Texas Chrome Named Texas Horse of the Year

The Texas Thoroughbred Association announced its 2016 Texas champions Jan. 19, and the appropriately named Texas Chrome will be honored as the Texas Horse of the Year.

Awards will be given out at the TTA's annual meeting and awards banquet at Lone Star Park June 24. The champions are determined by points earned in stakes performances during the year.

Owned by Danny Keene's Keene Thoroughbreds and trained by J.R. Caldwell, Texas Chrome compiled a record of 4-1-2 from eight starts with earnings of $660,245 in 2016, tops among all Texas-breds.

Named the Texas champion 2-year-old male for 2015 after recording three stakes wins, the son of Grasshopper   earned four stakes victories in 2016.

He started with a division of the Clarence Scharbauer Jr. Texas Stallion Stakes at Lone Star, and after placing in the Matt Winn Stakes (G3) at Churchill Downs and the Iowa Derby (G3) at Prairie Meadows, he annexed the Super Derby Prelude Stakes at Louisiana Downs. Then, in a span of just 15 days in September, he captured the Super Derby (G3) at Louisiana Downs and the Oklahoma Derby (G3) at Remington Park.

BALAN: Texas Chrome Prevails in Oklahoma Derby

He ended his season by finishing off the board in the Las Vegas Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) at Santa Anita Park. C.J. McMahon was the primary rider of Texas Chrome.

Texas Chrome, who also earned the title of Texas champion 3-year-old male, was bred by Craig Upham out of the Texas-bred Naevus mare Margarita Mistress. In the name of his and wife Sue Dowling's Stoneview Farm, Upham consigned Texas Chrome to the 2014 Texas summer yearling sale, where the colt sold for $10,000 to Keene. At the time, Grasshopper stood at Lane's End Texas, and the stallion now stands at Valor Farm in Pilot Point, Texas.

With lifetime earnings of $842,807, Texas Chrome currently sits sixth on the all-time list of Texas-bred earners, and this year could become just the second Texas-bred millionaire, as he chases all-time leader Groovy ($1,346,956).

Ivan Fallunovalot was also a repeat champion, as the gelded son of Valid Expectations earned the Texas champion older horse title for the second time. Bred by Eileen Hartis and owned by Lewis Mathews Jr., the now 7-year-old won three stakes last year, including the grade 3 Frank J. DeFrancis Memorial Dash at Laurel Park.

Following is the complete list of 2016 champion horses:

Horse of the Year: Texas Chrome

2-year-old filly: Bling on the Music

2-year-old male: Raising Rumors

3-year-old filly: More Than Most

3-year-old male: Texas Chrome

Older filly/mare: Chronologic'sghost

Older horse: Ivan Fallunovalot

Champion broodmare: Margarita Mistress

The award for the Texas Champion Claimer will be determined by an online vote on the TTA website.