Top Thoroughbred in doubt in this week’s NTRA Poll

This week in the NTRA Top Thoroughbred Poll, seven of the top 10 horses received at least a single vote for the number one spot in the rankings with Midnight Bisou still in first. It makes sense that the participating media members have found no consensus. In this the year of uncertainty, the Covid-19 pandemic halted racing for a few months.

These seven horses are far from putting together significant cohesive 2020 campaigns. As a matter of fact, in total, they have only started in 15 races. Their results are impressive with 13 victories, though it includes only four American Grade 1s.

Here is a quick look at what each of them has accomplished, thus far, and their possible next start. They are listed in the order of their current top 10 ranking.

Midnight Bisou (23) – 2: 1-1-0 - $3,621,250 – 1^st Fleur de Lis (G2), 2^nd Saudi Cup – next: Personal Ensign (G1)

Tom’s d’Etat (7) - 2: 2-0-0 - $390,700 – 1^st Stephen Foster (G2), 1^st Oaklawn Mile – next: Whitney (G1)

Vekoma (2) – 3: 3-0-0 - $456,675 – 1^st Met Mile (G1), 1^st Carter (G1), 1^st Sir Shackleton – next: Forego (G1)

Monomoy Girl (1) - 2: 2-0-0 - $131,368 – 1^st Ruffian (G2), 1^st Allowance – next: La Troienne (G1)

Tiz the Law (2) - 3: 3-0-0 - $1,133,300 – 1^st Belmont Stakes (G1), 1^st Florida Derby (G1), 1^st Holy Bull (G3) – next: Travers (G1)

Code of Honor (1) - 2: 1-0-1 - $115,00 – 3^rd Met Mile (G1), 1^st Westchester (G3) – next: Whitney (G1)

Maximum Security (3) - 1: 1-0-0 - $10,000,000 – 1^st Saudi Cup – next: San Diego Handicap (G2)

Looking over these past performances, I have no reservations about my vote for Tiz the Law as the top Thoroughbred in the country. The addition of a classic victory in the Belmont Stakes gives the New York-bred the strongest current record in the group. His connections have a campaign planned with the Travers and the Kentucky Derby that could make him a very strong candidate for Horse of the Year.