Havre de Grace wins fan vote for Horse of the Year in DRF's online poll

DRF Staff|Jan 13, 2012

Barbara D. Livingston Havre de Grace follows up her defeat of males in the Woodward with a romp in the Beldame. Victory in the BC Classic would clinch Horse of the Year honors.

Havre de Grace came out on top in an online fan vote for Horse of the Year conducted by Daily Racing Form and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the two organizations announced Friday. The vote was part of a free-to-enter sweepstakes that required fans to select the horse they felt deserved to win the 2011 Horse of the Year Award, which will be announced Monday in Beverly Hills, Calif., at the 41st annual Eclipse Awards dinner. Fans were also encouraged to cast their votes in 14 other Eclipse Award categories.

Havre de Grace, who won multiple Grade 1 races during 2011 and beat males in the Woodward Stakes at Saratoga, received 4,249 votes. Rapid Redux, who will receive a Special Eclipse Award on Monday night after going 19-for-19 in 2011, received 2,213 votes. Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Drosselmeyer was third with a vote count of 1,236.

More than 12,000 votes were received in balloting conducted between Dec. 16 and Jan. 3. The winner of the sweepstakes, Megan Tracy of College Station, Texas, was selected at random to receive a trip for two to the Eclipse Award ceremony and VIP access for a day of racing at Santa Anita.

Monday's awards dinner will be shown live on DRF.com starting at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Results of the fan balloting were:

Horse of the Year
Havre de Grace – 4,249
Rapid Redux – 2,213
Drosselmeyer – 1,236

2-Year-Old Colt or Gelding
Hansen – 1,082
Union Rags – 718
O’Prado Again – 82

2-Year-Old Filly
My Miss Aurelia – 1,269
On Fire Baby 708
Stephanie’s Kitten – 194

3-Year-Old Colt or Gelding
Animal Kingdom – 1,119
Caleb’s Posse – 717
Shackleford – 453

3-Year-Old Filly
Royal Delta – 1,166
Plum Pretty – 188
Awesome Feather – 179

Female Sprinter
Hilda’s Passion – 992
Turbulent Descent – 459
Musical Romance – 351

Female Turf Horse
Stacelita – 479
Winter Memories – 316
Perfect Shirl – 193

Male Sprinter
Caleb’s Posse – 652
Amazombie – 640
Smiling Tiger – 566

Male Turf Horse
Cape Blanco – 668
Gio Ponti – 367
Acclamation – 282

Older Filly or Mare
Havre de Grace – 1,507
Blind Luck – 328
R Betty Graybull – 57

Older Male
Drosselmeyer – 560
Tizway – 513
Game On Dude – 438

Steeplechase
Black Jack Blues – 456
Mabou – 343
Tax Ruling - 297

Jockey
Ramon A. Dominguez – 214
John Velazquez – 127
Javier Castellano – 55

Trainer
William I. Mott – 110
H. Graham Motion – 96
Todd A. Pletcher – 86

Owner
Ramsey, Kenneth L & Sarah K – 84
WinStar Farm LLC – 77
Midwest Thoroughbreds – 53

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