The National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters announced the finalists for the 2023 Eclipse Awards on Saturday, recognizing excellence through the past year in Thoroughbred racing.
Winners in 17 horse and human categories will be announced on FanDuel TV and other outlets during the 53rd annual Eclipse Awards on Jan. 25 at 7:30 p.m. EST. The evening at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla., will culminate with the announcement of the 2023 horse of the year.
Of the 250 eligible voters represented by the NTRA, consisting of member racetrack racing officials and Equibase field personnel, the NTWAB and DRF, 219 took part in the voting, or 88 percent. Finalists were determined in each category by voters’ top three selections, using a 10-5-1 point basis. Eclipse Award winners are determined solely by first-place votes.
These are the 2023 Eclipse Awards finalists, with the exception of horse of the year, in alphabetical order within each division.
| Division | Finalists |
|---|---|
| 2-year-old male | Fierceness, Locked, Muth |
| 2-year-old filly | Candied, Hard to Justify, Just F Y I |
| 3-year-old male | Arcangelo, Auguste Rodin, Mage |
| 3-year-old filly | Mawj, Pretty Mischievous, Randomized |
| Older dirt male | Cody’s Wish, Elite Power, White Abarrio |
| Older dirt female | Clairiere, Goodnight Olive, Idiomatic |
| Male sprinter | Cody’s Wish, Elite Power, Gunite |
| Female sprinter | Echo Zulu, Goodnight Olive, Maple Leaf Mel |
| Male turf horse | Auguste Rodin, Master of the Seas, Up to the Mark |
| Female turf horse | In Italian, Inspiral, Mawj |
| Steeplechase horse | Awakened, Merry Maker, Snap Decision |
| Owner | Godolphin, Juddmonte, Klaravich Stables |
| Breeder | Calumet, Godolphin, Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings |
| Trainer | Chad Brown, Brad Cox, Bill Mott |
| Jockey | Tyler Gaffalione, Irad Ortiz Jr., Flavien Prat |
| Apprentice jockey | Axel Concepcion, Jaime Torres, Sofia Vives |
Finalists for horse of the year will be announced during the live show on Jan. 25. In addition to honoring the 17 winners in the horse and human categories, Paul Calia will receive the Eclipse Award as the 2023 horseplayer of the year. Members of the media will be honored for outstanding coverage in six categories.
The Eclipse Awards were named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire Eclipse, who began racing at age 5 and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three runnings of the Epsom Derby.