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maryforney
11-12-2008, 04:45 PM
Who do you think deserves 2008's horse of the year?
Curlin?
Zenyatta?
??

njcurveball
11-12-2008, 04:49 PM
Curlin by 10 lengths! :ThmbUp:

If they want to consider Zenyatta there is another undefeated filly out there who didn't beat any Grade 1 boys as well.

Charlie D
11-12-2008, 04:52 PM
Curlin :ThmbUp:

onefast99
11-12-2008, 05:10 PM
Curlin. :1:

Norm
11-12-2008, 05:18 PM
It has to be Curlin. He fought all the big battles. His win in the Jockey Club Gold Cup certifies him. :ThmbUp:

cj
11-12-2008, 05:20 PM
My initial thought was Zenyatta, but the more I think about, there is no way her connections should be rewarded for mapping out a less than ambitious campaign. Curlin it is for me.

joanied
11-12-2008, 05:45 PM
I am so torn about this...I so love Zenyatta, but except for one time, she did race exclusivley in CA.
Curlin's loss in the Classic has to be because of the Pro Ride, and his only other mis step on the turf, should be overlooked, since he did place...he has answered every call...
someone had mentioned wether or not races won in other countries count...Curlin's 2 Dubia wins... I'd like to find the answer to that because I think they should count...afterall, horses from Europe come here for BC and are named Champions off those wins, so I assume Curlin's wins in Dubia count?
(If Raven's Pass gets our Eclipse for HoY I will be madder than hell).
So, although my sentimental pick is Zenyatta...and it's hard to ignore any undefeated horse....
Curlin for Horse of the Year.

maryforney
11-12-2008, 05:56 PM
Anybody wanna throw any other names out there?

Big Brown, maybe?

Track Collector
11-12-2008, 06:01 PM
Curlin! :1:

He has won many high-level races, and he should not be penalized because his connections dared to try him on unproven surfaces like poly and turf. His efforts there were pretty good too. Let the filly try some races on poly and turf against above-average competition and then see what her record is.

GaryG
11-12-2008, 06:05 PM
Curlin.....it is not even close.

DeanT
11-12-2008, 06:05 PM
Zenyatta

joanied
11-12-2008, 06:47 PM
I'm still a huge Big Brown fan, which will get me some flak from here...but I can't see him getting HoY...if he'd been able to run in the classic and get on the board, then yes, he'd make it tougher for Curlin & Zenyatta...he should get Champion 3 Yr Old Colt...but not the 'big one'.

By the way...anyone know wether or not 'they' will make more Eclipse Awards this year for all 14 BC race divisions??

Marshall Bennett
11-12-2008, 07:08 PM
Had Big Brown won the Belmont he'd get my vote . Curlin gets it .

cj's dad
11-12-2008, 07:31 PM
I know this is somewhat off topic, but speaking of Big Brown, who gets trainer of the year?, surely not Dutrow>



Had Big Brown won the Belmont he'd get my vote . Curlin gets it .

joanied
11-12-2008, 08:07 PM
Had Big Brown won the Belmont he'd get my vote . Curlin gets it .

IF he'd finished a close 2nd or 3rd, he'd get my vote...and I feel :blush: that I didn't bring that up in my other post about him....DUH :bang:

joanied
11-12-2008, 08:11 PM
I know this is somewhat off topic, but speaking of Big Brown, who gets trainer of the year?, surely not Dutrow>

Well, ya gotta :eek: admit, he did a great job working with a horse that has no feet!!

Trainer of the year...hmmmmm...how about Baffert for doing such a bang-up job with Midnight Lute...one problem after another, one poor race and :jump: yippeeee...he has back to back BC wins.
Baffert:ThmbUp: ...he'd get my vote.

Tee
11-12-2008, 08:26 PM
I don't see much of a difference btwn the 2002 campaign of Azeri & the 2008 campaign of Zenyatta.

There was nothing quite like Curlin in 2002, so imo he is quite deserving of another Horse of the Year title.


My initial thought was Zenyatta, but the more I think about, there is no way her connections should be rewarded for mapping out a less than ambitious campaign. Curlin it is for me.

cj's dad
11-12-2008, 08:36 PM
I don't see much of a difference btwn the 2002 campaign of Azeri & the 2008 campaign of Zenyatta.

There was nothing quite like Curlin in 2002, so imo he is quite deserving of another Horse of the Year title.

What did he run in that year - the "Testicle" Handicap.

Marshall Bennett
11-12-2008, 09:07 PM
IF he'd finished a close 2nd or 3rd, he'd get my vote...and I feel :blush: that I didn't bring that up in my other post about him....DUH :bang:
I'll tell you something else , If horse of the year were judged on a single race he would win hands down . I've watched every Kentucky Derby since 1966 and this year's will always stand out as super impressive , and I don't care if he were running agaist a field of monkeys , he roared down Broadway ... crippled feet and all . :D

PaceAdvantage
11-12-2008, 10:09 PM
I think that this entire year has been one of failed expectations.

