The 2014 Eclipse Award Results
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The 2014 Eclipse Awards are underway
at Gulfstream Park. I’ll be posting a live blog throughout the evening
with news about the winners and quotes from horsemen and owners.
HORSE OF THE YEAR:
Race Record: 16-9-1-1 ($4,222,650)
Trainer: Art Sherman
Owner: Steven
Coburn & Perry Martin
Breeder: Steven Coburn & Perry Martin
2014 Career Highlights:
1st – Kentucky Derby –
Gr. 1
1st – Preakness Stakes –
Gr. 1
1st - Santa Anita Derby – Gr. 1
1st - Hollywood Derby -
Gr. 1
1st - San Felipe Stakes -
Gr. 2
3rd - Breeders' Cup
Classic - Gr. 1
The rags to riches California-bred became the first three-year-old male since Curlin in 2007 to win Horse of the Year.
“I’m so excited. I wish Espinosa was here. He did everything
right with this horse. It’s a tough game and very rewarding to me. It’s just been a great ride for my family and
my wife Fay for 54 years for putting up with me. – Art Sherman
“Once again, it’s truly an honor. I
have no words. But I have to say one
thing – I want to thank all of the fans. Do not deviate from thanking our fans.
Thank you so much.” - Steve Colburn
Three-Year-Old Male:
Race Record: 16-9-1-1 ($4,222,650)
Trainer: Art Sherman
Owner: Steven
Coburn & Perry Martin
Breeder: Steven Coburn & Perry Martin
2014 Career Highlights:
1st – Kentucky Derby –
Gr. 1
1st – Preakness Stakes –
Gr. 1
1st - Santa Anita Derby – Gr. 1
1st - Hollywood Derby -
Gr. 1
1st - San Felipe Stakes -
Gr. 2
3rd - Breeders' Cup
Classic - Gr. 1
“Thank you ladies and gentlemen. This
has been an incredible journey. I want to thank my wife Carolyn for standing by
my side through this whole incredible journey. Fairy tale come true for us. It’s just amazing.” Steve Colburn.
“It’s been a wild year for me, it’s
been a lifetime achievement for me just being here. I’ve been on the racetrack
for 55 years. IT’s been a great honor and I truly appreciate it from everybody.
Thank you very much.” – Art Sherman
Three-Year-Old Filly:
Race Record: 11-8-0-1 ($2,996,725)
Trainer: Steven M. Asmussen
Owner: Winchell
Thoroughbreds LLC
Breeder: Winchell
Thoroughbreds LLC
2014 Career Highlights:
1st - Breeders' Cup
Distaff - Gr. 1
1st - Cotillion Stakes -
Gr. 1
1st - Mother Goose Stakes
- Gr. 1
1st - Kentucky Oaks - Gr.
1
1st - Fair Grounds Oaks -
Gr. 2
1st - Rachel Alexandra
Stakes - Gr. 3
First unanimous vote for Eclipse
Award winner since Blame won older male champion.
“(This is a) Great honor. Thank you Rosie Napravnick. (I) haven’t seen
a better combo of rider and horse. Also Steve Asmussen for a phenomenal job
this year. On behalf of my family and
team, it’s a great, great honor. Thank you. - Ron Winchell
Two-Year-Old Male:
Race Record: 3-2-0-0 ($361,500)
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Owner: Zayat
Stables
Breeder: Zayat Stables
2014 Career Highlights:
1st
- FrontRunner Stakes - Gr. 1
1st
- Del Mar Futurity - Gr. 1
“This is
our 1st eclipse award. He is a very special horse for us. I raced
his dam, It is wonderful, we’re thrilled. I’d like to make special congrats to (the)
other two finalists they are both deserving of this honor, we are privileged to
have raced against you. This is what it is all about.” Ahmed Zayat.
Two-Year-Old Filly:
Race Record: 8-4-1-0 ($1,620,126)
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
Owner: Willis
D. Horton
Breeder: Charming Syndicate
2014 Career Highlights:
1st - Breeders' Cup Juvenile
Fillies - Gr. 1
1st - Starlet Stakes -
Gr. 1
1st - Delta Downs
Princess Stakes - Gr. 3
2nd - Schuylerville
Stakes - Gr. 3
This is the twenty-sixth Eclipse Aaward
winning horse for D. Wayne Lukas.
“Unbelievable that I came in here two years in a row to win an Eclipse Award. I said last year that I’d love to come back and I’m back. I want to thank the voting public for this award and I think you made a smart decision. This has been the best two years of our life. We have rode the gravy train and we love it. And we’re hoping that we’re back on the road for three year in a row.” - Willis Horton.
