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Kasept

12-28-2015 02:25 PM

My 2015 Eclipse Ballot..

It's that time of year again.. Here's my Eclipse submissions..

[Bracketed] are finalists v. my [Italicized] selections.. Red the winner.

Horse of the Year: 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Beholder, 3rd - Honor Code [Runhappy]

Two-Year-Old Male: 1st - Nyquist, 2nd - Airoforce, 3rd - Swipe [Mohaymen]
Two-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Songbird, 2nd - Catch a Glimpse, 3rd - Rachel's Valentina

Three-Year-Old Male: : 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Runhappy, 3rd - Dortmund
Three-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Lady Eli, 2nd - I'm a Chatterbox, 3rd - Stellar Wind [Found]

Older Dirt Male: 1st - Honor Code, 2nd - Liam's Map, 3rd - Tonalist
Older Dirt Female: 1st - Beholder, 2nd - Stopchargingmaria, 3rd - Sheer Drama

Male Sprinter: 1st - Runhappy, 2nd - Rock Fall, 3rd - Private Zone
Female Sprinter: 1st - Lady Shipman, 2nd - Wavell Avenue, 3rd - La Verdad

Male Turf Horse: 1st - Big Blue Kitten, 2nd - Mondialiste, 3rd - The Pizza Man [Golden Horn]
Female Turf Horse: 1st - Tepin , 2nd - Stephanie's Kitten, 3rd - Lady Eli [Found]

Steeplechase Horse: 1st - Dawalan, 2nd - Bob Le Beau, 3rd - African Oil [Demonstrative]

Owner: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Stonestreet Stables, 3rd - Gary Barber [Midwest Thoroughbreds; Ramseys]
Breeder: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Ken & Sarah Ramsey, 3rd - Machmer Hall [Darley]

Trainer: 1st - Bob Baffert, 2nd - Chad Brown, 3rd - Mark Casse [Todd Pletcher]
Jockey: 1st - Javier Castellano, 2nd - Victor Espinoza, 3rd - Joe Bravo [I. Ortiz Jr.]
Apprentice Jockey: 1st - Tyler Gaffalione, 2nd - Eric Cancel, 3rd - Ashley Broussard [Angel Cruz]

Kasept

12-28-2015 02:26 PM

Here is link to PP's and stats: www.drf.com/eclipsemedia.

ateamstupid

12-28-2015 02:41 PM

Great choices Steve. The only one where I'd differ is flipping Honor Code and Liam's Map for Older Dirt Male.

VOL JACK

12-28-2015 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ateamstupid (Post 1051607)

Great choices Steve. The only one where I'd differ is flipping Honor Code and Liam's Map for Older Dirt Male.

The Met Mile and Whitney for HC trump the Woodward and BC Dirt Mile for LM by quite a bit, IMO.

ateamstupid

12-28-2015 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VOL JACK (Post 1051613)

The Met Mile and Whitney for HC trump the Woodward and BC Dirt Mile for LM by quite a bit, IMO.

I get the prestige aspect, but Liam's Map was so much the best in the Whitney and finished the year stronger than Honor Code. That's why I'd give it to him.

TheSpyder

12-28-2015 04:15 PM

At the end of the day, one heck of a year of horse racing.

What a treat it was!

Thanks for posting Steve.

Spyder from SC

Danzig

12-28-2015 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ateamstupid (Post 1051618)

I get the prestige aspect, but Liam's Map was so much the best in the Whitney and finished the year stronger than Honor Code. That's why I'd give it to him.

My first thought was liams map...but in looking over both, i would give to honor code.
Both won 2 gr 1s, but honor code also won the gr 2 gulfstream h'cap.

freddymo

12-29-2015 06:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kasept (Post 1051603)

It's that time of year again.. Here's my Eclipse submissions..

