This is a no brainer with Rachel on top.  She's one of the best fillies of all time, forget about this year.  I had Summer Bird 2nd and Gio Ponti 3rd.  Zenyatta has kind of been in the background this year who i had 4th.  Hopefully we'll get to see Zenyatta and Rachel race this year.  Rachel will handle her at 1 1/8th.  If the race were 1 1/4 it would be a lot more interesting.

Zenyatta's owners are not helping the big mare's chances of winning HOTY. 3 races in 8 months, with no new challenges. They just missed a great opportunity to showcase her talent & class by not entering her in the Pacific Classic, a G1 against males in her own California circuit. It will be very difficult to vote for her even if she wins the Classic, because of her handful of races, and the lackluster of her challenges.

Totally agreed, NTS. I think that only Gio Ponti, Summer Bird & Einstein have a real chance of beating the filly, and it would take at least two more G1's foe any of them to do so. Rail Trip needs more than the Pacific Classic & Breeder's, because that would only be 3 G1's vs 4 by Rachel.

My god, how can you even ask the question of who the leading horse in the country is. Any racing fan knows her name and many will for generations due to what she's accomplished: Rachel Alexandra. I picked Zenyatta for 2nd with Gio Ponti 3rd but now that I've given it some thought I'd reverse that order.

But seriously, "Who would you rank as the #1 Thoroughbred in the country?" LOL.

Definitely Rachel on top - no question. It's my belief she could crush most of this list. I ranked Zenyatta third, but I think that might even be pushing it. She had the potential to be a real threat in the running for HOTY, but she's been raced very sparingly this year, running three times in races she won last year.

Meanwhile, Rachel's been out there demolishing the boys and setting records. She's run and won eight races this year. Five more times then Zenyatta.

I'm a huge fan of Z but I just don't think she has a shot at the honors, unless she races and beats Rachel.

Sure, Rachel may be the obvious choice for the top spot, but the real fun is trying to figure out #2 - #10. You could make a case for Zenyatta, Summer Bird, or Gio Ponti for the second spot.

I'm surprised at how many people didn't put Zenyatta at number 2.  I guess it's true, she really hasn't proven anything this year except she is just as good as last year.  And last year wasn't good enough to get her Horse of the Year because her owners have no imagination.

Almost every single horse on that list has done more this year than Zenyatta.  I ranked Rachel Alexandra first for obvious reasons and put Zenyatta in 8th.  Gio Ponti 2nd, Fabulous Strike 3rd, Summer Bird 4th, Einstien 5th, Rail Trip 6th, and Forever Together 7th.  It doesn't matter if Zenyatta is undefeated, right now a hard fought defeat against high caliber horses (namely males) would do a lot more for her reputation than beating up on allowance and claiming horses.

I think that there is a tie for first place. I think rachel is amazing, and that Zenyatta is equally as good, but they both have to prove it. Meanwhile, there is a horse that's been racing for years that never gets enough credit. His name is Einstein, and if he can show up in the Pacific Classic and Classic, wouldn't you all say he deserves to at least be nominated?

Rachel on top. Einstein & Gio Ponti at 2nd & 3rd. Summer Bird 4th. Zenyatta 5th... I love her & would rank her higher but simply can't without her connections actually trying to challenge her.

I would agree with the consensus, I just think that Forever Together is a monster and should be rated high on this list, but just does not have that many races in 09. Gio Ponti is my number 2.

Rachel is easy ans so is Gio Ponti.

I don't quite get all of the excitement over seeing Zenyatta race against Grade 1 males+RA when their is only one race at a 1 1/8m or longer where she has run a time that would beat that level of competition(BC Distaff 1:46 4/5) All her other races are not fast enough to compete against the field that will show up in the BC Classic. In fact, her past performances suggests that she would finish well up the track against this type of field at 10f. I love to watch her race but it doesn't mean we all need to pretend that she is posting bigger numbers than she really has.

