Solomini didn’t exactly endear himself to trainer Bob Baffert early in his 2-year-old season. By the end of it, however, he gave Baffert a good feeling heading into 2018 that he has a Kentucky Derby contender.
A maiden victory and placings in three consecutive Grade 1 stakes earned Solomini a spot as a finalist for the Eclipse Award as North America’s top 2-year-old male horse of 2017.
It was a rainy, chilly day in Louisville, Ky., but the sun shone bright for Abel Tasman. The filly splashed home to her signature Kentucky Oaks victory on a sloppy track to score the first of three Grade 1 wins on the year, earning a spot as an Eclipse Award finalist in the 3-year-old filly division.
“We ruined our shoes and our sport coats, but it was well worth it,” trainer Bob Baffert said.
Before the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint was run Nov. 4 at Del Mar, absolutely no one was talking about Bar of Gold as a potential Eclipse Award winner.
But when Bar of Gold pulled a 66-1 upset, she leapfrogged numerous other would-be candidates by capturing easily the most important race in the filly-and-mare sprint category.
If Eclipse Award voters focused solely on the spring and summer campaigns of candidates for the top filly-and-mare sprinter of 2017, there is no doubt who would be most deserving of the award.
In three starts from April to July, Paulassilverlining reeled off victories in major divisional stakes, stamping herself as the one to overtake as the year unfolded. It was a terrific start to her campaign under new silks, with the worldwide powerhouse Juddmonte Farms having negotiated a private purchase of Paulassilverlining in March from her breeder and original owner, Vince Scuderi.
An off-the-pace victory by Unique Bella on Dec. 26 in the Grade 1 La Brea at Santa Anita not only erased some of the disappointment of her loss as a heavy favorite in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint but also validated the promises she had made earlier in the year as a blossoming superstar.
Forever Unbridled’s first start of 2017 was postponed until June, and her entire campaign was just three starts. Perfect.
A late-runner in her races, Forever Unbridled employed the same come-from-behind style in her 5-year-old season – she stormed from behind to the top of her division.
Forever Unbridled went 3 for 3, won two Grade 1’s including the Longines Breeders’ Cup Distaff, and became an Eclipse Award finalist for the first time, as outstanding older filly or mare.
“It was a championship campaign,” trainer Dallas Stewart said.
The filly Songbird was one cool customer.
“Nothing bothered her,” trainer Jerry Hollendorfer recalled. “She was a very smart filly. Whatever happened out on the racetrack, if a horse got loose or something, none of that bothered her.”
In addition to her smarts, Songbird had personality and looks.
“She had a very happy demeanor about her,” Hollendorfer said, and a physique he described as “big and strong.”
Songbird, a 4-year-old in 2017, had attributes that made her one of the most well-liked horses in the stable.
The 2017 season was icing on the cake for Stellar Wind, already an Eclipse Award and multiple Grade 1 winner. As she entered her 5-year-old season, Stellar Wind was made.
“Her value was locked in,” trainer John Sadler said. “[2017] was a chance for us to enjoy her, running in top-class races. It was a good season. It didn’t end the way we wanted, but that’s horse racing.”
Mind Your Biscuits took first-year trainer Chad Summers on the trip of a lifetime in 2017, winning the $2 million Golden Shaheen in Dubai and the Grade 2 Belmont Sprint Championship.
The season also included runner-up efforts in the Cigar Mile and Gulfstream Park Sprint, and a rapidly closing third in the Twin Spires Breeders’ Cup Sprint. The campaign has made Mind Your Biscuits an Eclipse Awards finalist in the male sprint division.
Roy H burst to prominence this year, rewarding the patience and perseverance of trainer Peter Miller.
Roy H began his 5-year-old season by winning a first-level optional-claiming race going 6 1/2 furlongs on the Santa Anita turf. He ended his campaign by rallying to take the TwinSpires Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Del Mar by a length under Kent Desormeaux, a victory that likely clinched an Eclipse Award as North America’s best male sprinter.
