The National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the National Turf Writers
Association and Daily Racing Form announced the finalists for the 2004 Eclipse
Awards on Wednesday. The year-end championship honors are named after the great 18th century
racehorse and sire Eclipse.
As expected, Kentucky Derby (G1) and Preakness S. (G1) winner
SMARTY JONES
(Elusive Quality), whose bid to become only the second undefeated Triple Crown
winner in history ended with a runner-up performance in the Belmont S. (G1), and
three-time Grade 1 winner
GHOSTZAPPER (Awesome Again), who concluded a perfect
four-for-four campaign with a three-length victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic
(G1), are among the finalists for the 34th annual Eclipse Awards that will be
presented on January 24 at the Regent Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills,
California.
Smarty Jones and Ghostzapper are the leading candidates for champion
three-year-old and older male honors, respectively, and both are expected to vie for the
title of Horse of the Year. The three finalists for that coveted title will not be
announced until the awards dinner, which will be televised live for the first
time by TVG, beginning at 9 p.m. (EST).
Most of the award winners appear to be foregone conclusions, but the sprint division
could go either way between
PICO CENTRAL (Brz) (Spend a Buck) and
SPEIGHTSTOWN
(Gone West). The older female division also features a close contest between
AZERI (Jade
Hunter) and
SIGHTSEEK (Distant View). The human categories, with the possible
exception of John Velazquez in the jockey category, are evenly matched.
Like last year, award winners will be determined by popular votes and not the
previous bloc system.
The 2004 Eclipse Award finalists (in alphabetical order) are:
Two-Year-Old Male:
AFLEET ALEX (Northern Afleet),
DECLAN’S MOON
(Malibu Moon),
WILKO (Awesome Again)
Two-Year-Old Female:
BALLETTO (UAE) (Timber Country),
RUNWAY MODEL (Petionville),
SWEET CATOMINE (Storm Cat)
Three-Year-Old Male:
BIRDSTONE (Grindstone),
KITTEN’S JOY (El Prado
[Ire]), Smarty Jones
Three-Year-Old Female:
ASHADO (Saint Ballado),
OUIJA BOARD (GB) (Cape
Cross [Ire]),
STELLAR JAYNE (Wild Rush)
Older Male: Ghostzapper,
PLEASANTLY PERFECT (Pleasant Colony),
ROSES
IN MAY (Devil His Due)
Older Female: Azeri, Sightseek,
STORM FLAG FLYING
(Storm Cat)
Sprinter: Ghostzapper, Pico Central, Speightstown
Male Turf Horse:
BETTER TALK NOW (Talkin Man), Kitten’s Joy,
SINGLETARY (Sultry Song)
Female Turf Horse:
INTERCONTINENTAL (GB) (Danehill), Ouija Board,
TICKER TAPE (GB) (Royal Applause [GB])
Steeplechase:
HIRAPOUR (Ire) (Kahyasi),
MCDYNAMO (Dynaformer),
PREEMPTIVE STRIKE (Roanoke)
Owner: Michael Gill, Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, Stronach Stables
Breeder: Adena Springs/Stronach Entities, John Franks, Juddmonte Farms
Trainer: Steve Asmussen, Robert Frankel, Todd Pletcher
Jockey: Rafael Bejarano, Edgar Prado, John Velazquez
Apprentice Jockey: Pablo Fragoso, Brian Hernandez Jr., Angel Quinones