hello to you!

yeah, i went to ntra myself yesterday and took note of $ won....

to THIS point, bernardini hasn't done anything more than what barbaro has done...it's just later in the year. also, take note that barbaro beat four times as many horses @ the 10f distance--FOUR months ago!

at this point, it's a toss-up.

bernardini must win over older, it would be the only thing that would separate him from barbaro.

also, everyone keep in mind that altho bernardinis margin was the largest since general assembly in '79, barbaro's margin of victory was the largest in 60 years.

That's a great post, and point Danzig. If I may add, it was never my intention to say Barbaro should get the award out of any kind of sympathy vote. I'm sorry someone tried to corrupt that. But it was my intent to illustrate Barbaro STILL has done more "on track" than Bernardini to this point and it's just wrong-my opinion, I suppose-to think Bernardini deserves the award if voted on now. I don't think anyone one is disputing if Bernardini beats older horses he wouldn't get the award. In fact, if he does and they gave him HOY and Barbaro 3-y/o champ that would almost seem to be correct in many ways.

How in the world is anyone supposed to form an intelligent opinion on this topic until the season is over?

It's like the old Johnny Carson skit ..."Karnac" maybe it was...some people know the answers before the question is even asked.

$$$ won shouldn't have the impact it once did with the inflated purses abound. Otherwise, you could just insert the Dubai and Breeders Cup winners as HOY.

LOL @ saying that Barbaro beat "19 pretty damn good horses". Please stop it. Just because it was the Derby doesn't mean all of the horses were pretty damn good. Or even good for that matter. In fact, if u take all 19, there might have been four average to good ones in the entire group. There aren't even 19 good horses in the entire crop.

This is CLASSIC. U honestly think it would make sense for a horse to be the HOY but not even the champion of his own division? What's next? Maybe we should take the next guy that loses a race for city mayor and install him as the president of the United States. Come on now. If u are the best horse in the country, by default u have to be the best in your division.

What I don't get is why Bernardini HAS to not only face but also BEAT older horses in order to be deserving.......but Barbaro didn't even have to face older. Doesn't make sense to me.

If Bernardini is going to be HOY, he better damn well beat older horses. I would expect the same for Barbaro, although IMO, Barbaro was the better horse of the two. Barbaro didn't have the chance to face older, but IMO Bernardini is the 2nd best out of this year's crop of 3 year olds. And if he is so spectacular, why did he skip the Belmont?

no....bernardini is the only one who can set himself apart, and above by beating older...obviously barbaro can't do that....bernardini beating the same colts that barbaro beat does not prove he's the better horse. doing so would only show that he is equal to him...

barbaro did his racing in the first half. bernardini in the last--so later is 'better'???? why should the latter half carry more weight than the former?

9 times out of 10 the "latter" is going to get the award. Not right, but that is how it is.

not so buffy...just off the top of my head.
afleet alex
smarty jones
charismatic

all three done before the year was half over....

i can find more...but i'm supposed to be WORKING....LOL

and don't forget point given...the travers was his last race, didn't face older...tiznow won the bcc and lost the eclipse.

That's not the point here. If your criteria for a 3yo being named HOY is that he has to beat older horses, that's fine. But don't say that Bernardini HAS to do it but excuse Barbaro from having to do it. There is nothing that says for sure that Barbaro would have done it so he shouldn't be excused. The point was that it's ridiculous to say that a horse can be the best horse in the country (HOY) but not even win the championship as the best horse in his own division.

As for the Belmont, why run in it? It's a worthless race unless a horse is going for the TC. It proves NOTHING. It's not like back in the older days when the Belmont was a chance to see which of the 3yo's could handle the 12f distance and would be able to compete with the older horses in the fall championship races, which were at 12f and further. Nowdays, this is the only 12f dirt stakes race in the country, at least the only grade one. So it's basically been turned into something totally irrelevant. Unless there is a TC on the line. I know that if I owned a horse that ran in the Derby and didn't win, there is not a chance in hell that he'd come anywhere close to the starting gate for either the Preakness or the Belmont. There are too many other races out there for as much money or nearly as much and I'd rather go in races that are at more manageable distances instead of the Belmont. Also, look at some of the Belmont horses over the past 10 years:

2006-Jazil.....might be done for the year
2005-Afleet Alex never raced again; Giacomo didn't race again that year
2004-Birdstone, two more career races; Smarty never raced again
2003-Funny Cide.....still around (gelding); Empire Maker one more race
2002-War Emblem......few more races after the Belmont
2001-Point Given......two more career races
1999-Charismatic.......never raced again
1998-Real Quiet........didn't race again that year
1997-Silver Charm......didn't race again that year (well, the Malibu on 12/26)

Is this a race that u would want to run in?

Actually, yes. It would mean that my horse had that one more G1 under his belt IF Bernardini could have gotten the distance (which I doubt he could have.) In fact, has Bernardini ever even been a mile and a quarter? :confused:

And a horse doesn't always win his division and the HOY. That's just the way it works... I don't do the decision making on that one, but I think that as it stands right now, Barbaro deserves the 3 year old division. Bernardini puts on one hell of a show, but until he beats some quality horses (older or not), I won't be jumping on that bandwagon.

He's won at 9.5f and at 10f.

I'd like u to tell me one horse that won HOY but wasn't even named champion in his own division.

Again though, the point was not to debate which of the two is more deserving. That's unanswerable as to which is better. Personally, I think it's Bernardini easily. But who knows? The point was that if u think Bernardini could get the award as the best horse period, how could he not get it as the best 3yo? That doesn't make sense.

It could happen this year, King ... if ...

... if ... as rumored ... they count "Get Well" cards as votes in the 3YO balloting ... but disallow them in the HOTY voting ...

... the awards could be split.

Other than that ... you're right ... it's never happened.

Wait ... I've got the answer !!!

It was a trick question ... the answers are ... Twilight Tear, Busher, and Lady's Secret ... because ... they weren't named champions in his division ... they were named champions in hers.

See ... you can fool the rest of them ... but you can't fool me.

I stand corrected.

Didn't I already give you an integrity award?

Hmmm ... well OK ... now you've got two of them.

Ok. Good answer. I give with this other person though. I just fail to understand how someone can sit there and say that a horse can be the best horse in the country but not even the best 3yo. I guess that's like taking the recent World Series title that the Chicago White Sox won........as the best team in baseball.....and giving it to the Cubs, who weren't even the best team in their city.