The Eclipse Awards were created in 1971 to recognize outstanding achievements in North America by Thoroughbreds and individuals.
The three organizations responsible for determining Eclipse Award recipients are the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Daily Racing Form and National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.
To help celebrate 50 years of the Eclipse Awards, the NTRA recently announced that voting is under way at www.NTRA.com in the NTRA Eclipse 50 contest, which asks fans to select their Top 10 Eclipse Award equine champions, along with one top trainer and one top jockey, from the past 50 years.
One of the contest participants will be chosen to win a trip for two to Lexington, Ky., and spend the day at the races at Keeneland Race Course, tour the Four Roses Bourbon Distillery and visit historic Spendthrift Farm. Spendthrift is home to Into Mischief, sire of Authentic, winner of this year’s Grade I Kentucky Derby and Breeders’ Cup Classic and widely considered the favorite to be voted 2020 Horse of the Year.
The Eclipse 50 ballot consists of 10 horses, one trainer and one jockey from each of the past five decades as selected by a panel of media, racing historians and others.
Fans may enter the Eclipse 50 contest one time per valid name, email address and phone number at https://www.ntra.com/fanvote/. Voting will conclude on Monday, Jan. 25.
The 2020 Eclipse Award recipients will be announced Jan. 28 on TVG, Racetrack Television Network and various streaming outlets. The winning Eclipse 50 contest entry also will be revealed, plus the Top 10 Eclipse Award champions, top trainer and top jockey from the past 50 years.
I had the honor of being one of the 42 Eclipse 50 panelists. As such, I was asked to select 10 Eclipse Award champions for each decade during the last 50 years, plus one jockey and one trainer for each decade.
From time to time in recent years for Xpressbet.com, I have listed my continually updated Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th and 21st Centuries to have raced in North America. I relied on the work I already had done in constructing that Top 100 list when deciding which 10 horses to vote for in each of the past five decades for the Eclipse 50 contest.
These are the horses, trainers and jockeys listed on the Eclipse 50 contest ballot, decade by decade:
1971-1979
Horses:
Ack Ack
Affirmed
Forego
Riva Ridge
Ruffian
Seattle Slew
Secretariat
Shuvee
Spectacular Bid
Susan’s Girl
Trainer: Laz Barrera
Jockey: Laffit Pincay Jr.
1980-1989
Horses:
All Along
Alysheba
Easy Goer
Ferdinand
Genuine Risk
John Henry
Lady’s Secret
Personal Ensign
Spectacular Bid
Sunday Silence
Trainer: D. Wayne Lukas
Jockey: Angel Cordero Jr.
1990-1999
Horses:
A.P. Indy
Cigar
Holy Bull
Inside Information
Paseana
Serena’s Song
Silverbulletday
Silver Charm
Skip Away
Unbridled
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Jockey: Jerry Bailey
2000-2009
Horses:
Azeri
Curlin
Ghostzapper
Goldikova
Ouiji Board
Point Given
Rachel Alexandra
Smarty Jones
Tiznow
Zenyatta
Trainer: Todd Pletcher
Jockey: John Velazquez
2010-2019
Horses:
American Pharoah
Beholder
California Chrome
Goldikova
Gun Runner
Justify
Royal Delta
Songbird
Wise Dan
Zenyatta
Trainer: Bob Baffert
Jockey: Javier Castellano
MY TOP 10 DURING THE ECLIPSE AWARDS ERA
If I were to fill out an Eclipse 50 ballot, my Top 10 would be the same horses in the same order as they are ranked on my current list of Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th and 21st Centuries to have raced in North America:
- Secretariat
- Spectacular Bid
- Seattle Slew
- Affirmed
- Ruffian
- Forego
- American Pharoah
- John Henry
- Zenyatta
- Sunday Silence
My choice for trainer is Bob Baffert. Why? He has trained two Triple Crown winners during the Eclipse Awards era. Not only that, you will note that of the trainers in the Eclipse Award contest, Baffert is the only one who appears on the ballot twice — for the decades 1990-1999 and 2010-2019 –which in itself is pretty darn remarkable.
My choice for jockey is Laffit Pincay Jr. Why? Because in my opinion, he is the greatest jockey of all time, edging Bill Shoemaker in a photo finish.
According to Keith Chamblin, the NTRA’s chief operating officer, in terms of the Top 10 equine champions, No. 1 definitely will be named on Jan. 28, while the entire Top 10 probably will be revealed from 10th to 1st.
I think Secretariat should be the No. 1 equine champion during the Eclipse Awards era. I will be surprised if he is not.
I have Zenyatta at No. 9, but my expectation is that she probably will rank much higher in the Eclipse 50 contest in terms of votes received from the general public due to her tremendous popularity.
