The Eclipse Awards are 46 years old this year, and it should come as no surprise that there have been some interesting and distinctive divisional finalists over that time. But Lady Aurelia, a finalist for champion 2-year-old filly of 2016, might very well be the most unique Eclipse Award divisional finalist ever.
Now that the dust has settled, it doesn't really matter that Champagne Room was 33-1 when she won the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita. The only thing that REALLY matters is, Champagne Room won the Juvenile Fillies.
In 2015, Tepin became the first female to win the Breeders' Cup Mile in five years. In 2016, she reached a unique milestone – the first American-based horse to win the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at the Royal Ascot meeting in England. No wonder Tepin is again a finalist for the Eclipse Award as the nation's outstanding turf female of 2016, a title she won in 2015.
Twice in 2016, Miss Temple City beat males in Grade 1 races on turf at Keeneland – the Maker's 46 Mile in April and the Shadwell Turf Mile in October. Add a hard-fought win in the Grade 1 Matriarch Stakes against fillies and mares at a mile on turf at Del Mar on Dec. 4, and Miss Temple City compiled a record that earned her a place among the three finalists for the Eclipse Award as outstanding turf female of 2016.
Lady Eli did not disappoint in 2016. Yes, she lost more than she won, but she was never beaten far, and was beaten only a nose in the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Santa Anita on Nov. 5. In three starts, Lady Eli was so outstanding that she has been honored as a finalist for the Eclipse Award in the female turf category.
When Frosted was good, he was very good. That's all anyone needs to remember about him. His performance in the million-dollar Mohegan Sun Metropolitan Handicap on June 11, 2016, was one of those watershed efforts that had to be seen to be believed.
If California Chrome appears to be a slam-dunk choice in the Eclipse Award category of champion Older Dirt Male and the favorite for Horse of the Year, it is because he fulfilled a carefully crafted 2016 campaign that was purposely aimed at the highest levels of the game, and came within a few feet of absolute perfection.
Trainer Chad Brown knew Practical Joke had the mental makeup to be a good horse well before the colt proved it on the racetrack. But Practical Joke did prove himself a talented runner, winning his first three starts including two Grade 1 stakes before finishing third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Santa Anita. Those accomplishments made him a finalist for the Eclipse Award as champion 2-year-old male.
Not This Time's victory in the Grade 3 Iroquois Stakes at Churchill Downs in September, and his neck loss to Classic Empire in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile earned him a spot as finalist for an Eclipse Award in the 2-year-old male division.
In a span of 65 days, Classic Empire gave trainer Mark Casse one his most impressive wins and one of his most bizarre moments in racing. In the end, Classic Empire may give his trainer an Eclipse Award as well.
