Division rankings: No debate in this Eclipse race

Last week, I mentioned that as many as seven Eclipse races still have debate swirling around them. I don’t buy that all of them are truly up for grabs, but over the next few weeks, I’ll dig into each one before it’s time to fill out my ballot.

This week we get to the female sprinters, and for me, this vote is not up for debate. Kopion has been atop this division from start to finish, and one off-the-board effort against males in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint doesn’t change that. I know plenty of voters will default to Splendora after her Filly & Mare Sprint win, her first graded-stakes victory of any kind, but that’s classic Eclipse-season behavior: short memories, lazy ballots, and an overdose of recency bias.

Before diving into the debate, here’s how the female sprint division stacks up, and my top three are pretty much set in stone.

Female sprinters

1. Kopion. She holds onto the top spot despite her off-the-board finish against the boys. Over the course of the season, she was the most consistent and accomplished female sprinter, delivering the standout performance of the division in May in the Grade 1 Derby City Distaff. She’ll have my Eclipse vote, no question.

2. Sweet Azteca. Scored her second win this season last out in the Rancho Bernardo (G3). This was after her remarkable comeback win in the Great Lady M (G2), where she defeated Kopion. That came nine months after her last race, a stunning off-the-board finish at 1-9 odds in the four-horse Chillingworth (G3) at Santa Anita. Was scratched out of the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint.

3. Splendora. Defeated a watered-down seven-horse Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint field. This was her first graded-stakes win of the season, and she placed in two other graded races.

4. Hope Road. Disappointed with her third-place effort in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, where she was beaten by six lengths. Before that she was in New York dominating the Ballerina (G1) at Saratoga, earning her first Grade 1 victory. The win also flattered Kopion, whom she had been chasing earlier in the year. 

5. Ways and Means. Absolutely dominated the Bed o’ Roses (G2), drawing off by more than seven lengths and staking her claim as likely the top female sprinter on the East Coast. Before that she was a solid third in the Derby City Distaff behind top-ranked Kopion. She was put on the shelf for the remainder of the season, and her return next year is in question.

Next five: Shisospicy, Positano Sunset, Vahva, Ragtime, Tamara.

When you look back at the season as a whole, the best female sprint race wasn’t even close, it was the Derby City Distaff at Churchill in May. That race had it all: class, depth, and future major race winners. Kopion, invading from California, crushed a field that featured Scylla, this year’s Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner; Hope Road, later the Ballerina heroine; Ways and Means, the East Coast’s top sprinter; and Vahva, runner-up in the Filly & Mare Sprint.

Yes, that turned out to be Kopion’s last win of the year, but I’m not docking her for it. She was, quite frankly, mismanaged. Her season began with a blowout in the Santa Monica (G2) at Santa Anita, where she toyed with Hope Road and Splendora, then she shipped east to crush the Derby City Distaff. At that stage, the consensus was clear, she wasn’t just the top female sprinter, she was the best sprinter in training, period.

With few meaningful female sprint opportunities available, her connections did the sensible thing, kept her at her home base and ran her in the Great Lady M at Los Alamitos in July. Sweet Azteca, a top sprinter in her own right, was making her long-awaited return after nearly nine months away. She blasted to the front and never looked back, while Kopion made a late charge that fell just over a length short. A loss, sure, but it wasn’t enough to knock her from the top spot. She already had done more than enough.

Next on the calendar was the Ballerina at Saratoga, one of the crown jewels of the female sprint division. Rather than ship east, her connections kept her home at Del Mar to try stretching her out in the Clement L. Hirsch (G1). She ran well enough, closing for second, but the decision backfired when Hope Road, a filly she already had beaten three times, took the Ballerina.

After sitting out since the Clement Hirsch, her team rolled the dice in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint against the boys, and I liked the move. She already had beaten almost everyone in her own division except Sweet Azteca, so why not take a shot, even if six furlongs isn’t her wheelhouse? Kopion never threatened, finishing fifth, a little more than five lengths back.

Still, even with a loss in the Breeders’ Cup her stock didn’t nosedive. Her earlier form was validated on Breeders’ Cup Saturday when Splendora, a filly Kopion had crushed by more than seven lengths earlier in the season, won the Filly & Mare Sprint, with Vahva and Hope Road rounding out the trifecta.

As for turf-sprint specialist Shisospicy, she deserves a place in the top 10, but I can’t justify voting her as the best in the division. Turf sprinting is a niche within a niche, and she simply doesn’t have the résumé depth to warrant the Eclipse.

