Of all the accomplished 3-year-olds of 2014 who continued to race at age 4, none of them bridged the seasons with as much class and consistency as Tonalist. He was usually the horse to beat, and when he came through, the results made perfect sense.

That gray comet streaking across the racing sky in 2015 was Liam’s Map, the colt of ridiculous speed and sneaky stamina who was beaten only once in four memorable sightings.

Richard and Karen Papiese may operate under the nom de course Midwest Thoroughbreds, but their runners have proven to be successful nationwide, helping them finish as Eclipse Award finalists as outstanding owner for a fifth consecutive year.

Since starting out in 2001, the residents of Dyer, Ind. have grown steadily from a small claiming outfit into a national-level competitor and breeder of elite runners, led in 2015 by Grade 1-winning homebred The Pizza Man.

If at all possible, an Eclipse Award should not come down to a single race. The season is long. The opportunities are many. And every racehorse deserves more than one chance to prove his championship worth.

In 2015, however, there was such a race, or at least it seemed that way at the time. The date was Aug. 8 at Saratoga, the race was the $1.25 million Whitney Stakes, and all the right players showed up.

Tyler Gaffalione was born to ride. The son of a jockey, he established himself as one of the top young riders in North America in 2015 and for Gaffalione’s efforts in his rookie year he is a finalist for the Eclipse Award for outstanding apprentice jockey.

Gaffalione, a 21-year-old native of Davie, Fla., won 182 races from 1,137 starts during his apprenticeship that ended Oct. 10. Gaffalione’s mounts earned $4,855,732. He rode his first career winner Sept. 7, 2014, at Gulfstream Park and went on to win the track’s spring and summer titles in 2015. 

Purchased privately after a maiden win at Laurel Park late in 2014, Stellar Wind left a bone-chilling Maryland winter behind and arrived at John Sadler’s sun-splashed Santa Anita barn to embark upon what would turn out to be, well, a stellar 3-year-old season.

There’s a saying in baseball that sometimes the best trades are the ones that don’t get made. The back story of Eclipse Award finalist I’m a Chatterbox falls along similar lines, as she failed to meet her reserve at the 2013 Keeneland September yearling sale, drawing a high bid of just $30,000, and thus was retained by breeders Fletcher and Carolyn Gray.

Eric Cancel made a statement in his first year of race riding. The 19-year-old led all North American apprentice jockeys in mount earnings in 2015 with $5,382,802. He achieved the feat by winning 101 races from 902 starts and participating in a steady stream of graded stakes while based in New York.

For the significant season, Cancel is a finalist for the Eclipse Award for outstanding apprentice jockey of 2015.

A season that began in disappointment ended in brilliance for Found, a finalist for the Eclipse Award as the outstanding turf female of 2015.

After losing her first three starts of the year, Found ended the season with a flourish, starting in three Group 1 races in three countries in October. The series of starts in world-class races ended with an outstanding victory against males in the Breeders’ Cup Turf at Keeneland on Oct. 31.

Racing against the best was common for Found throughout the year.

James McIngvale is a legendary self-promoter whose marketing skills helped him turn a one-man operation into Gallery Furniture, which has three locations in the Houston area and annual revenue in excess of $150 million.