Older in horse racing used to mean seasoned and accomplished.
Now it is more likely to mean sold and breeding.

Thoroughbreds who have turned 4 used to be in one of the
most prestigious categories in racing. Champions from Citation, Kelso and
Forego to Cigar, Zenyatta and even latter-day Flightline gave the handicap
division cachet.

Breeders’ Cup makes difference in turf divisions.

A lack of depth brought on by the rush of would-be champions
to the sales ring has changed that. It also has made some cases for Eclipse
Awards more difficult. Cases in point come this year when certain winners are
easy to identify, but it will be difficult to choose three worthy finalists in
each category.

These are the four older males and four older females who
may stand out for voters who will decide in the coming days the trophy winners for
2024. They are listed here alphabetically within each division.

Older dirt male

Full Serrano

Pluses: His win at 13-1 in the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile validated
his close second at 7-1 in a hotly contested Pacific Classic (G1). Since he
came north from Argentina to join John Sadler’s stable, the Argentina-bred
5-year-old horse by Full Mast collected two wins and a second.

Minuses: With only two graded stakes and an allowance race
since August in his U.S. past performances, Full Serrano’s file is thin compared
with his division rivals. His first two races this year in Argentina were on
turf, so a group placing there in January should not be under consideration.

Highland Falls

Pluses: A stalking, four-length victory at 7-1 in the 1
1/4-mile Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) was the highlight of 2024 for this Godolphin
homebred by Curlin. Three months before that, the 4-year-old Curlin colt
trained by Brad Cox came from mid-pack to win the Blame (G3) at Churchill
Downs.

Minuses: A 5 1/4-length loss July 20 as the 7-10 favorite in
the Monmouth Cup (G3) cannot be ignored. Neither can a fourth-place result March
3 in the Santa Anita Handicap (G1) and an empty ninth Nov. 2 in the Breeders’
Cup Classic at Del Mar.

Mullikin

Pluses: Wins in the John A. Nerud (G2) at Aqueduct and by 5
3/4 lengths in the Forego (G1) at Saratoga brought Mullikin’s winning streak to
four races for trainer Rodolphe Brisset. Then a third in the Breeders’ Cup
Sprint and a second in the Cigar Mile (G2) meant Mullikin went 6-for-6 hitting
the board.

Minuses: Spun another way, those last two races were losses
for the 4-year-old Violence colt owned by Siena and WinStar farms. Mullikin
failed as a 3-1 favorite in the Breeders’ Cup. He also spent his entire year in
one-turn races, a demerit for voters who believe routing means more in this division.

National Treasure

Pluses: Victories in the 1 1/8-mile Pegasus World Cup
Invitational at Gulfstream Park in January and the Met Mile at Saratoga in June
made National Treasure the only two-time Grade 1 winner among older dirt males in
2024. The 4-year-old Quality Road colt owned by the SF Racing partnership and trained
by Bob Baffert also finished second by just a nose Sept. 28 in the California
Crown (G1) at Santa Anita.

Minuses: There was that fade to fourth in the Saudi Cup (G1).
The mud might have excused his sixth-place finish in the Whitney (G1) at
Saratoga, but it still was a defeat for a 9-10 favorite. He missed the Breeders’
Cup Dirt Mile because of foot trouble that sent him into early retirement.

Older dirt female

Adare Manor

Pluses: A three-race winning streak punctuated the
5-year-old campaign for Adare Manor, who scored by a combined 12 1/2 lengths in
the Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) at Oaklawn, the Santa Margarita (G2) at Santa
Anita and the Clement L. Hirsch (G1) at Del Mar. She went 3-for-3 as an odds-on
favorite racing for owner Michael Lund Petersen.

Minuses: It may be picking nit to say the Uncle Mo mare trained
by Bob Baffert started her year with a three-quarter-length defeat in the Beholder
Mile (G1), but that razor’s edge may make the difference between a championship
and just a really good year. Adare Manor also was retired before the Breeders’
Cup.

Idiomatic

Pluses: The reigning division champion bookended her 5-year-old
season with Grade 1 triumphs in the La Troienne at Churchill Downs and by 6 1/2
lengths to repeat in the Spinster at Keeneland. She also fended off Soul of an
Angel to win a thrilling renewal of the Molly Pitcher (G3) at Monmouth Park.
Her only two losses were by a head at Saratoga in both the Ogden Phipps (G1)
and Personal Ensign (G1).

Minuses: Those defeats stand out more because the Juddmonte
homebred mare sired by Curlin and trained by Cox set the bar so high with her
Eclipse Award-winning campaign in 2023. She did not face more than five rivals
in any race this year. A lame knee diagnosed in late October sent her into
retirement and cost her a chance to defend in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.

Raging Sea

Pluses: A division-leading four graded-stakes victories at
three tracks were highlighted by a 6-1 upset of Idiomatic in the Personal
Ensign (G1). That was sandwiched between wins in the Doubledogdare (G3), the
Shuvee (G2) and the Beldame (G2). The 4-year-old Curlin filly finished second
to would-be horse of the year Thorpedo Anna in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.

Minuses: In her only other Grade 1 start, the Alpha Delta
Stables homebred trained by Chad Brown finished fourth in the Ogden Phipps at
Saratoga. Raging Sea never took part in a race with more than seven starters,
and she never had a three-digit Beyer Speed Figure, according to Daily Racing
Form.

Sweet Azteca

Pluses: Her victory in the Beholder Mile (G1) showed she was
more than a one-turn pony. Pam Ziebarth’s homebred filly followed with dominant
sprint wins in the Great Lady M (G2) at Los Alamitos and the Rancho Bernardo
Handicap (G3) at Del Mar. Sweet Azteca’s 4-year-old season also included a 12-length
allowance romp in February at Santa Anita.

Minuses: Trainer Michael McCarthy kept the 4-year-old daughter
of Sharp Azteca out of the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Sprint because she
was abnormally quiet during the week before pre-entries were due. Her
sprint-heavy past performances also may be a deal breaker for voters.

Who should win?

This actually ended up being easier than I first thought.
National Treasure and Idiomatic were a cut above the rest of their championship
competition.

What made this exercise seem more difficult was the memory
of what an older champion used to look like. Two Grade 1 wins in a given year
used to be run of the mill. Now they signal something special, relatively
speaking.

National Treasure’s year was not as good as, say, the 2010
season his sire Quality Road had. Three Grade 1 wins back then were not enough
to overcome Blame, who had the same number of top-level victories not to
mention that memorable upset of Zenyatta in the Breeders’ Cup Classic that
clinched the division championship.

Idiomatic had her own hard act to follow. Even though she
was marginally less accomplished than she was in 2023, she and Adare Manor
stood head and shoulders above their rivals. Nevertheless, their absence took
some spice out of the Breeders’ Cup and left a hollow impression of their
division.

In spite of all this, National Treasure and Idiomatic will
be worthy champions, even if horses of their like are getting fewer and farther
between.