I also think Big Brown certainly deserves to be mentioned along with Curlin and Zenyatta for HOY honors.

I would vote for Curlin, but not because Curlin earned the award on his own merit. It's just that the other contenders for HOY come up lacking more than Curlin. Actually, they're all lacking in my opinion. Curlin is the best of the worst. He gets my vote by default.

Zenyatta is lacking because she never faced boys and she only raced once outside of California.

Curlin is lacking because he faced nobody in the races he won and never ran an impressive speed figure in 2008.

Big Brown, like Curlin, faced nothing in the way of competition, but went undefeated (except for the Belmont disaster), won on dirt and turf, beat older horses and won as many Grade 1s (four) as did Curlin (four if you include Dubai) and Zenyatta. Kentucky Derby winner, Preakness winner, Haskell winner, Floriday Derby winner...not too shabby in a year such as 2008.

If Big Brown were trained by anyone other than Dutrow and owned by anyone other than IEAH, he would be on everyone's lips as a logical contender for HOY.

PaceAdvantage
11-12-2008, 10:09 PM
What did he run in that year - the "Testicle" Handicap."nothing quite like A Curlin in 2002"

nijinski
11-12-2008, 10:46 PM
Big Brown's feet hindered any chance of him running his race in the Belmont.
I don't hold that against him and would have no problem with him as HOY.

Hajck Hillstrom
11-13-2008, 02:56 AM
The filly is always at a disadvantage running against her gender. Personally, I thought RAGS TO RICHES deserved the honor last year, beating CURLIN in their only meeting, but that didn't seem to matter in the end.

If I was casting a vote, mine would go to ZENYATTA. She didn't run a HOY campaign, she simply ran well enough in her races to win the award.

Gorgeous George
11-13-2008, 04:55 AM
Big Brown, like Curlin, faced nothing in the way of competition, but went undefeated (except for the Belmont disaster), won on dirt and turf, beat older .

Why write he was undefeated then in brackets state that he wasnt thats just stupid!!!

Bobzilla
11-13-2008, 06:53 AM
I would vote for Curlin if for no other reason I feel his 2008 was more enterprising than that of Big Brown and Zenyatta. That's not to say BB doesn't deserve recognition for his accomplishments in such a short period of time and Zenyatta's perfect year has gone unnoticed by this observer. I question if Zenyatta would still be undefeated if Goldikova had run in the DISTAFF rather than the Mile or if Zarkava had bypassed her run against the boys at Longchamps to run in the Distaff. Zenyatta wasn't tested against the males nor was she tested against the best Europe had to offer, as was Curlin. I understand this is no fault of Zenyatta and to her credit she accomplished everything that was asked of her, including an impressive win over top competition on a legitimate dirt surface at Oaklawn.

All too often how a horse is remembered can be directly tied to the luck, or lack of luck, of who showed up to run against it. For example, if Birdstone had stayed in his barn upstate back in 2004 how would Smarty Jones have been remembered? No other closer in the 2004 Belmont seemed worthy to be the beneficiary of Baily and Solis' bashing the hell out of Elliott/SJ well into the race's third quarter. Would SJ have been voted HOY in 2004 over Ghostzapper if Zito had decided to not enter Birdstone in the 2004 Belmont? It's amazing how perceptions can be so capricious.

Curlin had an undefeated season on his preferred surface of dirt, and make no mistake, horses DO have a preferred surface. To suggest otherwise is, just to quote Steven Crist, "simple-minded nonsense disproven every day at tracks across America". I admire Curlin's efforts on the grass and synthetic grass. Curlin had an assignment never asked of revered main track horses from the past: to preserve his reputation and maintain his top form on a surface on which he did not build his reputation in the first place and against the world's best on a surface that played remarkably like their own preferred surface. Yes, Secretariat won on grass at Woodbine, we all know that; but he was never asked to face Group One winners from around the world on grass in a race of such magnitude, the results of which would have such direct impact on his legacy. As I said before the BC Jess Jackson's smartest option was on the Isle of Honshu. Too bad he had to capitulate to all the bullying.

MickJ26
11-13-2008, 10:12 AM
I think it should be Curlin.
However, I think the nod will go to Zenyatta simply because she had the home track advantage in the Breeder's Cup.
If the Breeder's Cup is at Belmont or Churchill, Curlin probably wins the Classic.
Zenyatta's connections kept her home (except for Oaklawn) and racked up the Grade 1's. Zenyatta will probably win.

