The Juddmonte Farms of Saudi prince Khalid Abdullah, which enjoyed phenomenal success with homebred Grade 1 winners in 2003, overwhelmed the competition to win Eclipse Awards as North America's leading breeder and owner.

Juddmonte has now won a total of six Eclipse Awards as breeder and owner.

Juddmonte's breeding award was its fourth, an unprecedented feat in the breeding category's 29-year history; Juddmonte also won for breeding in 1995, 2001, and 2002. The owners award was Juddmonte's second, following its win in 1992.

The country that has given Laffit Pincay Jr. and a host of other highly successful jockeys to North American racing has another name on that honor roll: Eddie Castro.

Castro, a native of Panama, was an easy winner of the 2003 Eclipse Award for top apprentice rider after his mounts won 242 races and earned more than $3.93 million.

Castro, 18, came to south Florida in April. After leaving Panama's prestigious riding school, he had ridden professionally for just a few months in his homeland, where he quickly became the leading apprentice, before deciding to leave.

The Ohio division of the Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association has denied the requests of Beulah Park and River Downs to send their signals to several Indian casinos in Oklahoma.

"It is our understanding that Oklahoma Indian casinos and outlets contribute little or nothing to horsemen's purses in that state," Dan Theno, executive director of the horsemen's group, said in a statement.

Under the Interstate Horseracing Act, tracks must receive permission from a state's horsemen in order to send their signals out of state.

The inaugural Dubai International Racing Carnival begins at Nad Al Sheba on Thursday night with Round 1 of the Maktoum Challenge. The one-mile Group 3 race is headed by Victory Moon, winner of last year's UAE Derby and a good fifth to Falbrav in the Eclipse Stakes. . . . A Siphon-Master Print colt worked a quarter-mile in 21.60 seconds at Calder Race Course to top the work tab at the first under-tack preview for the Ocala Breeders' Sales Co.'s Feb. 3 juvenile sale at Calder. OBS will host a second and final under-tack show on Feb. 1 at 10:30 a.m. . . . Clifford A.

"Seabiscuit," the film based on the best-selling book by Laura Hillenbrand, was nominated for seven Academy Awards on Tuesday, including Best Picture.

"Seabiscuit" will go up against four other movies for Best Picture, including "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," "Lost in Translation," "Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World," and "Mystic River."

ARCADIA, Calif. - Jack Liebau, the president of Magna Entertainment's three California racetracks, said he was resigning after declining an offer from chairman Frank Stronach to take a corporate position on the national level.

Liebau, 65, said that Stronach told him on Saturday that he was being replaced as the president of Santa Anita by Jack McDaniel, an entertainment executive who oversaw the development and construction of the track's new grandstand restaurant, Sirona.

The Jockey Club had a tougher time separating the top juveniles of 2003 than did Eclipse Award voters.

While Action This Day was a fairly handy winner of the Eclipse Award for top juvenile colt or gelding, he shared top billing from The Jockey Club in the annual with Cuvee and Ruler's Court. All three horses were assigned the standard 126 pounds in the Experimental Free Handicap, which is compiled for a hypothetical race run at 1 1/16 miles on dirt.

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Mineshaft, who was a bust in Britain but became a repatriated star in the United States, was named the 2003 Horse of the Year at the 33rd annual Eclipse Awards ceremony Monday night.

Mineshaft was also named champion older horse at the black-tie dinner held at the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa. He was rewarded for a year in which he won seven of nine starts and scored victories in four Grade 1 stakes - the Pimlico Special, Suburban Handicap, Woodward Stakes, and Jockey Club Gold Cup.

Funny Cide's victory in the Kentucky Derby has been selected the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Moment of the Year for 2003. Runner-up in the voting conducted at the NTRA website was the dead heat for first between Johar and High Chaparral in the Breeders' Cup Turf. . . . Toby's Success set a Fair Grounds track record for 5 1/2 furlongs on dirt, 1:03.20, in Monday's third race. Toby's Success, a Louisiana-bred 4-year-old gelding trained by Troy Young, won an entry-level allowance for statebreds by 8 3/4 lengths. . . .

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Mineshaft, who closed out his career with victories in three consecutive Grade 1 races, including the Jockey Club Gold Cup, is expected to be named Horse of the Year and champion older horse when the 33rd are announced at a black-tie dinner Monday night at the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa.

Mineshaft is one of three finalists for champion older horse, along with Congaree and Medaglia d'Oro. No finalists were announced for Horse of the Year, to prevent sharp observers from divining some of the divisional champions.