Eclipse Awards: Justify voted 2018 Horse of the Year

Posted: Jan. 25, 2019

Triple Crown winner Justify, owned by WinStar Farm, China Horse Club Intl., Starlight Racing and Head of Plains Partners, was voted 2018 Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male in results announced at the Eclipse Awards celebration at Gulfstream Park Jan. 24.

Trained by Bob Baffert, Justify won the grade I Kentucky Derby, grade I Preakness Stakes and grade I Belmont Stakes to capture the Triple Crown. He received 191 out of a possible 249 first-place votes for Horse of the Year and was a unanimous choice in the 3-year-male category.

He retired last year undefeated in six starts, all of them in 2018.

Parx Racing-based Jaywalk, owned by D. J. Stable and Cash is King Stable and trained by John Servis, was voted champion 2-year-old filly; Pennsylvania-bred Shamrock Rose, bred by Best A Luck Farm, owned by Conrad Farms and trained by Mark Casse, was voted champion 3-year-old filly; Pennsylvania-bred Unique Bella, bred by Brushwood Farm, owned by Don Alberto Stable and trained by Jerry Hollendorfer, was voted champion older dirt female; Maryland-based Weston Hamilton, who became a journeyman in late December, was voted top apprentice jockey; New York-based Chad Brown was voted top trainer; and New York-based Irad Ortiz Jr. took top jockey honors.

Here is the list of 2018 Eclipse Award winners:

Horse of the Year: Justify

Two-Year-Old Male: Game Winner

Two-Year-Old Filly: Jaywalk

Three-Year-Old Male: Justify

Three-Year-Old Filly: Monomoy Girl

Older Dirt Male: Accelerate

Older Dirt Female: Unique Bella

Male Sprinter: Roy H

Female Sprinter: Shamrock Rose

Male Turf Horse: Stormy Liberal

Female Turf Horse: Sistercharlie

Steeplechase Horse: Zanjabeel

Owner: Hronis Racing

Breeder: John D. Gunther

Trainer: Chad Brown

Jockey: Irad Ortiz Jr.

Apprentice Jockey: Weston Hamilton