In 2023 I started a tradition of sharing my photos of the top earning North American horses of the year in a blog post. This year, I photographed more than half of the top 100 horses. Let’s have a look at who they are and how they won their money.
Integration is 99 with $600,000. The Shug McGaughey trainee had no wins last year, but three seconds and a third, all in grade 1 company, brought him into the standings.
Far Bridge is 98 with $607,780 in earnings. The Miguel Clément trainee, who was conditioned by Miguel’s father Christophe prior to his passing earlier this year, won three graded stakes.
Rodriguez is 96 with $612,000 in earnings. The Bob Baffert trainee, who finished fourth in the Grade I Belmont Stakes, broke his maiden and won the Grade II Wood Memorial at Aqueduct.
Redistricting is also 96. The Chad Brown trainee won a pair of stakes, one of them in graded company, and finished second in a grade 1.
Positano Sunset is 95 with $616,363 in earnings. The Ian Wilkes trainee won three races last year, including the Grade I Madison Stakes at Keeneland.
Hit Show is 92 with $636,255 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee won three stakes in North America, two of them graded. Overseas, the son of Candy Ride won the Dubai World Cup, bringing his total year-end worldwide earnings to $7,596,255.
Laurelin is 91 with $642,625 in earnings. The Graham Motion trainee had three wins and two seconds last year, all in stakes company, with her most lucrative victory being the Grade II Saratoga Oaks.
Mystik Dan is 86 with $657,300 in earnings. The Kenny McPeek trainee, best known for being the 2024 Kentucky Derby winner, won two graded stakes at Churchill Downs this year.
Quiet Street is 85 with $661,100 in earnings. The Bill Mott trainee broke her maiden, won a stake at Kentucky Downs, then finished third in a grade 2 at Belmont at the Big A.
Tommy Jo is 83 with $677,963 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee broke her maiden, then won the Grade I Spinaway Stakes at Saratoga and the Grade I Alcibiades Stakes at Keeneland before finishing fifth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies.
Cy Fair is 82 with $680,205 in earnings. The George Weaver trainee was three for four last year, capping off her year with a win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint against males.
Hope Road is 81 with $680,600 in earnings. The Bob Baffert trainee never finished off the board last year, winning two graded stakes, including the Grade I Ballerina.
Skippylongstocking is 80 with $682,265 in earnings. The Saffie Joseph, Jr. trainee won three graded stakes last year.
Indy Bay is 79 with $682,500 in earnings. The Saffie Joseph, Jr. trainee won two stakes this year, including the Grade II Charles Town Oaks.
Meringue is 78 with $691,050 in earnings. The Rodolphe Brisset trainee was two for three las year, including a stakes win at Kentucky Downs.
Patch Adams is 76 with $694,460 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee was three for four last year, including a pair of grade 1s at Saratoga.
Gin Gin is 75 with $697,288 in earnings. The Brendan Walsh trainee won a pair of graded stakes at Keeneland last year.
Zulu Kingdom is 74 with $701,780 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee was three for four last year, including the Grade I American Turf Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Hill Road is 73 with $704,000 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee won the Grade III Peter Pan Stakes last year, and placed in three other graded stakes.
Bracket Buster is 71 with $725,633 in earnings. The Vicki Oliver trainee won the Pegasus Stakes at Monmouth and the Grade III Oklahoma Derby at Remington Park last year, but his most notable race was his valiant second place finish to Sovereignty in the Grade I Travers Stakes at Saratoga.
Bishops Bay is 69 with $743,600 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee was six for eight last year, including four graded victories.
Mercante is 68 with $752,801 in earnings. The Brian Knippenberg trainee was three for nine last year, included two graded wins.
Think Big is 67 with $758,850 in earnings. The Michael Stidham trainee won three graded stakes last year.
Raging Sea is 66 with $759,865 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee won the Grade I La Troienne Stakes at Churchill Downs and placed in three other graded stakes last year.
Quietside is 65 with $765,000 in earnings. The John Ortiz trainee won two graded stakes last year.
Tiztastic is 64 with $777,411 in earnings. The Steve Asmussen trainee, who finished 10th in the Kentucky Derby, won the Grade II Louisiana Derby last year.
Antiquarian is 63 with $781,100 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee won the Grade I Jockey Club Gold Cup Stakes at Saratoga and placed in two other graded stakes.
Book’em Danno is 60 with $817,300 in earnings. The Derek Ryan trainee won three straight grades stakes at Saratoga last year, capped off by the Grade I Forego.
Tawny Port is 59 with $851,531 in earnings. The Miguel Clément trainee had no wins last year, but seconds in three lucrative stakes brought him into the standings.
Rhetorical is 58 with $863,800 in earnings. The Will Walden trainee had three wins last year, including the Grade I Turf Mile Stakes at Keeneland.
Special Wan is 53 with $900,920 in earnings. The Brendan Walsh trainee won three graded stakes last year.
First Mission is 52 with $905,270 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee won a graded stake last year and placed in three others.
La Cara is 51 with $912,363 in earnings. The Mark Casse trainee won a pair of grade 1s last year.
