Shared Belief is world's top-rated horse in IFHA poll

Shared Belief is the top-rated horse in the world after his romp in the Santa Anita Handicap, according to the first 2015 World’s Best Racehorse rankings released Thursday by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities.

Shared Belief’s Santa Anita Handicap was rated 125, one point better than Able Friend’s victory in the Group 1 Steward’s Cup in Hong Kong.

The rankings are performance ratings for a single race compiled several times annually by a panel of international racing executives from major jurisdictions.

The Japanese horse Just A Way was the world’s top-rated horse in 2014, his Dubai Duty Free performance rated 130, four points higher than the next-highest performance. The leading American horse in the 2014 rankings was Bayern, whose Breeders’ Cup Classic win was rated 125.