2018 Eclipse Awards: City of Light

Those who were paying attention to the waning days of 2017 were treated to the sight of a colt named City of Light making his stakes debut in a Grade 1 event and running away with the seven-furlong Malibu Stakes for 3-year-olds at Santa Anita Park.

The calendar page turned, and City of Light was asked by trainer Michael McCarthy to grow up fast. To begin his 2018 campaign, the son of Quality Road answered with resounding back-to-back wins in the Grade 1 Triple Bend on March 10 and then an upset of Santa Anita Handicap winner Accelerate in the Grade 2 Oaklawn Handicap on April 14.

Emboldened by the Oaklawn triumph, McCarthy and City of Light’s owners, William and Suzanne Warren of Saint Liam fame, decided to poke the grizzly again in the Grade 1 Gold Cup at Santa Anita, on May 26. However, this time the day belonged to Accelerate, as City of Light finished third at the end of the 1 1/4-mile race.

:: 2018 Eclipse Finalists: Profiles and photos for all categories

Still, his people were hardly discouraged. McCarthy drew a bright red circle around Nov. 3, when the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile would be contested at Churchill Downs. The one-turn event seemed tailored for the talents already displayed by City of Light. And, for that matter, Accelerate would be heading for the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

First, however, McCarthy had to deal with a bruised foot that put City of Light on hold just long enough to paint his trainer into a brief corner. When the big colt appeared next, on Aug. 25 in the Grade 1 Forego at Saratoga, he was clearly not at full strength and settled for second behind the classy Whitmore, who had already earned nearly $2 million while sprinting.

McCarthy’s time as top assistant to Todd Pletcher instilled a deep aversion to losing Grade 1 races, especially when favored at odds-on. But even in defeat, he knew a good effort when he saw it, and from late August to early November City of Light trained as if he was a horse on a mission.

The field for the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile ran deep with intrigue. Seeking the Soul was always dangerous over his home track. The 3-year-olds Firenze Fire and Bravazo were in their best form. And the favorite, Catalina Cruiser, was an unbeaten two-time graded stakes winner whose emerging talents seemed without limits.

Breaking from the rail, City of Light set up shop on the front end and never appeared under threat. Javier Castellano, riding him for the first time, found all the right buttons to push and smiled his way to a winning margin of nearly three lengths. City of Light took his bows, then surrendered the Breeders’ Cup stage to Accelerate, his pal from California. Now both are Eclipse Award finalists as champion older dirt male.