PALM BEACH, Fla.--Riverdee Stable's Cool Jet (Ire), a three time winner in 2025, was announced as the Steeplechase Eclipse Award winner during the awards dinner at the Breakers Hotel on Thursday, Jan. 22.

Cool Jet leads over last in the G! Commonwealth Cup (Photo by Tod Marks)Trained by Jack Fisher, Cool Jet won the G1 Commonwealth Stakes at the Gold Cup in May, and the G3 Mariann de Tejeda Memorial Stakes and the G3 Noel Laing Stakes at Montpelier in November.

There were eight grade one stakes in 2025, and eight different horses won.

Cool Jet was the only one of the three nominees to win more than one graded stakes, and he received 119 votes to 51 votes for Zanahiyr (Ire), the Irish invader who ran only once in the U.S. and won the G1 American Grand National at Far Hills, and 14 votes for Swore, trained by Keri Brion, who won the G1 Lonesome Glory.

Despite Cool Jet's dominant results, Sean Clancy, who manages the four man syndicate that owns Cool Jet, said of winning, "I had done by own polling, but it's hard to be confident. I was worried about Zanahiyr. But I did feel Cool Jet was deserving."

"I told Sean to watch out for Zanahiyr," said Fisher, who had had Snap Decision lose to Hewick, who had also run only once here and won at Far Hills.

Snap Decision did later win the Eclipse Award for Fisher, who now had six Eclpse Awards.

 

"YOU LITERALLY have no idea who is going to win the award," said Sean Clancy, who manages the four man syndicate that owns Cool Jet. "That's brilliant and makes it more exciting."

For Clancy, who has won three media Eclipse Awards, this was his first for winning with a horse. 

"Just one member of the syndicate was at the Awards," said Clancy. "The others couldn't make it, but we celebrated for them."

"It was nice to go to Florida," said Fisher. "It's important to go to the Awards."

Cool Jet was imported from England in 2022 and since has won six times with three seconds, one third and two fourths.

"He's just been a star for us," said Clancy.

"Willy Mullins trained him in Ireland, and he was good enough to go to the Champion Bumper, but he didn't run well there," he said. "Pat Boyle bought him out of Willy's yard and took him to England. Pat called  me and said he thought he'd do well in America."

"He's a big, pretty horse, and I love his sire Jer Away (GB) for racing over here," said Clancy. They love hard ground.Cool Jet was second in his first race for us over here and has been a star."

"Cool Jet will go to the same races next year," said Fisher. "He'll start at Foxfield. He'll go to the Gold Cup for the grade one. He'll have the summer off. He can't run at Saratoga, he bleeds. He'll probably go to Far Hills next year. He's very nice to train. All the good horses are."

"We have about 25 horses getting ready to run next year," said Clancy of the various syndicates he manages. "That's the most I've ever had, it just keeps growing. We have two in England and some on the flat and in steeplechase here. It's fun."