In my final act in covering Chicago racing on a full-time
basis, here are my choices for the 2012 Illinois Champions! Let’s see how my
selections compare to that of
Mr. Zipse at the Track! The way the voting works
here is that you provide your 1
st, 2
nd, and 3
rd
best selections for each category. Then points are awarded on a 5-3-1 basis and
totaled up to see who wins. Finally you write-in your vote for Illinois horse
of the year! Here we go…
This gelding scored a perfect 2-for-2 in his rookie campaign
in 2012. He obliterated a maiden claiming field by 14 lengths in mid-November
then a month later won the Jim Edgar Futurity Stakes by a head over my second
choice, Lassell. Chatfield Road has been resting since the stakes victory and I’m
anxious to see what we get out of him in 2013!
(Other choices: Lassell, Emile)
Here, the gray filly
dominated over the rest of the choices
in my opinion. This granddaughter of Danzig just needed to stretch out after
just missing in a maiden sprint at Arlington. She went to the turf and scored
my stalking the pace in a one mile maiden breaker. Then taking a step up in
class, and going to the dirt, she destroyed a decent IL-bred field by 4 ½ lengths
in the Pat Whitworth Illinois Debutante Stakes as the post-time favorite. With
over $103,000 in earnings already, I’m sure she will pick up more cash in 2013!
(Other choices: Julmae, Indygo Kiss)
(The Pizza Man - by Four Footed Fotos)
There is absolutely no doubt who wins this category, and it’s
The Pizza Man easily! In 2012 he won 6 of his 7 races, all of them on the
grass, with his only loss coming in the Grade 3 American Derby at Arlington. He
won in open allowance company, state-bred allowance company, and took down two
stakes races in the Tex’s Zing and the Bucks Boy. This son of English Channel
should improve even more in 2013 and I’m looking forward to seeing his
campaign!
(Other choices: Luv Bandit, Sandia Crest)
Zipse was right. In this division it was difficult to
separate Leading Astray and La Tia here. I chose Leading Astray because of her
5 victories on the year including rising through the IL-bred open allowance
ranks and two stakes victories in the Hatoof and the Grade 3 Pucker Up. She
also had good showings in the Grade 3 Valley Viey at Keeneland and the Grade 2
Mrs. Revere stakes at Churchill Downs, hitting the board both times. Team Block certainly has a champion on their
hands here! Since 2012 she also hit the board again in the Grade 3 Marshua’s
River Stakes at Gulfstream Park and even turned in a four furlong work this
morning (2/3/13)!
(Other choices: La Tia, Dolly Peach)
Certainly is tough going against Team Block in the Illinois
Champion awards and the Older Male category is no different. Ioya Bigtime
towers over the rest of the division in my opinion. The horse raced against
much tougher competition winning two graded stakes races (Stars N Stripes and
the Kentucky Turf Cup) and hitting the board in two more difficult races in the
inaugural running of the American St. Leger on Million Day (almost wiring the
field) and the Grade 3 Sycamore at Keeneland. Certainly going into 2013 as a
6-year-old I can only assume that Ioya Bigtime will be participating in the endurance
races and who knows, maybe we will see him in the Breeders’ Cup Marathon!!
(Other choices: Suntracer, River Bear)
(Third Chance - by Four Footed Fotos)
Who can argue with a perfect 4-for-4 campaign in 2012? Well
I can’t as IL-bred champion sprinter Third Chance gets my vote here for local
TV personality Ron Magers. Dirt or synthetic, it doesn’t matter when it comes
to this filly. In 2012 she won three stakes races and an open allowance race
against a decent field. She scored victories in the Governor’s Lady, The Isaac
Murphy, and the Addison Cammack stakes; the latter in impressive fashion winning
by over 6 lengths! Though this filly was supposed to be slated for retirement, I did notice she
published a workout on December 8th at Hawthorne.
(Other choices: Peyote Patty, Kepi)
I remember speaking with jockey Danush Sukie after River Bear’s
victory in in the Robert S. Molaro Handicap at Hawthorne back in April. He said
the owners were really hoping to gain a million dollars worth of earnings from
River Bear in his career. Well they certainly made a good dent in that goal by
earning over $200,000 in 2012 by taking home victories in the Robert S. Molaro,
the Prairie Express stakes at Prairie Meadows, and the Tex’s Zing. With 4 wins
from 7 starts in 2012, River Bear was the easy choice.
(Other choices: St. Maximus Gato, Signsealndeliver)
Female Sprinter: Third Chance
Again, no other IL-bred sprinters come close in this
category in my opinion.
(Other choices: Dolly Peach, Algonquin Posse)
Turf Male: Ioya Bigtime
(Ioya Bigtime - by Four Footed Fotos)
This was the toughest decision to make of all of the
divisions. I had to go with the graded stakes winner and that is Ioya Bigtime. Still,
The Pizza Man is impressive and I would like to see him take on tougher
competition in 2013.
(Other choices: The Pizza Man, Suntracer)
Turf Female: Leading Astray
Again, this filly had a very impressive 3-year-old campaign
with good showings in graded stakes competition. I would also like to give some
recognition to Peyote Patty as well. She had a great year in 2012 and had 11
victories in her career. She had always been one of my favorites to watch and I
wish her the best in her retirement too!
(Other choices: Peyote Patty, Kepi)
ILLINOIS HORSE OF THE YEAR: Leading Astray
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(Leading Astray - by Four Footed Fotos)
I know that Ioya Bigtime was the probably the obvious choice,
but I was very impressed with Leading Astray and her showings in the graded
stakes not only in Chicago but outside of Chicago as well. I think she has a
great future ahead of her and I’m looking forward to her 4-year-old season!
Who were your choices?