So yes, this one was easy. There isn’t another runner in this division who belongs above Kopion. Hopefully, the rest of the voters will actually do their homework and look at the full season’s body of work and reward Kopion, who was clearly the best female sprinter in the country.

Older dirt males

1. Forever Young. I think many racing fans don't truly appreciate how exceptional this horse is. Since bursting onto the international scene in February 2024 with his Saudi Derby (G1) win over Book’em Danno and Bentornato, he hasn’t raced in the same country in consecutive races. That is a remarkable stat. He has traveled the globe like no dirt horse before him and handled every challenge. His Breeders’ Cup Classic victory against the best the U.S. had to offer was nothing short of brilliant and likely secured him the Eclipse in this division. The best part? Unlike his U.S. counterparts, he won’t be off to the breeding shed and will return to race next season at age 5.

2. Sierra Leone. He might have turned in the best performance of his career in defeat, narrowly denied a repeat victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Still, he’ll go down as one of the most underappreciated runners in recent memory, ultra-consistent, never off the board in 14 starts and always delivering that dependable late kick. Now off to the breeding shed, he’ll be sorely missed on the racetrack. Will get support for the Eclipse in this division.

3. Fierceness. This guy will be missed too, no doubt about it. A Grade 1 winner in every season he raced, he went out swinging with one of his finest performances, finishing third in a Breeders’ Cup Classic for the ages. Alongside his old sparring partners Sierra Leone and Forever Young, he reminded everyone that last year’s so-called “weaker” crop turned out to be anything but.

4. Mindframe. His off-the-board finish in the Breeders’ Cup Classic surprised no regular readers of this column. Still, he put together a respectable career, capturing two Grade 1 wins from nine starts. Ultimately, though, he was a one-paced sort, a solid runner but a clear notch below the sport’s elite.

5. Nysos. He ground out a win in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile as the heavy favorite, though it wasn’t quite the statement performance many expected against that field. Still, talk of his possible return next year is welcome news for an older dirt male division that looks a bit thin heading into 2026.

Next five: Antiquarian, Mystik Dan, Highland Falls, White Abarrio, Phileas Fogg.

Older dirt females

1. Thorpedo Anna. Not surprisingly to regular readers of these rankings, she finished off the board in the Spinster (G1). Simply put, she didn't move forward from last season and never was head and shoulders above the fillies ranked below her. Still, she deserves credit for gutting out wins, even if the competition was subpar. She ran all season and won races while others sat out for months or never ventured beyond their home state. In these rankings, the entire season matters. She will get my Eclipse vote.

2. Cavalieri. She missed the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, but Cavalieri's effort in the Zenyatta (G2) was impressive, especially given the disastrous break and a six-month layoff.

3. Scylla. The Breeders' Cup Distaff heroine quietly put together a solid season, placing in four graded stakes before her Distaff win. Overall on her career she has missed the board only two times in 16 starts, running well sprinting and around two turns.

4. Dorth Vader. Didn't run poorly in the Distaff, finishing fifth, beaten less than three lengths for the place. Before the Distaff she just missed another Grade 1 in the Personal Ensign, beaten on the bob by Thorpedo Anna. Her only win this season came in June’s Ogden Phipps (G1) at Saratoga. 

5. Seismic Beauty. Ran a dismal race as the favorite in the Breeders' Cup Distaff as she was eased past the wire finishing second to last. Before the Distaff she scored a nice win in the Clement L. Hirsch going gate to wire.

Next five: Regaled, Gin Gin, Leslie’s Rose, Gun Song, Royal Spa.

3-year-old males

1. Sovereignty. He demolished an outclassed field in the Travers (G1), further padding a résumé that now ranks him among the most accomplished Kentucky Derby winners since American Pharoah. Even after skipping the Classic, his body of work will draw heavy horse-of-the-year support. And if I were betting on it, I’d say the Travers was his curtain call, with his next stop the breeding shed.

2. Journalism. He ran a career best in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, finishing fourth and less than four lengths off the winner. Before that, he was runner-up to Fierceness in the Pacific Classic (G1). It’s been a strong campaign for this 3-year-old, and it appears he will return next year at age 4 with the Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) his first major goal.

3. Baeza. As expected, he went off an underlay in the Breeders’ Cup, made a move around the far turn but couldn’t stay with the top-tier runners once the real running began. These waters were simply deeper than he’s used to. Still, he proved clearly the third best in this division, and the encouraging news is that a return next season is in the cards.

