While the final decisions for the Equus Awards rest with the esteemed judging panel—Graeme Hawkins, Nico Kritsiotis, Rouvaun Smit, Deez Dayanand and Vicki Minott—the panel’s deliberations are heavily guided by the Equus Logs, which track each horse’s performances across the season with points allocated according to finishing position and grade of race.
This year, Eight On Eighteen has stamped his authority on the track and is leading the Horse Of The Year standings. The triple Grade 1 winner is also ahead in the Three-Year-Old Male category and the fiercely contested Champion Middle Distance division, where he faces tough competition from Fire Attack, Atticus Finch and The Real Prince. In the same Three-Year-Old Male division, Fire Attack and One Stripe are also in contention—although One Stripe’s recent export to the USA may influence the final call.
Gimme A Prince continues to head up the Champion Sprinter and Champion Older Male categories, but the margins are tight. In the older male division, William Robertson, Oriental Charm, Dave The King and Atticus Finch are all in the mix, while Mia Moo and William Robertson are the key contenders challenging Gimme A Prince for Sprinter honours.
The Champion Older Female category is also shaping up to be a closely fought affair, with Double Grand Slam, Mia Moo and Rascova leading the charge. In the Two-Year-Old categories, Good For You, Charming Cheetah, Chronicle King, Absolutely Yes and Malmesbury Missile are the standout colts, while Direct Hit heads a strong filly lineup that includes Anotherdanceforme, Golden Palm, Green Diamond, One Fine Winter, Elegantrix and Quickstepgal.
The Champion Miler division is packed with quality—Cosmic Speed, Oriental Charm, One Stripe, Dave The King and Double Grand Slam are all potential winners, making this one of the most competitive categories. Meanwhile, the Champion Stayer category features a wide-open field led by King Pelles, Holding Thumbs, Mucho Dinero, My Soulmate and Love Is A Rose.
With several key races still to come, including those on World Pool Gold Cup Day, the points and prospects in each division may yet shift dramatically. The Equus Awards are set to be a celebration of a truly competitive and high-quality racing season and will be held in the Silver Ring at Hollywoodbets Greyville Racecourse on Thursday 14 August.
LOGS
HORSE OF THE YEAR
EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN 160
ONE STRIPE 96
FIRE ATTACK 81
DOUBLE GRAND SLAM 80
GIMME A PRINCE 75
FATAL FLAW 72
ORIENTAL CHARM 72
COSMIC SPEED 70
THREE-YEAR-OLD MALE
EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN 160
ONE STRIPE 96
FIRE ATTACK 81
COSMIC SPEED 70
THREE-YEAR-OLD FILLY
FATAL FLAW 72
FIERY PEGASUS 60
SPUMANTE DOLCE 56
MON PETIT CHERIE 50
OLDER MALE
GIMME A PRINCE 75
ORIENTAL CHARM 72
WILLIAM ROBERTSON 50
DAVE THE KING 48
ATTICUS FINCH 44
GLADATORIAN 44
MONTIEN 41
THE REAL PRINCE 40
OLDER FEMALE
DOUBLE GRAND SLAM 80
MIA MOO 56
RASCOVA 48
CHAMPION SPRINTER
GIMME A PRINCE 60
MIA MOO 56
WILLIAM ROBERTSON 50
MILER
COSMIC SPEED 64
ORIENTAL CHARM 48
ONE STRIPE 48
DAVE THE KING 48
DOUBLE GRAND SLAM 48
MIDDLE DISTANCE
EIGHT ON EIGHTEEN 68
FIRE ATTACK 53
ATTICUS FINCH 44
THE REAL PRINCE 40
STAYER
KING PELLES 28
HOLDING THUMBS 25
MUCHO DINERO 12
MY SOUL MATE 12
LOVE IS A ROSE 10
SHE’S A BOMBER 8
TWO-YEAR-OLD MALE
GOOD FOR YOU 36
CHARMING CHEETAH 20
CHRONICLE KING 16
ABSOLUTELY YES 12
MALMESBURY MISSILE 10
TWO-YEAR-OLD FEMALE
DIRECT HIT 40
GREEN DIAMOND 24
ONE FINE WINTER 24
ELEGANTRIX 24
QUICKSTEPGAL 16
ANOTHERDANCEFORME 16
GOLDEN PALM 16
