Roy H

After winning only one of his first 11 starts, Roy H put together a nice winning streak to begin 2017. He won an aooloance race by 2 1/2 lengths on the downhill turf course at Santa Anita Park and followed with a victory by 7 1/4 lengths in a race that was moved off the turf because of inclement weather. He then stayed on the main track when shipping east to run in the Grade 2 True North Stakes and prevailed by 2 1/2 lengths to earn his first stakes win and extend his winning streak to three.

Roy H's winning streak came to a halt in a troubled runner-up finish in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Handicap, in which the presence of a horse who had unseated his rider forced him to race very wide on the turf and entering the stretch. The More Than Ready gelding got right back on track in his next start, however, edging away in the stretch to win the Grade 1 Santa Anita Sprint Championship Stakes by a length and punch his ticket to the TwinSpires Breeders' Cup Sprint at Del Mar.

In that race on Nov. 4. Roy H stalked the pace under a patient ride from Kent Desormeaux and inched ahead of leader Imperial Hint en route to a one-length win. That victory capped a banner campaign for Roy H, who was rewarded with the Eclipse Award as champion sprinter.

Roy H made his first start after winning his Eclipse Award in the six-furlong Palos Verdes Stakes at Santa Anita on Feb. 3, 2018, and outclassed three opponents with an easy 3 ½-length win under Desormeaux. Roy H then shipped to Dubai where he finished third in the $2 million Golden Shaheen on Dubai World Cup night. After the Middle East trip, Roy H was given an extended break. He returned on July 28 at Del Mar in the Grade 1 Bing Crosby Stakes and finished second to Ransom the Moon, but then turned the tables on that foe on Oct. 6, taking his second consecutive edition of the Santa Anita Sprint Championship and earning another “Win and You’re In” berth to the 2018 TwinSpires Breeders’ Cup Sprint.

Roy H made the most of his return trip to the Breeders’ Cup, capitalizing on a fast pace and a good trip under Paco Lopez. He easily held off a closing rally from Whitmore to post his second consecutive win in the TwinSpires Sprint, this time held at Churchill Downs. His repeat win in the Sprint burnished Roy H’s credentials for another Eclipse Award, and he was voted champion male sprinter for the second year in a row.

In his 7-year-old debut, Roy H scored a repeat victory in the Palos Verdes, stalking the pace while in hand in third early and taking charge on cue at the top of the setretch en route to a four-length runaway.