The year 2025 has been a blockbuster one in the world of horse racing, and with just a handful of marquee races remaining, it now provides the perfect time to reflect and take stock. The year really kicked into gear back in March as the UK's Cheltenham Festival got underway.
The Gloucestershire showdown is renowned as a meeting in which the favorites thrive. But this year, a whole host of big names were well beaten, with the likes of Constitution Hill, Ballyburn, and Galopin Des Champs, among many others, all thoroughly thrashed.
Staying in the UK, the Grand National was up next and once again, it was an outsider who shone, this time Nick Rockett, winning for Willie Mullins at a mighty price of 33/1. After that, the racing world headed across the pond for the American Triple Crown, a circuit in which the well-fancied Journalism was earmarked as the horse to beat.
However, much like in Old Blighty, he couldn't live up to the billing, twice losing out to one of the horses of the year (more on him later) despite being a massive favorite.
As the year has gone on, more and more stories have been written. But which were the horses that stole the show in 2025? Let's take a look.
Sovereignty
Every era delivers its horse of destiny. In 2025, Sovereignty didn’t just inherit that mantle—he seized it with aplomb. Bill Mott's prized charge was considered somewhat of a middle-of-the-pack horse when the Triple Crown rolled around, but it was clear on Kentucky Derby day at Churchill Downs that the Godolphin superstar was about to be so much more than a mere contender.
For much of the race, it seemed as though the consensus with racing betting sites was correct. The horse racing at Bovada odds listed him as a 6/1 shot, decent, but by no means supposed to be a match for the 5/2 favourite Journalism.
And that's how it went for a while, mired mid-pack, unseen amid a flurry of hooves and mud. But the timer doesn’t lie. After clocking the fastest closing 400 meters on the card, he surged past Journalism to win by 1½ lengths.
What followed was a masterclass in campaign management—and risk. Mott, eschewing Triple Crown tradition, pulled Sovereignty out of the Preakness, fueling hot-take fury. But at Saratoga’s makeshift Belmont, the colt executed a chilly, surgical three-length coup d’état, posting 2:00.69—a time that would have dropped jaws even on Belmont’s expansive oval.
Sovereignty… again?! This horse is a PROBLEM. #BelmontStakes
— Bovada (@BovadaOfficial) June 7, 2025
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The Travers? A 10-length blowout. The Longines 127 rating is world-best for dirt. The only foes that bested Sovereignty in 2025 were illness (that Breeders’ Cup fever) and circumstance. The analytics, meanwhile, suggest there's daylight between this horse and his rivals—both in pure figures and in tactical versatility.
With the Pegasus, Met Mile, and another Breeders’ Cup circled for 2026, Sovereignty promises to test the outer limits of North American racing’s upper echelon.
Forever Young
Strength on home soil. Ruthlessness abroad. In 2025, Forever Young shattered a glass ceiling and rewrote not just the Japanese record books, but racing’s entire geopolitical script.
The numbers are staggering: millions in earnings, a pair of globe-trotting G1 wins, and a year-end rating that yanked him level with Sovereignty (127 on Longines). But it’s how Forever Young achieved it that sets this Real Steel son apart. The Saudi Cup—richest race on earth—saw him outduel Romantic Warrior in a display of deep stamina and killer instinct.
After biding his time and gobbling up ground at the world’s richest dirt contests (third in the Dubai World Cup, dominant in the Nippon TV Hai), Forever Young arrived at Del Mar, a stage that has broken many a traveling champion. Yet when the gates clattered, Forever Young stalked, pounced, and repelled a full-force charge from the best America had to offer. The Breeders’ Cup Classic, at last, fell to a Japanese-trained runner.
And yet, here’s the most electrifying data point: Yahagi’s colt achieved a 50% strike-rate at the Group 1 level in 2025, facing nothing but elite opposition. The targets for 2026 are bold—repeat Saudi Cup, maybe another Breeders’ Cup, perhaps the Pegasus World Cup or Dubai. If you’re chasing answers about the world’s measuring stick for dirt excellence, you’ll find them wherever Forever Young’s passport gets stamped.
Calandagan
Some horses win races. Others bend the entire shape of a division to their will. Calandagan, the Aga Khan’s homebred king, did the latter—taking the classic European middle-distance game, wringing it for all it was worth, and then expanding the ceiling.
After a tough-luck second in Dubai, the Gleneagles gelding was unleashed in France, dismantling fields in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud and punching above historic weight at Ascot. The King George win was more than a stat—it was a statement, only the second since Brigadier Gerard (1972) to claim both the Saint-Cloud and Ascot double.
But the data is ruthless. When Calandagan reappeared at the QIPCO Champion Stakes, he didn’t just win; he opened up more than two lengths on a pack teeming with last year’s giants, posting a globe-high Longines 130. That figure? It’s not just a badge of superiority—it’s a challenge to all-comers, regardless of surface.
Will his legend extend onto the roads less traveled in Japan or Australia? If so, expect tactics, class, and closing fractions that have left a trail of scorched earth across Europe.
Lossiemouth
National Hunt racing is not for the faint of heart—nor for those allergic to adversity. Lossiemouth, the six-year-old mare trained by Willie Mullins, exemplified how resilience and class can transform chaos into coronation.
The season began with a stumble, literally—early falls and setbacks threatened to unravel her campaign. But the Riccis have never believed in folding their best hand. When Lossiemouth entered Cheltenham for the mares’ hurdle, she did so with purpose, blitzing rivals by seven lengths and registering a time that outstripped male company later in the festival.
Aintree further underscored her dominance—conquering open company with almost languid confidence. Her Anglo-Irish rating of 159, particularly with the mares’ allowance, puts her in the company of hurdling immortals. There’s tantalizing talk now: a tilt at the Champion Hurdle, a rare pursuit of the chasing game. Either way, the only thing greater than Lossiemouth's talent is the weight of expectation she now shoulders.
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