Bid, before I had got arthritis and asthma, I spent plenty of time at tracks; it was watching these splendid animals running that inspired me to start investigating pedigrees. I saw Ack Ack during his HotY campaign, in 1971. HE had a wonderful campaign that was unfortunately cut short when he nearly died of colic. Everyone had him pegged as a miler, but the great Bald Eagle trained him to win the Santa Anita H under 130 lbs and the Hollywood Gold Cup under 134 lbs.
John Henry earned his first Eclipse as a champion turf horse, as a 5yo. As a 6yo, he moved up a level by taking his game to the main track, winning the Jockey Club Gold Cup and Santa Anita H to earn his first HotY.
These talented horses' connections could have kept doing the same old thing with their horses, miling and sprinting, or running on turf, but that wouldn't get them HotY except maybe in an unusual year, so they risked failure by trying the hardest, ultimate division, open company at 10f on dirt. This is what American racing has always been about, not sprinting, not mares' races, not turf miles, but the classic distance.
Zenayatta's campaign proved that she is the best mare who raced in the US this year, so she will get the older mare Eclipse. She was beaten by the top older male when she tried the harder division, so she is not HotY. Full stop.
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