The National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Daily Racing Form, and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters announced Jan. 7 the finalists for the 2022 Eclipse Awards, recognizing excellence in Thoroughbred racing.

Winners in 17 horse and human categories will be announced on FanDuel TV, and other outlets, during the 52nd annual Eclipse Awards, presented by John Deere, Keeneland, and The Jockey Club, Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m. ET at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla. The evening will culminate with the announcement of the 2022 Horse of the Year, a prize Longines Breeders' Cup Classic winner Flightline is anticipated to easily capture.

Of the 258 eligible voters represented by the NTRA, consisting of member racetrack racing officials and Equibase field personnel, the NTWAB, and Daily Racing Form, 246 (95.3%) took part in the voting. Finalists were determined in each category by voters' top three selections, using a 10-5-1 point basis. Eclipse Award winners are determined solely by first-place votes.

The 2022 Eclipse Awards Finalists, with the exception of Horse of the Year, (in alphabetical order) are:

Two-Year-Old Male: Cave Rock, Forte, Victoria Road

Two-Year-Old Filly: Leave No Trace, Meditate, Wonder Wheel

Wonder Wheel locks up the two-year-old filly title. (Evers/Eclipse Sportswire)

Three-Year-Old Male: Epicenter, Modern Games, Taiba

Three-Year-Old Filly: Nest, Secret Oath, Tuesday

Older Dirt Male: Flightline, Life Is Good, Olympiad

Older Dirt Female: Clairiere, Goodnight Olive, Malathaat         

Male Sprinter: Cody's Wish, Elite Power, Jackie's Warrior

Female Sprinter: Caravel, Echo Zulu, Goodnight Olive

Male Turf Horse: Modern Games, Nations Pride, Rebel's Romance

Female Turf Horse: In Italian, Regal Glory, War Like Goddess    

Steeplechase Horse: Down Royal, Hewick, Snap Decision

Owner: Peter Brant, Godolphin LLC, Klaravich Stables

Breeder: Godolphin, Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC, Summer Wind Equine

Trainer: Steve Asmussen, Chad Brown, Todd Pletcher

Jockey: Irad Ortiz, Jr., Flavien Prat, Joel Rosario

Irad Ortiz Jr. had an historic year in 2022. (Tim Sudduth/Eclipse Sportswire)

Apprentice Jockey: Jeiron Barbosa, Vicente Del-Cid, Jose Antonio Gomez

FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile Presented by PDJF winner Modern Games and Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint winner Goodnight Olive are finalists for multiple awards, and the global racing and breeding operation Godolphin is a finalist for both champion owner and breeder.

Many Eclipse categories have winners that would appear clear-cut, such as Forte and Wonder Wheel as champion 2-year-old male and champion 2-year-old female, respectively, while other divisions, such as 3-year-old male and male sprinter, appear contentious.  

In addition to honoring the 17 winners in the horse and human categories, David Harrison will receive the Eclipse Award as the 2022 Horseplayer of the Year and members of the media will be honored for outstanding coverage in six categories. 

Voting is conducted by the NTWAB, the NTRA, and Daily Racing Form, while the ceremony is produced by the NTRA.

The Eclipse Awards are named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire, Eclipse, who began racing at age 5 and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three Epsom Derbies.