Beyond my own Top 10 from the Eclipse Awards era, below is a list of my next 40 horses in the same order as they appear on my current list of Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th and 21st Centuries to have raced in North America:
- Cigar
- Justify
- Alydar
- Easy Goer
- Alysheba
- Curlin
- Arrogate
- Shared Belief
- California Chrome
- Personal Ensign
- All Along
- Wise Dan
- Ack Ack
- Rachel Alexandra
- Dahlia
- Riva Ridge
- Shuvee
- Holy Bull
- Precisonist
- Ghostzapper
- Tiznow
- Skip Away
- Sham
- Point Given
- Inside Information
- Gun Runner
- Lady’s Secret
- Azeri
- Beholder
- Smarty Jones
- Genuine Risk
- Landaluce
- A.P. Indy
- Authentic
- Susan’s Girl
- Silver Charm
- Go for Wand
- Rags to Riches
- Slew o’ Gold
- Exceller
Below is a list of the pre-Eclipse Awards era horses in the same order as they appear on my current list of Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th and 21st Centuries to have raced in North America:
- Man o’ War
- Citation
- Kelso
- Native Dancer
- Dr. Fager
- Count Fleet
- Swaps
- Phar Lap
- Buckpasser
- Damascus
- Round Table
- Seabiscuit
- War Admiral
- Tom Fool
- Colin
- Regret
- Exterminator
- Whirlaway
- Nashua
- Bold Ruler
- Equipoise
- Gallant Fox
- Sysonby
- Gallant Man
- Assault
- Armed
- Sir Barton
- Northern Dancer
- Omaha
- Discovery
- Majestic Prince
- Arts and Letters
- Pan Zareta
- Stymie
- Challedon
- Busher
- Gallorette
- Noor
- Coaltown
- Sword Dancer
- Grey Lag
- Devil Diver
- Zev
- Twilight Tear
- Native Diver
- Ta Wee
- Twenty Grand
- Alsab
- Cicada
- Bald Eagle
Below is my complete up-to-date list of Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th and 21st Centuries to have raced in North America (in parentheses, when applicable, is where the horse ranked on The Blood-Horse’s list of the Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century):
- Man o’ War (1)
- Secretariat* (2)
- Citation* (3)
- Kelso (4)
- Spectacular Bid (10)
- Native Dancer (7)
- Dr. Fager (6)
- Seattle Slew* (9)
- Count Fleet* (5)
- Affirmed* (12)
- Ruffian (35)
- Swaps (20)
- Phar Lap (22)
- Forego (8)
- American Pharoah*
- Buckpasser (14)
- Damascus (16)
- Round Table (17)
- Seabiscuit (25)
- War Admiral* (13)
- Tom Fool (11)
- Colin (15)
- John Henry (23)
- Zenyatta
- Regret (71)
- Exterminator (29)
- Whirlaway* (26)
- Sunday Silence (31)
- Cigar
- Justify*
- Nashua (24)
- Alydar (27)
- Easy Goer (34)
- Alysheba (42)
- Curlin
- Arrogate
- Shared Belief
- California Chrome
- Bold Ruler (19)
- Personal Ensign (48)
- All Along (68)
- Wise Dan
- Equipoise (21)
- Gallant Fox* (28)
- Sysonby (30)
- Gallant Man (36)
- Assault* (33)
- Armed (39)
- Sir Barton* (49)
- Northern Dancer (43)
- Omaha* (61)
- Ack Ack (44)
- Discovery (37)
- Majestic Prince (46)
- Arts and Letters (67)
- Pan Zareta
- Rachel Alexandra
- Stymie (41)
- Challedon (38)
- Busher (40)
- Gallorette (45)
- Noor (69)
- Coaltown (47)
- Sword Dancer (53)
- Grey Lag (54)
- Devil Diver (55)
- Dahlia (50)
- Zev (56)
- Twilight Tear (59)
- Riva Ridge (57)
- Native Diver (60)
- Ta Wee (80)
- Shuvee (70)
- Holy Bull (64)
- Precisionist
- Ghostzapper
- Twenty Grand (52)
- Tiznow
- Skip Away (32)
- Sham
- Alsab (65)
- Point Given
- Inside Information
- Gun Runner
- Lady’s Secret (76)
- Azeri
- Beholder
- Smarty Jones
- Genuine Risk (91)
- Landaluce
- A.P Indy
- Authentic
- Susan’s Girl (51)
- Silver Charm (63)
- Cicada (62)
- Go for Wand (72)
- Rags to Riches
- Slew o’ Gold (58)
- Bald Eagle (74)
- Exceller (96)
*Triple Crown winner
PANELISTS WHO DETERMINED NTRA CONTEST FINALISTS
In addition to yours truly, the panelists who determined the final horses, trainers and jockeys to appear on the Eclipse 50 contest ballot were Edward L. Bowen, Charlsie Cantey, Adam Coglianese, Irwin Cohen, Steven Crist, Dora Delgado, Tom Durkin, Bob Ehalt, Bill Finley, Tracy Gantz, Jim Gluckson, Amy Gregory, Tom Hammond, Evan Hammonds, Gregory Harbut, Steve Haskin, Charles Hayward, Jay Hovdey, Alicia Hughes, Dave Johnson, Jonathon Kinchen, Cate Masterson, Tom Law, Tim Layden, Amy Owens, Ray Paulick, Tom Pedulla, Mike Penna, Jay Privman, William “Billy” Reed, Jennie Rees, Ramiro Restrepo, Tom Robbins, Peter Rotondo, Andy Sterling, Ellis Star, Todd Schrupp, Mary Simon, Lynne Snierson, Denise Steffanus and Sonny Taylor.