Also, why does everyone assume that Zenyatta will be better at 10f just because she is a closer? You'll lose a lot of money at the track if you think horses that kick hard and late only need to go some more distance to get the nod. More often than not, they do not bring their kick to the next level. Zenyatta excels at 9f and at 8.5 as well. If anything, her closing ability at 8.5 and her huge success at this distance suggests that 10F may be too much.

I had Rachel #1 with Summer Bird #2 since he has won 2 very important races now. Zenyatta #3 just because I think she's better than she's been allowed to show this year. Gio Ponti #4 (even though he could be really be 2 or 3) - several of the rest were pretty tough to decide.  It's looking like a pretty good year for racing I think!

Did people not watch Icon Project?  It is possible she is in the top 3.  But she HAS to be better than 10!

I'm suprised at the lack of respect, both, Rail Trip and Icon Project are getting. Fabulous Strike should be better than seventh aswell, instead they are seventh, ninth and tenth. Rail Trip has done no worse than second against very good fields, even won the Hollywood Gold Cup, very convincingly. Fab S. hasn't lost this year i believe, and Icon Project just won the Personal Ensign by over 13 lengths. To have these horses ranked under Zenyatta, who has race only 3 times this year against allowence fields, barely winning her last, MTB who has lost his last three, and Einstien, who has lost his last two is rediculous.

Seriously, Mine That Bird has only won the Derby. I put him at 9 and the only reason is because Rail Trip didn't run better in the classic on Sunday. He is definitely not number 6??

Ratings are opinions, unless horses race against each other its all meaningless. Settle it on the track at breeders cup classic, case closed. The fillys have to beat the  best  boys at the clkassic otherwise its best filly of the year, anything else is justa popularity contest.

I agree with Brian, Zenyatta hasn't done anything this year to be in the same conversation as the rest of these horses.  Yes, she dug in gamely in her last start, however, she just hasn't raced enough to warrant a top nine pick in my opinion.

Brian - Thanks for mentioning Fabulous Strike.  Perhaps because he is a sprinter, he gets overlooked.  What a horse and what a heart!  Hopefully he will do well in the BCC, but it's not entirely clear he'll take to the synthetics, even with more time to adjust.  Zensational is already there. . .

Never mind the sex of the animal for now.  RA has won some very tough races this year.  Zenyatta is a magnifient animal but still has something to proove.  It is the company that one races against among American runners that makes the champion.  Both Birds have done splendidly in their races and against tough company. It is a shame that Mine That Bird came up with a physical problem that took him out of circulation for a while. He ran a fantastic race against RA and perhaps was not quite himself in the Belmont.  This is not to take anything away from the great performance of Summer Bird.  Then Gio Ponti has really come into his own this year.  I am really impressed with him.  Einstein has been a real trooper and unfortunately has not had the best of trips.  I also think he is not quite himself right now and perhaps needs some freshening. As far as the rest I have to sit back and see future performances.  I can't help but think that there are still some horses waiting in the wings to stamp themselves as champions yet this year.

I do have to mention that while we wait and see, I still feel that "one race cannot a champion make".  We all know that there are so many variables in each race that the best does not always win.  Those who base their decisions solely on the Breeder's Cup Races are way off the mark.  I have heard it compared to the Super Bowl or World Series which really sounds ridiculous because racing is not a "Team" sport where half the horses running are on one team and the other half on another team.  Of course it is a team effort to get the horse to the race but it is not the  team that goes out on the track and performs with the runner.  In spirit yes but not in reality.

Contrary to Mel G., I'm surprised people ranked Zenyatta as high as they did.  HOTY is not based on the most talented horse or who would win a hypothetical match-up, but rather on the accomplishments of the horse during the racing year.  Whatever Zenyatta did last year should have no bearing on this year's HOTY, and this year's 3 wins is simply not enough.

Rachel

Summer Bird

Gio Ponti

Zenyatta

I have Summer Bird & Gio Ponti as a tie for 2nd, but flipped a coin for who got which placing.

Zenyatta just hasn't run enough or beaten anything new to rate higher than 4th on this list.

After that its a significant drop off in talent but I put Rail Trip (5th) and Icon Project (6th) ahead of the others.  

