The three finalists for the 16 divisional Eclipse Awards were announced about an hour ago. In alphabetical order, they are:
* Two-Year-Old Male: Midshipman, Old Fashioned, Vineyard Haven
* Two-Year-Old Filly: Dream Empress, Maram, Stardom Bound
* Three-Year-Old Male: Big Brown, Colonel John, Raven's Pass
* Three-Year-Old Filly: Eight Belles, Music Note, Proud Spell
* Older Male: Commentator, Curlin, Einstein (BRZ)
* Older Female: Cocoa Beach (CHI), Ginger Punch, Zenyatta
* Male Sprinter: Benny the Bull, Midnight Lute, Street Boss
* Female Sprinter: Indian Blessing, Intangaroo, Ventura
* Male Turf Horse: Conduit (IRE), Einstein (BRZ), Grand Couturier (GB)
* Female Turf Horse: Cocoa Beach (CHI), Forever Together, Goldikova (IRE)
* Steeplechase Horse: Be Certain, Good Night Shirt, Sovereign Duty
* Owner: Godolphin Racing, IEAH Stables, Stronach Stables
* Breeder: Adena Springs, Stonerside Stable, WinStar Farm
* Trainer: Steve Asmussen, Richard Dutrow, Jr., Bobby Frankel
* Jockey: Robby Albarado, Rafael Bejarano, Garrett Gomez
* Apprentice Jockey: Inez Karlsson, Pascacio Lopez, Abel Mariano
The three finalists for Horse of the Year won't be announced until just before the award is presented at the Eclipse Dinner Jan. 26, but if you can get 1-to-10 on a Big Brown-Curlin-Zenyatta tri box, take it.
The only real surprise was that Jess Jackson's Stonestreet Stable was not a finalist for the owners' Eclipse, given how much support he seemed to be getting from voters who published their ballots and cited him for racing Curlin as a 4-year-old in 2008. I personally tilted toward IEAH Stables for their breadth of accomplishment, but still thought Jackson would be one of the top three.
Here's my ballot column: Download Column010409
