Big Drama's BC Score Leads to Eclipse Award

Big Drama won the big race on the big day, and as a result sprinted home with the Eclipse Award Jan. 17 for champion Male Sprinter for 2010. Harold Queen’s homebred garnered 170 first-place votes, outpolling Majesticperfection, who tallied 61 first-place votes.

Big Drama (Montbrook—Riveting Drama, by Notebook) became the first Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner since Midnight Lute   in 2007 to be crowned champion sprinter.

The Florida-bred Big Drama led all the way in scoring in the Sentient Jet Breeders’ Cup Sprint (gr. I) at Churchill Downs Nov. 6, outrunning 11 foes to win by a convincing 11⁄2 lengths. Big Drama is conditioned by David Fawkes.

The sprint division was thought to provide one of the tighter votes in the Eclipse Award balloting. Big Drama’s Breeders’ Cup triumph was his lone grade I victory on the season. He also prevailed in the Smile Sprint Handicap (gr. II) at Calder Casino & Race Course in July and won the Ponche Handicap at the same track in June. But in his pair of other grade I efforts in 2010, he finished second to Majesticperfection   in the Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap and was the runner-up to Here Comes Ben   in the Forego Stakes, both at Saratoga. Majesticperfection won five of six starts on the year, including the Iowa Sprint Handicap in which he set a track record for six furlongs. Majesticperfection missed the Breeders’ Cup with an injury.

The 4-year-old of 2010 was bred and is owned by Harold Queen. Queen and his wife, Jean, live in Ocala, Fla., operating a breeding farm there with approximately 50 horses. The farm is part of the Nelson Jones Training Center. The Queens own about 10 broodmares and break their yearlings at the facility.

Big Drama was nominated to the 2009 Triple Crown after scoring in a pair of two-turn races. He ran fifth in the Preakness Stakes (gr. I) after dueling with eventual winner—and 2009 Horse of the Year—Rachel Alexandra.

Big Drama earned $1,420,810 in 2010, and began his 2011 campaign Jan. 15 with a victory in Gulfstream Park’s Mr. Prospector Stakes (gr. III).

First-Place Votes:

Big Drama, 170; Majesticperfection, 61; Discreetly Mine, 4.