what is it that separates one from the rest, and what ultimately tips the scales?

The Eclipse Awards are thoroughbred racing’s version of the Oscars (Academy Awards). When voting for Best Motion Picture, filmmaker Debra Chasnoff states, “You look for a well-made film that tells a compelling story.” This is precisely how all of the Eclipse categories should be judged: Which equine athlete, or human, truly out-shined the rest? Who’s campaign told the better story?

Too often I hear people say that even though they like a horse, they will not vote for him/her because of their connections. Voters, you must leave your personal grudges and emotions out of this. These awards are not about you and who you favor for your own personal reasons. They are about what each finalist has accomplished and what they have done for the sport.

I always find it funny how so many people believe winning a Breeders’ Cup race rectifies winning an Eclipse Award. It does not. Of last year’s two-year-old finalists (Shared Belief, Havana, New Year’s Day), New Year’s Day was the only one with a Breeders’ Cup win, but Shared belief was undefeated and he was voted most deserving. In other words, the winner must be well rounded and the best of the crop.

With the Eclipse Awards right around the corner, let’s take a closer look at the 2014 two-year-old male finalists that were announced on January 7th.

Hootenanny

The most well-traveled of the finalists, Hootenanny is a son of Quality Road and is trained by Wesley Ward. On October 31st he captured the Gr. 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf, hitting the wire ¾’s of a length ahead of Luck of the Kitten and against some of the most talented two-year-old turf runners in the world. Since his debut in April of last year, he has raced in three different countries (US→France→UK→Back to US), on 5 seperate tracks (Keeneland→Pimlico→Ascot→Deauville→Santa Anita), and finished in the money every single time. He has won at distances ranging from four furlongs to one mile and run against top international competitors.

The only turf horse in the two-year-old male category, I believe Hootenanny runs circles around the other two finalists. Well traveled; well contested; well rounded. This colt is worldly.

Texas Red

The Desormeaux brothers have a serious derby contender in this son of Afleet Alex. Of his five career starts, Texas Red’s most notable win came in the Gr.1 Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, where he trailed the field for ¾’s of the race and surged late to win by 6 ½ lengths. It was a remarkable effort. He’s run on two different tracks in California and his combined winning margin is also eight lengths. Watching this colt grow over the course of 2015 is sure to be exciting.

On the down side, he did lose to American Pharoah in the FrontRunner, and while I am a very big fan of Texas Red, I do not believe his win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile is enough to grant him two-year-old male honors.

American Pharoah

Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Victor Espinoza, American Pharoah has the least amount of starts when compared to the other two finalists. This son of Pioneerof the Nile is the only one to have captured two Gr.1 victories, including the Del Mar Futurity and FrontRunner Stakes. He outran Calculator—who recently won the Sham Stakes—by 4 ¾ lengths in the Del Mar Futurity and then outran him once again by 3 ¼ lengths in the FrontRunner, just 24 days later.

His two-year-old campaign may have been short, but it certainly was not easy. In just seven weeks, he covered 2 ¾ miles—or 22 furlongs—on two different tracks, winning two of his three career starts by a combined margin of eight lengths. He has proven himself at distances of seven furlongs and 1 1/16 (miles), and has won on, both, synthetic and dirt. However, he only raced on two tracks and never left California. In my opinion, this colt still has a lot to prove.