Horse of the Year: 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Beholder, 3rd - Honor Code

Two-Year-Old Male: 1st - Nyquist, 2nd - Airoforce, 3rd - Swipe
Two-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Songbird, 2nd - Catch a Glimpse, 3rd - Rachel's Valentina

Three-Year-Old Male: : 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Runhappy, 3rd - Dortmund
Three-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Lady Eli, 2nd - I'm a Chatterbox, 3rd - Stellar Wind

Older Dirt Male: 1st - Honor Code, 2nd - Liam's Map, 3rd - Tonalist
Older Dirt Female: 1st - Beholder, 2nd - Stopchargingmaria, 3rd - Sheer Drama

Male Sprinter: 1st - Runhappy, 2nd - Rock Fall, 3rd - Private Zone
Female Sprinter: 1st - Lady Shipman, 2nd - Wavell Avenue , 3rd - La Verdad

Male Turf Horse: 1st - Big Blue Kitten, 2nd - Mondialiste, 3rd - The Pizza Man
Female Turf Horse: 1st - Tepin , 2nd - Stephanie's Kitten, 3rd - Lady Eli

Steeplechase Horse: 1st - Dawalan, 2nd - Bob Le Beau, 3rd - African Oil

Owner: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Stonestreet Stables, 3rd - Gary Barber
Breeder: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Ken & Sarah Ramsey , 3rd - Machmer Hall

Trainer: 1st - Bob Baffert, 2nd - Chad Brown, 3rd - Mark Casse
Jockey: 1st - Javier Castellano, 2nd - Victor Espinoza, 3rd - Joe Bravo
Apprentice Jockey: 1st - Tyler Gaffalione, 2nd - Eric Cancel, 3rd - Ashley Broussard

Reads like a Lanes End Commercial lol

freddymo

12-29-2015 06:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ateamstupid (Post 1051618)

I get the prestige aspect, but Liam's Map was so much the best in the Whitney and finished the year stronger than Honor Code. That's why I'd give it to him.

So much the best...he lost to a horse that made up 15 lengths on him..He ran super, but HC wasnt a perfect trip suck up winner

blackthroatedwind

12-29-2015 08:55 AM

I can't be the only one disappointed Freddy doesn't have a vote. I mean, someone has to vote for Shug, and every horse he trains, every year. It seems only fair:)

Storm Cadet

12-29-2015 09:52 AM

I guess this isn't the Heisman vote where your not allowed to divulge your selections/votes eh???

ateamstupid

12-29-2015 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by freddymo (Post 1051641)

So much the best...he lost to a horse that made up 15 lengths on him..He ran super, but HC wasnt a perfect trip suck up winner

The reason there were 15 lengths to make up is that Liam's Map was running skull-busting fractions for all nine furlongs, while Honor Code only had to run for about 3/8 of a mile. Give him credit for being the only one to make a significant close, but LM was clearly much the best that day.

MisterB

12-30-2015 12:21 AM

Lady Shipmen never won a Graded stakes. Wavell Avenue won G2 and the G1 Championship. Isn't the Eclispe awards about champions not almost champions.

Kasept

12-30-2015 06:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisterB (Post 1051678)

Lady Shipmen never won a Graded stakes. Wavell Avenue won G2 and the G1 Championship. Isn't the Eclispe awards about champions not almost champions.

Lady Shipman performed at a high level the entire year, finishing up with a superb performance against males. Wavell Avenue only got good late in the year and finished with a great pair of efforts. Lady Shipman won't win, but in this case I prefer to recognize the complete campaign in what was a muddled division. What she did in '15 was more impressive to me than the pure dirt sprinters. Also, winning a Breeders' Cup race isn't the end-all, be-all just because they've tried to bill them as 'World Championships'.

richard burch

12-30-2015 09:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kasept (Post 1051603)

Honestly, you may have nailed every one.

richard burch

12-30-2015 10:34 PM

YEAH AND .................HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!

in case i miss it.

skyfire

12-31-2015 05:10 PM

Trainer

I would vote for Chad Brown and Javier for depth of work this year over Baffert and Espinoza.

