Trainer Chad Brown has been at the top level of Thoroughbred racing for more than a decade now, but with each year that goes by he continues to fine-tune his craft and further etch his name in the history books as one of the top trainers of his generation.
That space in history continued to be cemented Jan. 23 when Brown was awarded his fifth Eclipse Award as outstanding trainer for 2024, and his first since sweeping the award from 2016-19. The award was also a symbolic one for Brown as a fifth Eclipse Award ties him with his mentor, the legendary Bobby Frankel, for second-most all-time behind Todd Pletcher's eight Eclipse championships.
Brown led all trainers in North America by purse money earned with $30,866,710 and ranked seventh by wins. From a total of 925 starts, Brown won 211 races while finishing second 160 times and third 130 times.
Brown took home his seventh overall and fourth consecutive leading trainer title at Saratoga Race Course with 45 victories and more than $5.8 million in earnings, winning 15 stakes during one of the country's most prestigious meets. He also won the titles at the Belmont at the Big A spring and fall meets, leading to his ninth year-end training title on the New York Racing Association circuit.
Brown also topped the North American leaderboards with 47 graded stakes victories, 14 more than the next-highest trainer, Brad Cox. Broken down by individual grades, Brown led all trainers in all three categories with 15 grade 1 wins, 15 grade 2 wins, and 17 grade 3 wins.
"I feel that from top to bottom, this was our best year since I started training," Brown said. "Overall, there have been seasons when I have won more graded stakes and a few more grade 1s and made more in earnings, but there was a balance in the stable."
That balance was displayed by 12 different Brown trainees winning grade 1 events and 30 different horses winning the 47 graded stakes. Additionally, his grade 1 victories were split almost perfectly down the middle: eight wins on dirt and seven on turf.
Brown also won his first Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) with Sierra Leone, a horse that posed a puzzle to Brown throughout the season after showing a tendency to lug in during the stretch run. The puzzle was solved by the most important time and the 3-year-old son of Gun Runner stormed home to take home America's richest race.
In addition to Sierra Leone, voted 2024 Eclipse champion 3-year-old male, Brown saddled four more Eclipse finalists: 2-year-old male finalist Chancer McPatrick, older dirt female finalist Raging Sea, male turf finalist Carl Spackler, and female sprinter finalist Ways and Means.
Brown also trained grade 1 winners Program Trading, Gina Romantica, Beaute Cachee, Domestic Product , Chili Flag, Whitebeam, and Randomized.