Segesta is 50 with $916,600 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee won two graded stakes and placed in two others.
Fort Washington is 49 with $919,134 in earnings. The Shug McGaughey trainee won three graded stakes last year, including the Grade I Arlington Million.
El Cordobes is 48 with $922,500 in earnings. The Charlie Appleby trainee won a grade 1 and placed in two others last year.
Lagynos is 45 with $944,613 in earnings. The Steve Asmussen trainee won a stake at Kentucky Downs, and placed in five other stakes last year, four of them graded.
Final Gambit is 43 with $960,064. The Brad Cox trainee, who was fourth in the Kentucky Derby, won the Grade III Jeff Ruby Steaks last year.
Locked is 42 with $976,175 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee never finished worst than fourth last year, notching wins in the Grade I Santa Anita Handicap and the Grade II Woodward Stakes at Belmont at the Big A.
Spirit of St. Louis is 38 with $1,077,100 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee was the first horse to win two grade 1s last year.
Deterministic is 36 with $1,102,125 in earnings. The Miguel Clément trainee won three graded stakes last year, two of them grade 1s.
World Beater is 34 with $1,123,890 in earnings. The Riley Mott trainee won three stakes last year, including the Grade I Saratoga Derby Invitational Stakes.
Rebel’s Romance is 33 with $1,125,000 in earnings. The Charlie Appleby trainee won the Grade I Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Stakes and finished second in the Breeders’ Cup Turf in his only two North American starts last year.
Magnitude is 32 with $1,148,200 in earnings. The Steve Asmussen trainee won three stakes last year, two of them graded.
Bentornato is 31 with $1,190,350 in earnings. The José D’Angelo trainee won two stakes last year, including the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
Scylla is 28 with $1,336,750 in earnings. The Bill Mott trainee hit the board in four graded stakes last year, then finally broke through in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Test Score is 27 with $1,360,950 in earnings. The Graham Motion trainee won two graded stakes last year.
Sandman is 26 with $1,364,286 in earnings. The Mark Casse trainee won the Grade I Arkansas Derby at Oaklawn last year, and placed in three other graded stakes.
Mindframe is 25 with $1,407,220 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee won three graded stakes last year, two of them grade 1s.
She Feels Pretty is 24 with $1,422,275 in earnings. The Cherie DeVaux trainee won three graded stakes last year, two of them grade 1s, and placed in two others.
Good Cheer is 23 with $1,430,600 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee won three graded stakes last year, including the Kentucky Oaks.
Simply In Front is 22 with $1,458,885 in earnings. The Eddie Kenneally trainee won three graded stakes last year, including the Grade I First Lady at Keeneland.
Stellify is 21 with $1,462,604 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee was four for five last year, including a graded stakes win.
Thorpedo Anna is 19 with $1,597,250 in earnings. The Kenny McPeek trainee was four for six last year, including two grade 1 wins.
Ole Crazy Bone is 18 with $1,606,650 in earnings. The Mike Maker trainee was three for seven last year, including a graded stakes win.
Ag Bullet is 17 with $1,639,400 in earnings. The Richard Baltas trainee won two graded stakes last year, and placed in two others.
Baeza is 16 with $1,643,000 in earnings. The John Shirreffs trainee won the Grade I Pennsylvania Derby at Parx last year, and placed in four other graded stakes.
Epic Ride is 14 with $1,657,514 in earnings. The John Ennis trainee won a grade 3 last year, and placed in two other stakes.
Ted Noffey is 13 with $1,657,963 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee, who was a perfect four for four last year, including the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, was the highest earning two-year-old of 2025.
Burnham Square is 12 with $1,695,325 in earnings. The Ian Wilkes trainee won two graded stakes last year, and placed in two others.
Nitrogen is 10 with $1,909,400 in earnings. The Mark Casse trainee won five stakes, including the Grade I Alabama Stakes at Saratoga, and placed in three others.
White Abarrio is 9 with $1,910,070 in earnings. The Saffie Joseph, Jr. trainee won two graded stakes last year, including the Grade I Pegasus World Cup at Gulfstream Park.
Fierceness is 8 with $1,928,970 in earnings. The Todd Pletcher trainee won two graded stakes last year, including the Grade I Pacific Classic Stakes at Del Mar.
Fionn is 7 with $1,968,970 in earnings. The Brad Cox trainee was six for eight last year, including the Grade I Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes at Saratoga.
Shisospicy is 6 with $2,044,645 in earnings. The José D’Angelo trainee won four stakes last year, including the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.
Sierra Leone is 5 with $2,188,200 in earnings. The Chad Brown trainee never finished off the board in five starts, and won the Grade I Whitney Stakes at Saratoga.
Journalism is 2 with $4,190,000 in earnings. The Michael McCarthy trainee won the Grade I Santa Anita Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Grade I Haskell Stakes, and finished second in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes last year.
Sovereignty is 1 with $5,692,020 in earnings. The Bill Mott trainee won the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes, the Grade II Jim Dandy Stakes, and the Grade I Travers Stakes last year, catapulting him to the top of the standings and putting him in the conversation for Horse of the Year.
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One thought on “The Top Earning North American Horses of 2025”
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Interesting!