Stevie Belmont
11-13-2008, 12:37 PM
Curlin For Horse Of The Year…The New All-Time Money King, Walked The Walk And Talked The Talk…Winner Of The Dubai World Cup Took On All Challengers And Tried All Surfaces In His Quest For Racing Greatness. Curlin Raced At 5 Different Tracks During His 4 Year Old Campaign, Stamping Himself A True Champion, let alone HOY....

boomman
11-13-2008, 02:41 PM
The filly is always at a disadvantage running against her gender. Personally, I thought RAGS TO RICHES deserved the honor last year, beating CURLIN in their only meeting, but that didn't seem to matter in the end.

If I was casting a vote, mine would go to ZENYATTA. She didn't run a HOY campaign, she simply ran well enough in her races to win the award.

I don't buy all that "proride" crap on Curlin. He made a winning 5 wide move at the 1/4 pole (although certainly overconfidently ridden by Albarado) in the Classic only to flatten out late. Although I agree that he is a GREAT racehorse, I don't think he was 100% right going into the Classic and that the connections only ran him because they had a "built in" synthetic excuse in case he didn't win. As is usually the case, I agree with Hajck......

Give the girl her due: ZENYATTA for HOY

Boomer

Stevie Belmont
11-13-2008, 03:46 PM
Zenyatta was great, actually spectacular...HOY...

Curlin deserves it out right...hands down

PaceAdvantage
11-13-2008, 06:52 PM
Why write he was undefeated then in brackets state that he wasnt thats just stupid!!!Thanks. That was quite helpful.

And just to answer your question, I wrote he was undefeated (except for the Belmont) to make a point.

maxwell
11-13-2008, 07:32 PM
If Big Brown had won the Triple Crown he would be "Horse of the Year".

If Zenyatta was a male or transvestite, he/she would be "Horse of the Year".

If Curlin had won the BC Classic he would be "Horse of the Year".

What was the question again? :D

NY BRED
11-19-2008, 07:45 PM
Peppers Pride



when is the last time you saw::rolleyes:


18 starts

18 wins :eek: :eek:


0 place


0 show


:jump: :jump: :jump:

maryforney
11-19-2008, 08:55 PM
Yay Pepper!!! What heart!

Zaf
11-19-2008, 10:51 PM
I think Curlin is HOY, If BB had different connections, I think he would be under consideration as well.

Z

joanied
11-20-2008, 12:09 PM
Why write he was undefeated then in brackets state that he wasnt thats just stupid!!!

Picky, picky:rolleyes:

joanied
11-20-2008, 12:19 PM
Peppers Pride



when is the last time you saw::rolleyes:


18 starts

18 wins :eek: :eek:


0 place


0 show


:jump: :jump: :jump:

No doubt she's special...it's a shame they never ventured to run her outside of NM.
I read she'll maybe get one more start before she retires...be a while before another horse wins 18 in a row...regardless of where they run.

joanied
11-20-2008, 12:21 PM
I'll tell you something else , If horse of the year were judged on a single race he would win hands down . I've watched every Kentucky Derby since 1966 and this year's will always stand out as super impressive , and I don't care if he were running agaist a field of monkeys , he roared down Broadway ... crippled feet and all . :D

:ThmbUp: :ThmbUp: :ThmbUp:

joanied
11-20-2008, 12:37 PM
I think that this entire year has been one of failed expectations.

I also think Big Brown certainly deserves to be mentioned along with Curlin and Zenyatta for HOY honors.

I would vote for Curlin, but not because Curlin earned the award on his own merit. It's just that the other contenders for HOY come up lacking more than Curlin. Actually, they're all lacking in my opinion. Curlin is the best of the worst. He gets my vote by default.

Zenyatta is lacking because she never faced boys and she only raced once outside of California.

Curlin is lacking because he faced nobody in the races he won and never ran an impressive speed figure in 2008.

Big Brown, like Curlin, faced nothing in the way of competition, but went undefeated (except for the Belmont disaster), won on dirt and turf, beat older horses and won as many Grade 1s (four) as did Curlin (four if you include Dubai) and Zenyatta. Kentucky Derby winner, Preakness winner, Haskell winner, Floriday Derby winner...not too shabby in a year such as 2008.

If Big Brown were trained by anyone other than Dutrow and owned by anyone other than IEAH, he would be on everyone's lips as a logical contender for HOY.

Good synopsis...each is deserving of HoY...each is lacking one way or another.
I beleive Curlin will get the nod... and do we really believe that Big Brown would not be named HoY because of his connections? Would the voters really take that into consideration, and disregard his accomplishments...if so, they better do something about it...because that would be totally unfair & biased.
I mean, really... these votes are for the horse's accomplishments... and if BB were to get HoY, would many here get mad because of his trainer & owners?