Sovereignty walking to the winner’s circle at the Kentucky Derby. (Jenny Doyle/Past The Wire)
Ben Baugh
PALM BEACH, FL – If there was ever a horse that lived up to his name it would be His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum’s Godolphin LLC’s brilliant 3-year-old, the Bill Mott conditioned Sovereignty. The Godolphin homebred received 100% of the first-place votes for outstanding 3-year-old male in the Eclipse Award balloting, and it was Godolphin’s second Horse of the Year Eclipse Award in the last three years, with Cody’s Wish taking honors in 2023. Sovereignty will race as a 4-year-old.
Sovereignty was bestowed with multiple year end honors, by being named the Horse of the Year and the champion 3-year-old male at the Resolute Racing 55th Annual Eclipse Awards at The Breakers on Jan 22, 2026. Godolphin also earned plaudits as the Eclipse Award winning Breeder and Owner. It’s the ninth time that Godolphin has been named the outstanding owner.
The son of Into Mischief enjoyed a sophomore campaign that was one for the ages, scoring five graded stakes victories, with two of the wins coming in the Classics, the Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Gr.1) and the Belmont Stakes Presented by NYRA Bets (Gr. 1), culminating his 3-year-old campaign by winning the DraftKing Travers Stakes (Gr. 1), a race where he went off as a 3-10 favorite. The bay colt’s other wins came in the Grade Two Coolmore Fountain of Youth Stakes and the Jim Dandy Stakes Presented by Mohegan Sun (Gr. 2).
The long-term successful trainer/jockey combination of Mott and Junior Alvarado combined for all five of his victories during his sophomore campaign and for his lone win during his juvenile campaign, where Sovereignty broke his maiden in his third start, in the Street Sense Stakes (Gr. 3) at Churchill Downs last autumn.
“The experience took me in my profession and sport to a different level,” said Alvarado. “I was happy to have accomplished so many great things this year. I could retire tomorrow and be extremely happy with what I’ve accomplished with this horse. I was just very excited about tonight hoping that he (Sovereignty) was going to be the horse of the year. It felt very good and amazing to be part of the team.”
Hall of Fame conditioner Bill Mott would take home his fifth Eclipse Award as the outstanding Trainer.
“It’s special. I’ve never had this good of a 3-year-old before and win those major races,” said Mott.” He’s a really good horse, and hopefully we can come back this next year and prove it again. There’s a big challenge when you bring a horse back into a new year, but hopefully he’s up to it.”
The only blemish on Sovereignty’s sophomore campaign was a second-place finish in the Curlin Florida Derby presented by Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms at Xalapa to Tappan Street.
However, Sovereignty received his early training in Ocala in the same program as his biggest rival Eclipse Racing and Partners and Bridlewood Farm’s Journalism at John and Leslie Malone’s Bridlewood Farm in Ocala, under the watchful eye of Joan “Meda” Murphy. Bridlewood is no stranger to success when it comes to the Horse of the Year, with Gun Runner, 2017, and Cody’s Wish, 2023, both having graduated from Team Bridlewood and Murphy’s program before ascending to the top of the sport.
“Joan “Meda” Murphy is the trainer, and I give her and her team all the credit bringing these young horses along. The way she did and the way that her program did. I give all the credit to her, her team and the team that we have at Bridlewood.,” said George Isaacs, Bridlewood general manager.
It was that rivalry between Sovereignty and Journalism that captured the imagination of the nation, with Sovereignty besting Journalism in both the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes. However, Journalism would get his Classic victory, in a race Sovereignty would bypass, capturing the Preakness Stakes (Gr. 1). Journalism was also a finalist for Horse of the Year and outstanding 3-year-old male.
“It was a great Triple crown series, we obviously had somewhat of a synthetic Triple Crown between Sovereignty and Journalism, to be a part of that story, to be part of that journey was great for all of us at Bridlewood and Team Bridlewood, and obviously it was great for Godolphin or Darley,” said Isaacs. “As I said to Team Godolphin before the (Kentucky) Derby. I was at the Derby, they were at the Derby,, I said, ‘listen guys, I have to be honest with you, I sure hope we can win, if we can’t win, I sure hope you do’. We’re all competitive by nature, and our horses decide ultimately whoever hits that finish line first is the winner.”