4. Nevada Beach. Outclassed in the Classic against a stellar field, he finished right where most expected, seventh. Still, he can hang his hat on being the first of his crop to topple older males in a Grade 1 route, capturing the Goodwood (G1) impressively over last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner, Full Serrano, among others.

5. Disco Time. This guy resided in this spot very early in the season after his Lecomte (G3) win, but then he went on the shelf for several months. He returned with a nice win in the St. Louis Stakes and then last time out he dominated the Dwyer, winning by nearly 10 and in the process posting speed figures that rival the best in this division. His stock is on the rise, and he could be a serious player in the Saudi Cup in February. Unbeaten in five career starts.

Next 5: Magnitude, Gosger, Burnham Square, Citizen Bull, Rated By Merit.

3-year-old fillies

1. Nitrogen. She ran better than expected, finishing second in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, a performance likely good enough to lock up the Eclipse in what was an otherwise uninspiring division this year. Prior to that, she turned in a solid runner-up effort in the Spinster behind Gin Gin.

2. Clicquot. Her fourth in the Breeders' Cup Distaff wasn't bad as she made a late-season push to probably be second best in this division. She was a surprise winner of the Cotillion (G1) before the Breeders' Cup and had strung together four straight wins, including the Indiana Oaks (G3).

3. Good Cheer. Clearly not the same filly who won the Kentucky Oaks (G1), she was off the board in the Cotillion, beaten by more than six lengths. Her races earlier this year matter, so she stays in the top five here.

4. La Cara. Tied for the most top-level scores in this division, the problem is she has been off the board in three other Grade 1 races, including her last two.

5. Laurelin. Ran OK in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1), where she was runner-up. The Saratoga Oaks (G2) winner’s stock did take a hit with her first career loss. Runs this weekend in the Jockey Club Oaks (G3) at Aqueduct.

Next five: Scottish Lassie, Quietside, Margie’s Intention, Ragtime, Lush Lips.

Turf males

1. Rebel’s Romance. I’m keeping this guy on top, even after his runner-up finish in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, a performance that was downright remarkable given the circumstances. Big horses such as him aren't supposed to be able to thread through traffic on a tight course like that, yet he did, bursting between rivals in the stretch and finishing with authority. He gets the edge over Notable Speech thanks to a stronger overall résumé and a far tougher campaign with four graded-stakes wins, including two Grade 1s, and placings in two more top-level events. The very definition of a globetrotting superstar.

2. Notable Speech. He was sensational in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, notching back-to-back top-level wins in North America. But let’s not forget that two months ago, he was winless in four starts on the year and off the board in three of them. When it comes to Eclipse voting, the full body of work matters, not just the the last two months.

3. Formidable Man. Ran a career-best race in the Breeders' Cup Mile when runner-up, silencing critics who felt he was outclassed by this field and had been beating up on weak competition in California. For the season he has won three graded stakes, including the Kilroe Mile (G1) early in the season. 

4. El Cordobes. He ran a solid race to finish third in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, just two lengths off the winner. The Sword Dancer (G1) champ showed up again, much like he did in his prior start when finishing third behind Rebel’s Romance in the Joe Hirsch (G1).

5. Deterministic. He has strung together three straight graded-stakes victories, including back-to-back Grade 1s. Most recently, he dominated the Fourstardave (G1) at Saratoga after capturing the shortened, 1 1/8-mile Manhattan (G1) the day after the Belmont Stakes. Now 3-for-4 this year, he clearly is trending the right way. He hasn’t worked since his last win on Aug. 2.

Next five: Far Bridge, Redistricting, Fort Washington, Integration, Gold Phoenix.

Turf females

1. She Feels Pretty. She again showed up big and ran a game race in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf over a distance I felt was a little out of her scope. Still, she finished runner-up and did more than enough this season to win the Eclipse. She won three of her five starts and was runner-up in the other two. 

2. Special Wan. She delivered a dominant victory in the Goldikova (G3) on the Breeders’ Cup undercard, cementing her place among the best in this division for 2025. Earlier, she captured the Ladies Turf (G3) at Kentucky Downs in just her third start of the season. It’s been a strong campaign overall, third behind Dynamic Pricing in the Just a Game (G1) and victorious in the Honey Fox (G3). 

3. Excellent Truth. After three near-misses, she finally scored her first Grade 1 in the Diana. Though retired after a training injury, she holds her top five for now and stays on my Eclipse ballot.

