2021 Eclipse Awards: Life Is Good

Every once in a while a horse comes along where when he trains, it’s so effortless, and so brilliant, that everyone – novice or weary railbird – sees the obvious talent, and remarks, “Who’s that?”

Life Is Good is that kind of horse. Brilliant in his morning training, brilliant in his races, he had a 3-year-old year that, though interrupted by injury and involving a trainer change, was so compelling it made him an obvious finalist for champion 3-year-old male.

He’s up against Essential Quality and Medina Spirit, two horses who won American classics in 2021. Life Is Good might have been there too if not for an ill-timed injury that kept him from racing from March until August.

Before heading to the sidelines, Life Is Good had shown he was superior to Medina Spirit, via victories over his Bob Baffert-trained stablemate at Santa Anita in the Grade 3 Sham and Grade 2 San Felipe. In the San Felipe, he romped by eight lengths over Medina Spirit and was, at the time, unbeaten and favored for the Kentucky Derby.

But two weeks later, Life Is Good emerged from a work with a small chip in a hind ankle, necessitating time off. When he was ready to return, his owners, China Horse Club and WinStar Farm, decided to transfer the colt to Todd Pletcher in the aftermath of the contretemps surrounding Medina Spirit following the Kentucky Derby.

:: Full list of 2021 Eclipse Awards finalists, including profile stories

Life Is Good made his first start for Pletcher at Saratoga in the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial, against Jackie’s Warrior, a finalist for champion male sprinter. It was one of the best races of the year. They dueled from the start, Life Is Good had the advantage in upper stretch, but Jackie’s Warrior was able to prevail by a neck.

Mike Smith, who had ridden Life Is Good through the Jerkens, was replaced by Irad Ortiz Jr., who subsequently guided Life Is Good to runaway victories at Belmont Park in the Grade 2 Kelso, his first start against older horses, and then at Del Mar in the Big Ass Fans Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile, giving Life Is Good his first Grade 1 score.

The Dirt Mile was a tour de force. Returning to the track where he had won so spectacularly on debut 50 weeks earlier, Life Is Good rocketed through splits of 21.88 seconds for the quarter, 44.94 for the half, and 1:08.76 for six furlongs en route to a final time of 1:34.12, coasting across the wire 5 3/4 lengths best. He earned a career-best Beyer Speed Figure of 109, giving him figs of 101 or better in all of his 2021 starts.

Life Is Good, by Into Mischief out of the Distorted Humor mare Beach Walk, was bred by Gary and Mary West and was purchased as a yearling for $525,000.

He is remaining in training at age 4, with a much anticipated showdown against Knicks Go in the Pegasus World Cup on Jan. 29 first on the agenda.