Pretty Mischievous named 3-year-old Filly Eclipse Award champion

Pretty Mischievous became the seventh lifetime Eclipse Award winner for Into Mischief when she was named the Champion 3-year-old Filly of 2023 during Thursday evening’s ceremony in south Florida.

Pretty Mischievous, a Godolphin LLC homebred, garnered 182 out of a possible 219 first-place votes.

Pretty Mischievous began her championship campaign with wins in the Untappable S. and Rachel Alexandra S. (G2), then finished second in the Fair Grounds Oaks (G2). She then reeled off three Grade 1 wins in a row: the Kentucky Oaks, the Acorn S. and the Test S. A gallant second in the Cotillion S. (G1) would prove to be her final start of the year, giving her a seasonal mark of 4-2-0 in six starts and earnings of $1,703,250.

“She was a beautiful filly as a foal and a yearling. We were very high on this filly from the day that she went into Brendan (Walsh)’s barn,” said Godolphin’s Michael Banahan. “Late last year (2022) and through the wintertime, we thought that she was our best filly that we had in any of the barns that we had horses in.”

Into Mischief, champion General Sire each of the past five years, is also responsible for Eclipse champions Authentic (2020 Horse of the Year & 3YO Male); Gamine (2020 Female Sprinter); Covfefe (2019 3YO Filly & Female Sprinter); and Wonder Wheel (2022 2YO Filly).

Pretty Mischievous is out of 2016 Spinaway S. (G1) winner Pretty City Dancer, whose sister Lear’s Princess was also a Grade 1 winner.