Female
Sprinter:
Race Record: 18-9-7-1
($1,662,122)
Trainer: Wesley Ward
Owner: Wesley Ward
Breeder: Adena Springs
2014 Career
Highlights:
1st -
Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint - Gr. 1
1st -
Madison Stakes - Gr. 1
1st -
Rancho Bernardo Handicap - Gr. 3
1st - Las
Flores Stakes - Gr. 3
“She
(Judy the Beauty) was named after my mother’s best friend who died of cancer a
few years back.” Wesley Ward
Male Sprinter:
Race Record: 15-12-2-0
($1,357,571)
Trainer: Roger A. Brueggemann
Owner: Midwest
Thoroughbreds, Inc.
Breeder: Midwest
Thoroughbreds
2014 Career
Highlights:
1st - Breeders'
Cup Sprint - Gr. 1
1st - Phoenix
Stakes - Gr. 3
1st - Iowa Sprint Handicap
1st - Hot
Springs Stakes
“I think his name
embodies it all, not only is he our horse, he’s the horse of all the people who
work all week long. Thanks to all the folks who have a dream who do what it
takes to make it happen. Truly a team effort.”
- Midwest Thoroughbreds
Older
Female:
Race Record: 14-9-2-0
($2,707,300)
Trainer: Bill Mott
Owner: Juddmonte
Farms, Inc.
Breeder: Millsec, LTD.
2014 Career
Highlights:
1st - Personal
Ensign Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Ogden
Phipps Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Apple
Blossom Handicap - Gr. 1
1st - Azeri
Stakes - Gr. 2
Older
Male:
Race Record: 18-8-3-3
($3,298,386)
Trainer: H. Graham Motion
Owner: Flaxman Holdings Limited
Breeder: Flaxman Holdings Limited
2014
Career Highlights:
1st - United
Nations Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Sword
Dancer Invitational Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Joe
Hirsch Turf Classic Stakes - Gr. 1
1st – Breeders’
Cup Turf – Gr. 1
Female Turf Horse:
Race Record: 18-11-4-0 (:
$2,288,892)
Trainer: Chad C. Brown
Owner: Frankel,
Jerry, Frankel, Ronald, Laymon, Steve and Bradley Thoroughbreds
Breeder: Castellare
DiCracchiolo Stable, Cracchiolo & Goldsher
2014 Career Highlights:
1st - Breeders' Cup Filly
and Mare Turf - Gr. 1
1st - First Lady Stakes -
Gr. 1
1st - Yaddo Stakes
2nd - De La Rose Stakes
“We got started a little late with her, (this
is a) perfect example of putting the horse first and she rewarded us in the
end.” – Chad Brown
"This is the best life of my life." – Ronald
Frankel
Male Turf Horse:
Race Record: 18-8-3-3 ($3,298,386)
Trainer: H. Graham Motion
Owner: Flaxman
Holdings Limited
Breeder: Flaxman Holdings
Limited
2014 Career Highlights:
1st - United Nations
Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Sword Dancer
Invitational Stakes - Gr. 1
1st - Joe Hirsch Turf
Classic Stakes - Gr. 1
1st – Breeders’ Cup Turf –
Gr. 1
Main Sequence was undefeated in all
four U.S. Starts.
His owners stated, “
(We’re) overwhelmed and delighted, we’re looking forward to 2014.”
Steeplechase Horse:
Race Record: 39-122-8 ($835,074)
Trainer: Richard L. Valentine
Owner: Mrs.
George L. Ohrstrom, Jr.
Breeder: Gainsborough Farm
LLC
2014 Career Highlights:
1st
- Grand National Hurdle Stakes - Gr. 1
1st
- Lonesome Glory Handicap - Gr. 1
1st
- New York Turf Writers Cup Stakes - Gr. 1
2nd
- A. P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase Stakes - Gr. 1
3rd
- Colonial Cup Stakes - Gr. 1
Jockey:
His second consecutive award, Javier
has been a finalist for the past three years. He earned $25 million dollars, a total
215 races, including 30 stakes races and nine Grade 1 winners.
“First of all I’d like to say ty for
this award thank the Lord Jesus Christ for this award and the ability to ride
horses. I’d like to congratulate all the
winners of this Award and acknowledge my fellow nominees who had all outstanding
years, and the rest of the riders in the country. This business is not easy and
we all make a lot of scarifies. This Award is quite an honor. God Bless
America.”
Apprentice Jockey:
Riding on the highly competitive California
Circuit, Drayden rode 192 winners,
earned $6 million dollars and two riding
titles at Los Alamitos.
