They say patience will be rewarded, but in the case of Straight No Chaser patience was awarded Jan. 23 when the son of Speightster was honored as 2024’s Eclipse Award champion male sprinter.
Bred in Kentucky by John Eaton and Steve Laymon, Straight No Chaser was a $110,000 purchase at the 2021 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale by MyRacehorse, the company that sells fractional ownership in racehorses. Through MyRacehorse, Straight No Chaser has 946 owners.
“From the get-go he showed a lot of talent to us. Speed was something he always showed,” said MyRacehorse’s racing manager Joe Moran. “With age and maturity, he turned into such a cool horse. He loves his job.”
The patience shown by MyRacehorse and trainer Dan Blacker was an example to the industry of the benefits for giving a horse time away from the track when needed.
An early favorite for the award in 2023, the connections made the difficult decision to shelve a championship campaign after a thorough vetting process—that included PET scans on every joint—discovered a high-risk area. Even though Straight No Chaser was sound, the connections did their due diligence and rested him before an injury could possibly develop. When he returned to the track as a 5-year-old, he was ready to reclaim his spot at the top.
“Dan has done a tremendous job of really knowing when the horse is ready,” Moran said. “We’ve always given him space in between races. He’s a high-energy horse so he tells you when he’s ready to run.”
He was ready in the fall of 2024, putting together a powerful pair of races against America’s best sprinters. Under the guidance of Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, Straight No Chaser romped in the Sept. 29 Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes (G2) by 6 1/4 lengths and outdueled the younger Bentornato in the stretch of the Breeders’ Cup Sprint (G1).
The jubilant scene in the Del Mar winner’s circle as many of his shareholders celebrated the Breeders’ Cup triumph was a testament to the dedication of everyone involved.
“Any time you get to compete at the highest level, that’s something that a lot of people don’t think is ever accessible in this game,” Moran said. “To be able to provide that to owners with a horse that we bought for $110,000 at the 2-year-old sales, that part of it makes it extremely fun. For us that have been doing this our whole life and for trainer Dan Blacker to get his first Breeders’ Cup win, there were so many moments for us that I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to top.”
Straight No Chaser joins 2020 Horse of the Year and champion 3-year-old male Authentic as Eclipse winners for MyRacehorse. The award capped a sensational season for the company that also won the Preakness Stakes (G1) and Pennsylvania Derby (G1) with Seize the Grey .
“To bring that many people on such an exciting journey throughout the entire country in so many big races—I think that’s a win for us already,” Moran said. “To cap the year with an Eclipse Award, it’s just a special moment I don’t think people would be able to ever forget.”
