Steven Crist and Andrew Beyer are the recipients of the 2016 Eclipse Award of Merit, it was announced Thursday by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form, and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.

Crist and Beyer are widely recognized as trendsetters in the field of turf writing. Both came to prominence in the 1970s and ’80s as outspoken advocates for the horseplaying public, with Beyer becoming an iconic racing writer for the Washington Post and Crist for the New York Times and Daily Racing Form.

A few final thoughts on the voting for the 2015 Eclipse Awards, which were presented last Saturday at Gulfstream Park:

Maria Borell was in the tunnel getting ready to saddle her first horse at Gulfstream Park last Sunday when the trainer in the next stall caught her eye and came smiling forward.

“We need to get a picture,” he said, handing his smartphone to an innocent bystander. “Two Breeders’ Cup winners. That’s us.”

There were a whole bunch of firsts celebrated at the 45th Eclipse Awards dinner last Saturday night at Gulfstream Park, some of them historic, others merely adding a little zip to a long night.

First, I was genuinely surprised that my tuxedo fit, and remind me to send a note of appreciation to the guy who invented those adjustment clips on the beltline of the pants. Yes, I will have the key lime pie.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The Eclipse Awards on Saturday night at Gulfstream Park quite rightly turned into a celebration and coronation for American Pharoah, who was unanimously voted Horse of the Year and champion male 3-year-old, prompting his owner and breeder, Ahmed Zayat, to call American Pharoah “the horse of a lifetime.”

That horse was responsible for five Eclipse Awards: two for himself, two for Zayat Stables as owner and breeder, and one for trainer Bob Baffert, who said, “Every trainer dreams of having a horse like this.”

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – It’s unanimous! American Pharoah was the best horse in the country last year.

American Pharoah received all 261 votes for both Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male when the Eclipse Award winners for the 2015 racing season were announced Saturday night at a gala dinner at Gulfstream Park.

In the 45-year history of the Eclipse Awards, American Pharoah became only the second horse, joining John Henry in 1981, to get every first-place vote for Horse of the Year.

There is something to be said for going out on top. No danger of the dreary second novel, the tepid second season, the uninspired second album. Sure, every artist would love to have a career with long legs, like Dylan or Bowie, forever leaving fans with the anticipation of “what’s next?” But there is something to be said for the way artists like James Dean, Jimi Hendrix, or Hank Williams were gone at the peak of their powers, the way great athletes like Jim Brown, Sandy Koufax, or Secretariat left the stage on top.

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – There will be a final celebration of the historic year of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah when the 45th annual Eclipse Awards are held Saturday night here at Gulfstream Park, where American Pharoah is a shoo-in to be named Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male.

Much of the interest, though, will focus on how extensive the coattails are for American Pharoah because his trainer, jockey, and owner and breeder all are up for awards in their respective divisions.

Maybe it’s time to establish rules for the Eclipse Awards. In other words, after 45 years, it would be nice if guidelines were drawn as to who is eligible to be on the ballot. A system that worked years ago might not work as well now given the paucity of starts horses make today compared with when the Eclipse Awards first started, while the establishment of the Breeders’ Cup has clearly changed how voters view the championship landscape.

California Chrome pulled Raul Rodriguez around the Santa Anita walking ring at a double-time hippity-hop last Saturday afternoon as the fans packed along the paddock fence oohed and ahhed. It was like old times.

Good old times, as it turned out. Twenty minutes later, California Chrome was standing in the Santa Anita winner’s circle, catching his breath and twitching his ears, having just dispatched the $200,000 San Pasqual Stakes with just enough authority to convince all but the most skeptical observers that he was back in the game.