Who are Eclipse Awards favorites after Breeders' Cup 2017?

Heavy favorites went down, while longshots tilted the tote. The first-ever edition of the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar had no shortage of surprising results, but in the end, the 2017 championships will go a long way in deciding who takes home the hardware in this year's Eclipse Awards. This is how I see it on the day after …

Champion two-year-old male: Bolt d'Oro (4-3-0-1) - Good Magic was an impressive and deserving winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, and would seem to have a very bright future, but with only one win in three starts, he simply did not do enough to wrestle the honor away from Bolt d'Oro. The impressive son of Medaglia d'Oro already had two strong Grade 1 wins going in, and I believe he did absolutely nothing to tarnish his reputation after a horrid-trip resulted in a third-place finish on Saturday. We have plenty to look forward to on the road to the Kentucky Derby with these two. 

Champion two-year-old filly: Caledonia Road (3–2-1-0) - The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies looked like a race ripe for an upset going in, and sure enough, a 17-1 shot ran to the money. The daughter of Quality Road may only have one stakes win, but she has run well in each start, including a good second in the Grade 1 Frizette. That coupled with a seventh-place finish by Moonshine Memories, the division leader going in, should tip the scales in favor of the Ralph Nicks trainee. Rushing Fall, the best juvenile turf filly in the nation, likely moves into second in the division after her win in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.

Champion three-year-old male: West Coast (9-6-2-1) – Overall, it was very consistent year for the son of Flatter. While he flew under the radar for much of the first half of the season, improving and consistent results gave him every opportunity to move to the head of the class in the second half. Solid victories in the Travers and Pennsylvania Derby did just that, and yesterday's good performance, to finish third behind Gun Runner in the Classic, validated his form against the three-year-olds. He will be one half of a sweep of the sophomore awards for trainer, Bob Baffert. Kudos to Battle of Midway for his brave win in the Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile, which should land him the runner-up spot for the award.

Champion three-year-old filly: Abel Tasman (7-3-4-0) – Dominating victories in the Alabama and Beldame gave Elate every chance to win the division, but in the Breeders' Cup Distaff, it was the Kentucky Oaks winner who regained her spot on top. Three Grade 1 victories were book-ended by two pairs of second-place finishes for the daughter of Quality Road in 2017, giving her a full season of racing with nothing worse than a second. Of course, the best of the bunch was her outstanding performance to finish a fast closing runner-up to Forever Unbridled on Friday.

Champion older male: Gun Runner (6-5-1-0) – In the United States, he was a perfect and dominating five-for-five. In Dubai, he was second best, but don't forget that second-place finish in the Dubai World Cup came on a track which did not favor speed all evening. While the defending champ received more of the press going in, it was the wonderfully consistent son of Candy Ride who proved he was the Man of the division, with a decisive score in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Champion older female: Forever Unbridled (3-3-0-0) – I'm not really a fan of a healthy horse only running three times all season, but the strategy certainly seemed to work for trainer Dallas Stewart. I've been a fan of the Unbridled's Song and Lemons Forever mare since I saw her at Churchill Downs as a 2-year-old, and Friday's solid victory in the Breeders' Cup Distaff was a culmination of continued improvement to the point where there can be no doubt that she is the best older dirt female in the country. It looks like she will take a shot against the boys in the rich Pegasus World Cup in January -- I wish her well.

Champion turf male: World Approval (6-5-0-0) – Also trained by Mark Casse, World Approval is this year's Tepin. Always a nice turf horse, the son of Northern Afleet and the wonderful broodmare Win Approval put it all together after being switched back to middle distance racing. In fact, he was a perfect five-for-five this year in races at 9 furlongs or less. It was in his last three, the Fourstardave, Woodbine Mile, and yesterday's Breeders' Cup Mile, though where he really shined. Much like Tepin, he used strong tactical speed and a strong burst early in the lane to take it to his competition. Beach Patrol deserves strong recognition for his final three races of the year as well, but overall, World Approval was our best male turf horse this year.

Champion turf female: Lady Eli (5-3-1-0) – It's an awful shame what happened to her yesterday in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf, but there can really be little doubt that the wonderful daughter of Divine Park has finally earned her first Eclipse Award. Despite a scary injury which left her no chance yesterday, resulting in the only poor finish in her career, the survivor of laminitis proved to be the best in her division with three important victories at Santa Anita and Saratoga. Her career will be remembered for many things, and not for her finish at Del Mar. I will cheer loudly when her name is called in January.

Champion male sprinter:  Roy H (6-5-1-0) - While so many wanted to talk last year's champion, Drefong, this was the horse who put together easily the best season of any sprinter in the nation. He got it done on both coasts, and if not for an awful trip in the Bing Crosby, he would have completed a perfect season by winning yesterday's Breeders' Cup Sprint. Most were slow to recognize, as he really did come from nowhere this year, but the Peter Miller trainee had a remarkable season in 2017.

Champion female sprinter: Ami's Mesa (5-4-1-0) – Of all the categories, this is clearly the one without a standout. In fact, a point could be made for several in this division, but in the end, I like the consistent Canadian filly over the likes of Bar of Gold, Paulassilverlining, Skye Diamonds, Finley'sluckycharm, By the Moon, Unique Bella, etc ... because of how well she ran yesterday. She ran her eyeballs out in defeat, and just has a much better overall record than the mare who just edged her out in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint, Bar of Gold. Ami's Mesa is my choice, but this award is truly up in the air.

Horse of the Year: Gun Runner (6-5-1-0) – No doubt about it. Arrogate may have been best in the first quarter, but it was the Steve Asmussen-trained Gun Runner who was America's dominant horse the rest of the year. Much the best in the Foster, Whitney, Woodward, and in yesterday's Breeders' Cup Classic, the string of four consecutive dominating wins in Grade 1 races make him the 2017 Horse of the Year -- and it's not even close.