Voting underway for 2013 NTRA Moment of the Year

By: SPORTS NETWORK

New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Voting for the 15th annual "NTRA Moment of the Year" is underway online at the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) website, www.ntra.com.

A dozen important events during 2013 in thoroughbred racing are nominated. Results will be revealed on Saturday, Jan. 18 during the Eclipse Awards ceremony at Gulfstream Park.

Here are the 12 nominated moments from 2013:

Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens rides his first winner in North America since 2005 aboard Branding in the first race at Santa Anita. (Occurred Jan. 12)

Spicer Cub bolts around the parked starting gate along the outside rail and still nearly wins at Pimlico Race Course, losing by a nose. (April 13)

Orb wins the Kentucky Derby for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey and owners Stuart Janney III and Dinny Phipps. (May 4)

Oxbow wins the Preakness Stakes, giving Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas his sixth win in the Triple Crown's middle jewel and 50-year-old Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens his third. (May 18)

Paynter, after battling back from life-threatening illness the year before, returns to the races to win an allowance at Betfair Hollywood Park. (June 14)

Hall of Fame jockey Russell Baze becomes the first North American rider to reach the 12,000-win milestone aboard Handful of Pearls at the Alameda County Fair at Pleasanton. (July 7)

Ken & Sarah Ramsey win three major Grade I turf stakes - the Secretariat (with Admiral Kitten), Sword Dancer (Big Blue Kitten) and Arlington Million (Real Solution) - at two different tracks in less than two hours. (Aug. 17)

Will Take Charge barely gets up to beat front-running Moreno by a nose in the $1 million Travers at Saratoga Race Course. (Aug. 24)

Retired jockey Ramon Dominguez is presented with the Mike Venezia Award, as well as the 2012 Eclipse Award trophy for Outstanding Jockey he was unable to accept last January, during a ceremony in the Saratoga winner's circle. (Aug. 25)

Five-year-old mare Mizdirection beats males in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint for the second straight year in her final career start. (Nov. 2)

Wise Dan wins the 2013 Breeders' Cup Mile for the second straight year, capping a season that will likely be recognized with a repeat Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year. (Nov. 2)

Mucho Macho Man wins the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic by a nose for jockey Gary Stevens, trainer Kathy Ritvo and owners Reeves Thoroughbred Racing. (Nov. 2)

Last year's winning 'Moment' was Paynter's struggle to stay alive through infections and laminitis. The previous three winning 'Moments' were each year's Breeders' Cup Classic.