Kasept

01-06-2016 08:00 AM

11a release on Eclipse finalists..

Kasept

01-06-2016 10:45 AM

The 2015 Eclipse Awards finalists (in alphabetical order) are:

Horse of the Year: American Pharoah, Beholder, Runhappy

Two-Year-Old Male: Airoforce, Mohaymen, Nyquist
Two-Year-Old Filly: Catch a Glimpse, Rachel's Valentina, Songbird

Three-Year-Old Male: American Pharoah, Dortmund, Runhappy
Three-Year-Old Filly: Found (IRE), I'm a Chatterbox, Stellar Wind

Older Dirt Male: Honor Code, Liam's Map, Tonalist
Older Dirt Female: Beholder, Sheer Drama, Stopchargingmaria

Male Sprinter: Private Zone, Rock Fall, Runhappy
Female Sprinter: La Verdad, Lady Shipman, Wavell Avenue

Male Turf Horse: Big Blue Kitten, Golden Horn (GB), The Pizza Man
Female Turf Horse: Found (IRE), Stephanie's Kitten, Tepin

Steeplechase Horse: Bob Le Beau (IRE), Dawalan (FR), Demonstrative

Owner: Midwest TB's, Inc., Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, Zayat Stables
Breeder: Darley, Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, Zayat Stables

Trainer: Bob Baffert, Chad Brown, Todd Pletcher
Jockey: Javier Castellano, Victor Espinoza, Irad Ortiz, Jr.
Apprentice Jockey: Eric Cancel, Angel Cruz, Tyler Gaffalione

_ed_	01-06-2016 01:36 PM

Surprised Lady Eli is missing from the three-year-old filly finalists.

King Glorious

01-06-2016 03:14 PM

If I had a vote, I'd vote for Golden Horn as top male turf horse. I know people will say that's ridiculous but there are two reasons why.

1. Unless the criteria has changed, the award is supposed to go to the best ELIGIBLE horse in a division. To be eligible, a horse needs only to start once in North America. So is Golden Horn eligible? Yes. Was there a BETTER American male turf horse than him that ran in this country this year? I don't think so. Some will vote Big Blue Kitten. Some will vote The Pizza Man. He beat them both. He did lose the race.....but not to any males.

2. People will say it's ridiculous to vote for a horse that didn't even win a race in this country. I will offer up Singspiel. He won an Eclipse as best male turf horse in 1996 and did so without ever winning a race in this country. In fact, he never even RAN in this country!! He came over to Canada and won the International before running second in the BC Turf, both at Woodbine.

Kasept

01-16-2016 07:49 PM

[Bracketed] are finalists v. my [Italicized] selections.. Red the winner.

Horse of the Year: 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Beholder, 3rd - Honor Code [Runhappy]

Two-Year-Old Male: 1st - Nyquist, 2nd - Airoforce, 3rd - Swipe [Mohaymen]
Two-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Songbird, 2nd - Catch a Glimpse, 3rd - Rachel's Valentina

Three-Year-Old Male: : 1st - American Pharoah, 2nd - Runhappy, 3rd - Dortmund
Three-Year-Old Filly: 1st - Lady Eli, 2nd - I'm a Chatterbox, 3rd - Stellar Wind [Found]

Older Dirt Male: 1st - Honor Code, 2nd - Liam's Map, 3rd - Tonalist
Older Dirt Female: 1st - Beholder, 2nd - Stopchargingmaria, 3rd - Sheer Drama

Male Sprinter: 1st - Runhappy, 2nd - Rock Fall, 3rd - Private Zone
Female Sprinter: 1st - Lady Shipman, 2nd - Wavell Avenue, 3rd - La Verdad

Male Turf Horse: 1st - Big Blue Kitten, 2nd - Mondialiste, 3rd - The Pizza Man [Golden Horn]
Female Turf Horse: 1st - Tepin, 2nd - Stephanie's Kitten, 3rd - Lady Eli [Found]