People, do you not get it?  She just beat older males, beat everybody up in the 3 yr old divison (male or female), give it a rest its all hers.  As far as the rest Gio Ponti has won the same amount of Grade/Group 1's as Sea the Stars this year, and he shouldn't be second thats rediculous!  Check yourselve's before you claim to know who's the best thoroughbred in America.

Okay, its a no brainer RA is 1, I would put Gio Ponti 2, from here it gets interesting 3/4 would be SB or Einstien, 5 Zenyatta, 6/9 any combination of RT,FT,IP and FS, 10 is MTB other than the derby he just hasn't done enough for me to rank him higher.

If you pulled an intelligent horseperson out of a cave that knew nothing of these horses acomplishments in prior years. Had them study all 10 horses races THIS year as well as their competition, Zenyatta would rank 10th.

"Only" won the Derby. A very close secound to the Great RA and third in the Belmont. He should be with  out a doubt in the top 5. By the wat he CRUSHED the derby field and with a better trip might have beat RA.

Rachel of course.  Zenyatta second.  They should have run her against the boys earlier in her career.  It is a bit much now but with a career like hers, she deserves #2 if not #1

First to Curlin - "Rachel is amazing and Zenyatta... But they both have to prove it." Rachel hasn't proven it???? Are you kidding??

Second to The Phantom - Why do fillies have to beat the best boys at the classic to be HOTY? First, Rachel has beaten boys 3 times so why should the classic make a difference? And second, why is HOTY automatically a male unless filly has beaten colts/horses? Do colts have to beat filly to be HOTY? What about colt beating older mares? Racing is very sexist. Every time a great filly wins, racing fans find an excuse. With Rags to Riches I kept reading about the extra weight the colts carry. Forget that she stumbled out of the gate, went wide meaning she ran further, it was still the weight difference that allowed her to win. With Rachel it was Mine That Bird would have caught her if it were a longer race. Always an excuse when the filly is proven best. Even if a filly has run only against fillies, if she wins by large margins every time and beats track records every time while the best colt hasn't broken any records and hasn't won by as much or maybe has fewer stakes wins, so why shouldn't the filly be HOTY instead of only top filly? Top colt will still be colt of the year. Why should he also be HOTY if he hasn't done as much?

Here we go again, what does RA have to do to get the respect?  She is flawless this year with a very hard run campaign.  How could anyone put less than 1st.

What no Smooth Air?  It's a sham that a horse who finished 2nd to Big Brown in the 2008 Fla. Derby and won the 2008 Ohio Derby isn't in the top ten.

C.urlin...

"I think that there is a tie for first place."

HUH?  I mean, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but that is out there.

Rachel is definitely NUMERO UNO. Nobody else (male or female) comes close.

Please give up the ghost:  let Zen rest in peace and just DONT bring up this match race with RA no more.  Even if Zen and RA enter the BC in a match race (sort of), and Zen wins it by 31 lengths (who cares)this does not erase the fact that she has only raced three times this year.  If you are gonna give the HOTY to any horse who wins three races in a row (RA excluded), then by all means give it to a Gio Ponti, or Fabulous Strike, or a Summer Bird (assuming he wins the Jockey cup).  They deserve it more.  

Off-topic, I feel sad for what happened to AZERI, the 2002 Horse of the Year.  More than 2 million dollars in purse earnings and the HOTY title, you would think that AZERI deserves some respect.  Well, after the owners pocketed the cash and the trophies during her racing days, the poor horse AZERI is now HOMELESS, PENNILESS, and worse, she is In foal and will soon have another baby.  AZERI will be sold in the November brood stock sale, along with the other horses from her former owner.

You would think that after all that millions she earned, AZERI deserves to be retired in peace with her babies.  The Real World says NO.  And undoubtedly, her owners think even less about it...

It is these sad, sad stories about champion horses which really make me cry and take away any sense of pride I have about this HOTY thing.  If unscrupulous horse owners can do these things to HOTYs like AZERI, then what more UNSPEAKABLE things have they done to the more "homely" horses which NEVER make it that far? Furthermore, what is the point of vying for HOTY when it wont guarantee a good life for the horse?

