Coronation for California Chrome at Eclipse Awards

California Chrome photo by Eclipse Sportswire
By Tom Pedulla, America’s Best Racing
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – As big as teenagers tend to dream, Art Sherman could never have imagined the wonderful ride ahead as he accompanied Swaps in a boxcar from the West Coast to Louisville for the 1955 Kentucky Derby.
Swaps won that Derby, providing Sherman with what he thought was the thrill of a lifetime. But that would come almost six decades later, when he returned to Churchill Downs with California Chrome and embraced the twilight of his career by becoming the oldest trainer to win the run for the roses at age 77.
With his unpromising bloodlines as a California-bred and the common-folk ownership of Perry Martin and Steve Coburn, California Chrome endeared himself to the nation in a few dizzying weeks by triumphing in the Preakness for heady jockey Victor Espinoza. Their Triple Crown bid fell short when the striking chestnut colt finished in a dead-heat for fourth in the Belmont Stakes. But he rebounded to be a solid third to Bayern after a controversial start to the $5-million Breeders’ Cup Classic before responding to his first turf start with a two-length victory in the Hollywood Derby at Del Mar.
The storybook season led Sherman to bask in the spotlight once more on Saturday night at Gulfstream Park. The 44th annual Eclipse Awards enjoyed their finest moment when he accepted racing’s ultimate prize – Horse of the Year – on behalf of a colt that reminded everyone that everything is possible in a sport not limited to kings.
Sherman was quietly optimistic when he reached for a phone interview a few days before the highly anticipated announcement.
“We’ve done everything we could possibly do with the horse,” he said.
Nine starts that stretched from January through the end of November yielded six victories – four in Grade 1 races – and $4,007,800 in earnings. Appreciation for the youngster extends far beyond voters from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form and National Turf Writers and Broadcasters.
“He’s sure got a fan base,” Sherman said. “I haven’t seen it since Zenyatta and Cigar. It’s been great for us.”
California Chrome, training sharply for the new season, will set out to match Cigar, who was saluted as Horse of the Year in 1995 and 1996. The magnificent Zenyatta, who captivated the most casual of sports fans with her breathless late runs, was the fifth of six fillies to be so honored.
Bayern and Main Sequence, the other finalists, gave voters much to consider. Bayern’s front-running triumph in the Classic lost some luster due to a start in which he broke in, colliding with then undefeated Shared Belief. In turn, Shared Belief smashed into Moreno, who was never the pace factor he was expected to be.
“If I could go back in time and change something, that would be it. I would love to see a cleanly run race, so every horse could run his best race,” said Kaleem Shah, Bayern’s owner, during an interview last week.
After being trounced in the Preakness, Bayern won his other two meetings with California Chrome. He smashed a track record that lasted for 40 years when he blazed the 1 1/8 miles of the Pennsylvania Derby in 1:46.96. He was unwavering in the Classic even though his archrival took dead aim at him.
BAYERN (inside) WON THE CLASSIC 

Photo by Eclipse Sportswire
Still, Shah admitted Bayern was always doing the chasing in the Horse of the Year Race.
“We had a late start and we were trying to play catch-up whereas California Chrome was more seasoned as a racehorse,” he said.
As trainer Graham Motion awaited the outcome, he could not have been prouder of Main Sequence. After being transferred to Motion’s operation in the U.S., Main Sequence rattled off four consecutive Grade 1 victories, culminating in his triumph against a star-studded international field in the $3-million Breeders’ Cup Turf.
“For what he accomplished, no horse has done what he has done,” Motion said. “It was a perfect season.”
It was a season to savor, one that will be difficult to surpass. But with California Chrome, Bayern and Main Sequence all preparing for 2015, perhaps the best is yet to come.
MAIN SEQUENCE WAS NAMED CHAMPION TURF MALE AND CHAMPION OLDER MALE

Photo by Eclipse Sportswire