Wise Dan. Double as US Horse Of The Year
Leading turf performer Wise Dan was named US Horse of the Year for the second time at the prestigious Eclipse Awards for 2013 at a ceremony at Gulfstream Park on Saturday night.
The two-time Breeders’ Cup Mile winner, who was also named top turf male horse and top older male for the second year running, held off Breeders’ Cup Classic winner Mucho Macho Man to win the main award.
Trained by Charles LoPresti for his owner-breeder Morton Fink, Wise Dan won six of his seven starts in 2013 with three of those victories coming at the highest level.
Travers Stakes winner Will Take Charge, second to Mucho Macho Man in the Classic, was named best three-year-old, while Beholder, who captured the Breeders’ Cup Distaff, claimed honours in the three-year-old filly category.
The Sir Michael Stoute-trained Dank was rated the top turf female following wins in the Beverly D Stakes and Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf.
The juvenile awards went to Shared Belief and She’s A Tiger (filly), while Todd Pletcher, who saddled Palace Malice to win the Belmont Stakes, was named trainer of the year.
Javier Castellano, who was awarded the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies on Ria Antonia after a stewards’ inquiry, beat Gary Stevens to take the jockeys’ title.
Ken and Sarah Ramsey enjoyed a fabulous 2013 with seven Grade 1 triumphs and were rewarded by landing the owner and breeder awards.
