Members of the racing industry from around the world gathered at the historic Savoy Hotel in central London Jan. 21 to honor equine excellence from the 2024 racing season during the Longines World Racing Awards.
For just the fifth time in the award’s 22-year history, and first since 2019, there was a tie for the title of Longines World’s Best Racehorse, with City of Troy and Laurel River each awarded the highest rating of 128.
City of Troy, a 3-year-old son of Triple Crown winner Justify , was bred in Kentucky by Coolmore and raced in Europe under the eye of Aidan O’Brien. The top-rated turf horse on the Longines leaderboard, he acquired his 128 rating with a sensational frontrunning score in the Aug. 21 Juddmonte International Stakes (G1) at York Racecourse, defeating Royal Ascot winner Calandagan by one length while breaking the 2,050-meter (about 1 1/4-mile) course record. Further back in the field were Bluestocking , eventual winner of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (G1), finishing fourth, and Japanese St. Leger (G1) winner Durezza in fifth.
O’Brien, along with jockey Ryan Moore and Coolmore representatives Christy Grassick and Sam Pearson, were on hand to accept the trophy and Longines timepieces.
“It’s all part of a team effort,” Grassick said. “This horse from day one has done everything superb.”
City of Troy became the first Irish-trained horse to win the award since Sea The Stars was honored in 2009.
Juddmonte’s Laurel River is also a Kentucky homebred, giving American-bred horses three of the last four Longines World’s Best Racehorse Awards.
Trainer Bhupat Seemar (middle) and Juddmonte CEO Douglas Erskine Crum (right) accept Laurel River’s award as the Longines World’s Co-Best Racehorse
His 128 rating and designation as the top-rated dirt horse in the world stemmed from his March 30 domination in the Dubai World Cup (G1) at Meydan. Opening an insurmountable lead turning for home, Laurel River cruised to an 8 1/2-length win over 2023 winner Ushba Tesoro and Saudi Cup (G1) victor Senor Buscador . The field also included grade/group 1 winners Dura Erede , Defunded , Kabirkhan, and Newgate .
Trained by Bhupat Seemar, Laurel River became the first United Arab Emirates-trained horse to be rated as the top racehorse in the world and the third to receive the honor for his performance in the World Cup. Additionally, he etched his name onto an impressive list of Juddmonte homebreds to receive the award, joining Frankel (2011-12), Arrogate (2016-17), and Enable (2019).
“When you’re in this sport and are nominated to be the co-highest rated horses on this planet—it doesn’t happen often,” said Seemar, who accepted the award alongside Juddmonte CEO Douglas Erskine Crum. “Laurel River has just been an absolute sensation ever since he came to the stables.”
Cox Plate (G1) winner Via Sistina finished the season ranked third, while King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) winner Goliath was fourth.
The highest American-trained runners were 3-year-old colts Fierceness and Sierra Leone . Both tied for fifth place with a 125 rating off their victories in the Travers Stakes (G1) and Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1), respectively.
Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T) winner Rebel’s Romance finished in a tie for 11th, and grade 1 winners Cogburn , Dornoch , and National Treasure were part of a tie for 24th. Five-time grade 1 winner Thorpedo Anna , the leading contender to win Horse of the Year in the United States, was part of a 19-horse tie for 35th that included Kentucky Derby (G1) winner Mystik Dan and Senor Buscador.
In total, 273 horses, trained in 15 different countries, were rated 115 or higher. The full list and further information on the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings are available on the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities website ifhaonline.org.
Juddmonte International Named World’s Best Horse Race
City of Troy’s Juddmonte International also received honors as the Longines World’s Best Horse Race with a rating of 124.25.
(L to R) York Racecourse’s Bridget Guerin (second from left) and William Derby (far right) accept the award for the 2024 Longines World’s Best Horse Race
The rating is determined based off the Longines ratings of the top four finishers. City of Troy contributed greatly with his rating of 128, while runner-up Calandagan was involved in the tie for fifth with a 125 rating. Third-place finisher Ghostwriter was rated at 118 while fourth-place Bluestocking received a 122 for her Arc triumph.
The Juddmonte International also won the award in 2020. York Racecourse chief executive William Derby was thrilled to accept this award in person with chairman of the York Race Committee Bridget Guerin after the pandemic had relegated that year’s ceremony to Zoom.
“It was a fantastic day,” Derby said. “Forty years of investment by the York Race Committee and Juddmonte in the race. We’re just so proud and honored to be awarded with this magnificent award.”
The Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course finished as the runner-up with a rating of 123.75 thanks to Fierceness (125), Thorpedo Anna (120), Sierra Leone (125), and Dornoch (124) all finishing in the top 50-rated horses in the world.
The rest of the top five races were rounded out by the Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) at Randwick in third with a 123 rating; the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot in fourth rated 122.75, and a three-way tie for fifth with a 122.50 rating among the Japan Cup (G1) at Tokyo Racecourse, Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar, and the Arc at Longchamp.
Other American races in the top 100 were the Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1T) in a tie for 12th, the Kentucky Derby (G1) in a tie for 16th, Belmont Stakes (G1) and Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1T) in a tie for 36th, Blue Grass Stakes (G1) in a tie for 71st, California Crown Stakes (G1) in a tie for 79th, and the Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1), Preakness Stakes (G1), and Santa Anita Handicap (G1) in a tie for 89th.
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