“Thank you so much. I’m so honored
to win this award tonight. Thank you to the owners trainers for the opportunity
to ride these amazing animals we call Thoroughbreds. I want to dedicate this
award to three very special people we lost this year. Juan Saez, Kyle Nolan and my father Seth Van Dyke.”
Trainer:
This is the seventh time that Todd
Pletcher has won the outstanding Trainer award. He won in 2014 as well. This year, Pletcher has earned $22.5 million
dollars, has had 62 stakes winners and 40 graded stakes winners.
“Reflecting back a little bit to Dec
1999, driving back to Saratoga after my Gulfstream Park application was
rejected. I had seven horses, four owned by my dad and they were all
maidens. I have such a terrific family,
dad, and supportive staff and owners who have given me some very special
horses.” – Todd Pletcher
Owner:
The Ramsey’s won the Outstanding Owner
Award in 2004, 2011, and 2014
“It never gets old. To the other (two nominees) you too are winners,
so congratulations. I’d like to thank my entire staff at Ramsey Farm. The
family is what makes Team Ramsey a winner. And I’d like to thank my wife for
inspiring all of us.” – Ken Ramsey
Breeder:
This is their consecutive Eclipse
Award as Outstanding Breeders. Ramsey-bred horses have won 250 races,
over $10 Million Dollars and 17 Stakes Horses, including Bobby’s Kitten, Real
Solution, Real Solution, Stephanie’s Kitten.
“This game is all about the horses,
we’re up here because of one special horse, Kitten’s Joy. My wife of 52 years, kitten
and my horse kitten have brought me unbelievable joy. Thank you and long live
the kittens.” Ken Ramsey.
Eclipse
Award of Merit:
Tom
Durkin
Tom Durkin
is the first race caller to win the Eclipse Award of Merit. He has made 80,000
race calls.
“I’m not
sure if you’re fully aware of what you’ve just done, you just gave an Eclipse
Award to a person allergic to horses. I’ve always wanted one of these babies
(Eclipse Award). And I’ll take it on behalf of all race callers past and
present. Many hands have molded this
statue, my parents never uttered a word to discourage my dream, This has been molded
by many hands, far too many to mention. To the horseplayer and racing fan, if
it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be here tonight and we probably wouldn’t be
wearing tuxedos. Together we saw some amazing performances over the years that enabled
me to use words like courageous, determined, subline, otherworldly, magnificent,
and thousands of words to only to attempt to describe the undesirable Thoroughbred.
If nothing else horseracing is an obsession furled by dreams in a room full of dreamers.
I’d like to thank the game for making a dream come true. Thank you for this
incredible, truly incredible honor with my deepest affection, thank you.”
Eclipse
Special Award:
Old
Friends Farm, Michael Blowen
“I want to
thank everyone involved in this great honor. Dr. Waldrige he’s been our vet for
a year hand a half and has never sent us a bill. We started with one horse, Narrow Escape, (and
now) we have more stakes winners than any farm in the history of horse racing.
Gulch just turned 31, and Ogygen turned 32.
After I make sure I’m standing, I make sure they are. I feel like I win
the KY Derby every day when I get to feed carrots to all the horses. We’re building
a branch of Old Friends at Kentucky Downs. The first ever at a race track. I’m
very excited about this project.”
Media
Eclipse Award for Photography:
Barbara
Livingston
“When I was
14, I wrote in my diary that I’m going to be a horse racing photographer. Thank
you to the people who have allowed me to photograph these horses. It’s been a
great run.”
Media
Eclipse Award:
NBC
Sports
For the broadcast of Breeders’ Cup
Classic and race aftermath.This is NBC’s eleventh Eclipse Award.
“(I) Accept this award on behalf of over 200
men and everyone who is dedicated to Thoroughbred Horse racing. This sport
means a lot to me.” - Rob Highland
Eclipse
Award News Enterprise Writing:
Joe
Clancy
Coverage of California Chrome’s
Preakness win.
“Thank you to the California Chrome
team, especially Art Sherman who treated me like he knew me his whole life.”
Handicapper
of the Year:
Jose
Arias
“(I’m) Grateful … for making the horseplayer
part of this event. I’d like to thank my dad for giving me my first racing
form. Ever since I was 15 years old, I caught the racing fever, I wanted to be
either a jockey or horseplayer. What we remember is the fun, the brotherhood and
the process of handicapping.”
California Chrome
“It’s like your child hitting the home run that wins the world series.”
Steve Colburn – on winning the
Kentucky Derby
"Seeing your horse out there wearing the roses
is something special. On future plans – “I think his grass race was awesome, so
many people want this horse all over the world. Dubi isn’t out of the question,
and we might be headed that way.” Art Sherman
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