Rathmor Stud’s Noble Tune has both his maternal and paternal half-brothers, Honor Code and Liam’s Map respectively and both standing their first seasons at Lanes End – both nominated for the prestigious Eclipse Awards category of Older Dirt Male.
The Eclipse Awards will take place on 16 January at Gulfstream Park.
The first son of Unbridled’s Song to stand at stud in South Africa, as well as being a Gr2 and Gr3 winner who also placed second in the exclusive Gr1 Breeders Cup Juvenile on turf, Noble Tune had his first impressive crop of foals born in 2015.
Both Honor Code and Liam’s Map closed their racing careers on a high at the Breeders Cup carnival, with Honor Code running the fastest finish to come from stone last and place third behind the great American Pharoah, whilst Liam’s Map, a son of Unbridled Song (out of a Trippi mare) won the Gr1 Woodward Stakes in a record time (since 2004) as well as the Gr1 Breeders Cup Mile on dirt.
Liam’s Map will stand his first season for $25 000, whilst dual Gr1 winning Honor Code will stand for $40 000.
The 2015 Eclipse Awards finalists (in alphabetical order) are:
Horse of the Year: American Pharoah, Beholder, Runhappy
2-year-old male: Airoforce, Mohaymen, Nyquist
2-year-old filly: Catch a Glimpse, Rachel’s Valentina, Songbird
3-year-old male: American Pharoah, Dortmund, Runhappy
3-year-old filly: Found, I’m a Chatterbox, Stellar Wind
Older dirt male: Honor Code , Liam’s Map , Tonalist
Older dirt female: Beholder, Sheer Drama, Stopchargingmaria
Male sprinter: Private Zone, Rock Fall, Runhappy
Female sprinter: La Verdad, Lady Shipman, Wavell Avenue
Male turf horse: Big Blue Kitten, Golden Horn, The Pizza Man
Female turf horse: Found (IRE), Stephanie’s Kitten, Tepin
Steeplechase horse: Bob Le Beau, Dawalan, Demonstrative
Owner: Midwest Thoroughbreds, Inc., Kenneth and Sarah Ramsey, Zayat Stables
Breeder: Darley, Ken and Sarah Ramsey, Zayat Stables
Trainer: Bob Baffert, Chad Brown, Todd Pletcher
Jockey: Javier Castellano, Victor Espinoza, Irad Ortiz Jr.
Apprentice jockey: Eric Cancel, Angel Cruz, Tyler Gaffalione