I'd say, if HOTY is going to have some prestige left in itself as an award, it should ALSO include a guarantee that ALL recipients (male or female) should be given a regular PENSION and STABLE upon retirement, and CANNOT be sold or liquidated to pay for owner debts.  

We love our pets:  our cats, dogs, and even our hamsters.  We NEVER abandon them or sell them if we need cash.  So why not do the same for our race horses?  Our dogs dont earn millions in purse money, but race horses do.  So why we keep our dogs, but "liquidate" our race horses? Why we treat horses like meat, and sell them like property?  Dogs are also expensive to keep, but we dont "trade" them or "liquidate" a litter for the banks.

What Azeri's connections have done are just appalling IMHO. Or is it just me who noticed this?? I think someone has to step up and say what horse owners CAN and CANNOT DO with their horses, regardless of whether these animals are their "property."  Animals also have rights, and this is the right to a good retirement.  Especially when they have proven time and again that they are worthy of it because of their stellar performance as champions of the sport.

Rachel has proven shes good. She has done things that Zenyatta has never even attempted or came close to doing. Why's everyone still down on Mine that Bird anyways? He danced the big 3 this year. If you say he is so bad then what does that make Rachel hmmn? He's made his money and came in thirds...he hit the board. I say RA, SB, GP top 3 in that order.

Hey, Edward, why does everyone assume RA can win further than 1 1/8, (I firmly disagree with this assumption), the reason is stride. If you have ever seen Zenyatta run in person or have seen her in person, then any UNTRAINED eye can see her stride. It isn't because she is a closer, it is her stride. Please tell me who doesn't belong in this group Affirmed, Easy Goer, Alydar, Dr. Fager, Macho Again and Bullsbay. Really, the Whitney was a great field. Being hit about 19 times in the lane, the last 1/8 in a shade under 13 sec and one jump past the wire she loses getting 8 pounds from Macho Again, are you kidding me? Really, that is what racing in America has come to, JUST WIN BABY! Then why is some other horses wins count less? Just thought racing fans would like to know a horse named Lady's Secret won the Whitney wire to wire by daylight, oh sorry, that doesn't count because she was 4. Is she considered an ALL TIME GREAT, just wondering? Doesn't 3 yr fillies beating  quality older horses happen in Europe and in the BC, example: Zarkava, Miesque, Six Perfections, and Goldikova? I am sure I am leaving off another 10 or 20,(Dahlia). Can we wait until real horses show up in November and run on championship day before we hand out trophies or has intelligence just completely been abandoned.

Thankyou Phantom and people dont sleep on carless jewel this filly is for real and will be tough in the next couple of months! Zenyatta is the most overrated horse racing, put that horse in a real race and see what happens.

Exborne, one of the finest specimens of horse flesh I have ever seen, Zalataia shipped from France and beat John Henry at Oak Tree.  Estrapde, that great mare, beat the boys in the Arlington Million at the age of six.

However, could the current top of the list prevail in that Crown Jewel of the West, the Ralph Hinds Memorial at Fairplex? Yes, I do need far more Stumptown Coffee.

What happens if Summer Bird wins the Jockey Club Gold Cup and the Breeders Cup Classic?

Jess might me taking a strategic gamble by not running Rachel again this year...

I'm a big Rachel fan but Summer Bird winning:

The Belmont,

The Travers,

The Jockey Club Gold Cub and

The Breeders Cup Classic

+ (second in the Haskell)

carries more weight than

The Kentucky Oaks

The Preakness,

The Mother Goose (joke),

The Haskell and

The Woodward

It might have been better if he entered her in the Jockey Club Gold Cup... even if she lost a good effort would have gone a long way...

Good point, Bob, Summer Bird or Gio Ponti could make it close should they win their next race plus the BC Classic.  I think RA's defeat of Summer Bird, albeit at 1 1/8, will tip the scales in her favor.