A new year sees a new leader atop Week 1 of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association’s Top Thoroughbred Poll, released Jan. 28.
Following his dominant 6 1/4-length victory in the $3 million Pegasus World Cup (G1) at Gulfstream Park Jan. 25, C 2 Racing Stable, Prince Faisal bin Khaled bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud and Antonio Pagnano’s White Abarrio was granted the top spot in the vote conducted by national media.
The 6-year-old son of Race Day received 12 first-place votes and 233 points, placing him 26 points over Horse of the Year Thorpedo Anna , who has yet to start in 2025. Thorpedo Anna did receive more first-place votes with 14.
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Locked , runner-up in the Pegasus, placed fourth on the list while Pegasus World Cup Turf (G1T) winner Spirit of St Louis was sixth and Pegasus World Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G2T) winner Be Your Best ranked ninth.
The top two finishers from last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) remained highly rated ahead of their seasonal debuts, with Sierra Leone third and Fierceness fifth.
The start of the season also meant the return of the Top 3-Year-Old Poll, led by Eclipse Champion Citizen Bull . He received 20 more points and three more first-place votes than Bob Baffert-trained stablemate Barnes .
Citizen Bull is expected to make his seasonal debut Feb. 1 at Santa Anita Park in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3).
