Havre de Grace, Gio Ponti among 2018 Hall of Fame finalists

Horse of the Year Havre de Grace and three-time Eclipse Award winner Gio Ponti are among the four horses, three jockeys and three trainers announced as finalists on the National Museum of Racing’s 2018 Hall of Fame ballot.

Havre de Grace and Gio Ponti are joined by champion Blind Luck, a rival of Havre de Grace when the pair competed, and fellow champion Heavenly Prize in the equine category.

Robby Albarado, Corey Nakatani and Craig Perret make up the jockeys nominated while Mark Casse, John Shirreffs and David Whiteley are the trainers on the ballot.

The Hall of Fame’s Nominating Committee selected the 10 finalists from a group of 90 candidates recommended by turf journalists, Thoroughbred industry participants and racing fans. To be eligible, trainers must have been licensed for 25 years, jockeys for 20 years and the equine nominees had to be retired for five calendar years. All had to have been active in the past 25 years.

Hall of Fame voters may select as many candidates as they wish, and all candidates who receive majority approval (50.1 percent or higher) of the voting panel will be elected to the Hall of Fame.

The results on the contemporary candidates will be announced April 16 with the induction ceremony held August 3 at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion in Saratoga Springs, New York.