Steeplechase Horse: 1st - Dawalan, 2nd - Bob Le Beau, 3rd - African Oil [Demonstrative]

Owner: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Stonestreet Stables, 3rd - Gary Barber [Midwest Thoroughbreds; Ramseys]
Breeder: 1st - Zayat Stables, 2nd - Ken & Sarah Ramsey, 3rd - Machmer Hall [Darley]

Trainer: 1st - Bob Baffert, 2nd - Chad Brown, 3rd - Mark Casse [Todd Pletcher]
Jockey: 1st - Javier Castellano, 2nd - Victor Espinoza, 3rd - Joe Bravo [I. Ortiz Jr.]
Apprentice Jockey: 1st - Tyler Gaffalione, 2nd - Eric Cancel, 3rd - Ashley Broussard [Angel Cruz]

Kasept

01-16-2016 07:52 PM

Horse of the Year: American Pharoah - Finalists (first-place votes) - American Pharoah (261)

Two-Year-Old Male: Nyquist - Finalists (first-place votes) - Nyquist (255); Mohaymen (3)
Two-Year-Old Filly: Songbird - Finalists (first-place votes) - Songbird (260); Catch a Glimpse (1)

Three-Year-Old Male: American Pharoah - Finalists (first-place votes) - American Pharoah (261)
Three-Year-Old Filly: Stellar Wind - Finalists (first-place votes) - Stellar Wind (108); I'm a Chatterbox (47); Found (46)

Older Dirt Male: Honor Code - Finalists (first-place votes) - Honor Code (126); Liam's Map (95); Tonalist (14)
Older Dirt Female: Beholder - Finalists (first-place votes) - Beholder (256); Stopchargingmaria (4); Sheer Drama (1)

Male Sprinter: Runhappy - Finalists (first-place votes) - Runhappy (255), Private Zone (2); Rock Fall (2)
Female Sprinter: La Verdad - Finalists (first-place votes) - La Verdad (98); Wavell Avenue (90); Lady Shipman (41)

Male Turf Horse: Big Blue Kitten - Finalists (first-place votes) - Big Blue Kitten (134); Golden Horn (63); The Pizza Man (41)
Female Turf Horse: Tepin - Finalists (first-place votes) - Tepin (211); Found (38); Stephanie's Kitten (8)
Steeplechase Horse: Dawalan - Finalists (first-place votes) - Dawalan (165); Bob Le Beau (47); African Oil (2)

Owner: Zayat Stables - Finalists (first-place votes) - Zayat Stables (220); Ken and Sarah Ramsey (26); Midwest Thoroughbreds (6)
Breeder: Zayat Stables - Finalists (first-place votes) - Zayat Stables (190); Ken and Sarah Ramsey (39); Darley (13)

Trainer: Bob Baffert - Finalists (first-place votes) - Bob Baffert (200); Todd Pletcher (44); Chad Brown (12)
Jockey: Javier Castellano - Finalists (first-place votes) - Javier Castellano (184); Victor Espinoza (70); Joe Bravo (1)
Jockey: Apprentice Jockey: Tyler Gaffalione - Finalists (first-place votes) - Tyler Gaffalione (149); Eric Cancel (63); Angel Cruz (9)

Merlinsky

01-17-2016 12:15 AM

The Older Female and 2yo Filly votes were a headscratcher. Not sure who seriously thought Catch A Glimpse was better than Songbird or that Beholder was not the most deserving mare. Did they miss the Pacific Classic?

Secretriat34

01-24-2016 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kasept (Post 1051603)

It's that time of year again.. Here's my Eclipse submissions..

WoW ..:zz:

from weekend blog on yahoo to eclipse award elector
in 12 years...you've done well

congratulations Steve

Now that I am back from Denver and my west coast tour,with my mind still in tact, i hope to say hi, at AP this summer

I still can't spell, and now my vision fades

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