4. Bellezza. She finished sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, beaten only five lengths. Earlier in the year, she captured the Flower Bowl (G2) and the Sheepshead Bay (G3), and in between, she held her own against top company, placing in the New York (G1) behind She Feels Pretty and again in the Glens Falls (G2).

5. Dynamic Pricing. She was off the board in the First Lady (G1) at Keeneland, but her résumé still holds up for a top-five ranking. She ran third in the Diana, well behind the division’s top two. This summer she broke through with her first Grade 1 in the Just a Game and then backed it up with a win in the Perfect Sting at Saratoga.

Next five: Simply in Front, Diamond Rain, Laurelin, Lush Lips, Segesta.

Male sprinters

1. Book’em Danno. His Forego (G1) win further solidified his stranglehold on the sprint division, marking three straight big wins. Even without a Breeders’ Cup Sprint appearance, Eclipse voters will find him hard to ignore. He gets my vote.

2. Bentornato. He absolutely dominated the Breeders’ Cup Sprint in just his second start of the year. But for those arguing he deserves the Eclipse simply because Danno skipped the Breeders’ Cup, I’d ask, where was Bentornato during the other five months Danno was out there running? Bentornato will be on my ballot, but only as second best. Will run next season and point to races in the Middle East to start out.

3. Patch Adams. After failing to stretch out, this 3-year-old found his wheelhouse in sprints, rattling off back-to-back Grade 1s against fellow 3-year-old males, capped by the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial (G1) at Saratoga. Retired because of injury, he stays here as he would be on my Eclipse ballot if the season ended today.

4. Imagination. Backed up his last-out win with a runner-up effort in the Breeders' Cup Sprint. The Santa Anita Sprint Championship (G2) winner ran just three times in 2025.

5. Dr. Venkman. This gelding showed up once again, just missing the runner-up spot by a nose in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint. Before that, he captured the Pat O’Brien (G2) and hit the board in three other graded stakes earlier in the season.

Next five: Lovesick Blues, Straight No Chaser, Nakatomi, Mullikin, Barnes.

2-year-old males

1. Ted Noffey. He capped off a flawless 4-for-4 season with a victory in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile (G1), giving him three Grade 1 wins on the year. Although I don’t see him as a major threat for next year’s Triple Crown given the added distances, there’s no denying he was an above-average 2-year-old by modern standards.

2. Brant. The hype horse in the division heading into the Breeders' Cup, he ran well to finish a game third. Obviously the farther he runs the less effective he will be, but as a 2-year-old this season he surely was one of the best.

3. Mr. A. P.. This maiden winner made quite a splash in his first stakes race as he nearly won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, dropping a one-length decision when runner-up. 

4. Desert Gate. A bit disappointing in the American Pharoah (G1) when finishing second, beaten by less than a length. Before that the Best Pal (G3) winner ran a strong race in the Del Mar Futurity (G1), closing late on Brant to finish a length behind.

5. Blackout Time. Ran well at Keeneland in the Breeders’ Futurity (G1) to be runner-up to Ted Noffey. I get the feeling he might be better than most we have seen thus far despite no stakes wins. Scratched from the Breeders' Cup Juvenile.

Next 5: Napoleon Solo, Intrepido, Ewing, It’s Our Time, Litmus Test.

2-year-old fillies

1. Explora. I am going to place this gal on top of this division for now, mainly because I am not sure I can vote for a horse in Super Corredora who ran in only one stakes race so far this season as the best in this division. Explora dominated the Oak Leaf (G2) before the Breeders' Cup and finished second in the Del Mar Debutante (G1) in other stakes appearance.

2. Super Corredora. Should we really hand an Eclipse to a horse with only one stakes appearance all season? It’s never happened in the Eclipse-award era. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner will need to make another start before she earns my vote.

3. Percy’s Bar. Third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, this gal's arrow is pointing up. Before the Breeders' Cup she was clearly the best horse in the Alcibiades (G1), crossing the wire first before being disqualified for interference in the stretch. That effort followed a runner-up finish in the Spinaway (G1) at Saratoga. 

4. Taken by the Wind. The Pocahontas (G2) winner is 2-for-2 to kick off her career.

5. Tommy Jo. This gal struggled in the Breeders' Cup, finishing fifth, but she does have two Grade 1 wins on her resume, albeit one by DQ.

Next 5: Bottle of Rouge, Rileytole, Ground Support, Lennilu, Meaning.