National Treasure, Fierceness Top Initial NTRA Polls

A victory in the Jan. 27 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) propelled National Treasure  into first place in the initial National Thoroughbred Racing Association Top Thoroughbred Poll.

The 4-year-old Quality Road   colt, last year's Preakness Stakes (G1) winner for Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert, was a determined neck winner over Senor Buscador  in the $3 million Pegasus at Gulfstream Park. He earned $1,719,000 for winning the 1 1/8-mile race under Flavien Prat for owners SF Racing, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables, Bob Masterson, Stonestreet Stables, Jay Schoenfarber, JWaves Edge Capital, and Catherine Donovan.

Voting from national media resulted in 13 first-place votes for National Treasure, three more than 2023 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner White Abarrio , the second-ranked horse. Senor Buscador is third, followed by Idiomatic  in fourth, and Saudi Crown  in fifth. Idiomatic received two first-place votes.

White Abarrio, Senor Buscador, and Saudi Crown are candidates for the $20 million Saudi Cup (G1) Feb. 24 at King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Saudi Arabia.

This was the first week of voting in the Top Thoroughbred Poll, representing horses competing for Horse of the Year, the top prize in North American Thoroughbred racing. The poll covers racing performances through Jan. 28. It continues every week before concluding after the Breeders' Cup in the fall.

In its accompanying Top 3-Year-Old Poll, tracking foals of 2021 competing up and through the Triple Crown, champion 2-year-old male Fierceness  leads over grade 1 winner Muth , with last year's Breeders' Futurity (G1) winner Locked  and recent Lecomte Stakes (G3) winner Track Phantom  tied in third. Dornoch  is fifth.

The two polls and votes by voter can be found online.