KTFMC April Meeting Highlighted by Panel Featuring Owners Smith, Stewart, Werth

[Wandering Eyes]

Lexington, KY-Following a jam-packed Tuesday of racing at Keeneland, highlighted by the postponed running of the GI Toyota Blue Grass Stakes, industry members ventured out to the Kentucky Thoroughbred Farm Managers' Club (KTFMC)'s monthly meeting held at Fasig-Tipton. The evening was highlighted by a panel on racehorse ownership with prominent owners Brook Smith, John Stewart and Jayson Werth leading the discussion.

Each panelist followed a unique path into the industry. Smith, a Westport, Ky. native, launched a successful career in the insurance industry, specifically surety. He later caught the 'racing bug' after attending the 1995 Kentucky Derby with friends of a friend involved in a syndicate that owned Laura's Pistolette (Big Pistol), winner of the GIII Humana Distaff Handicap that day at Churchill Downs.

“I saw the horse go out and win at 30-1, and watched the party that ensued. The comradery, the excitement…there's nothing else like that. I saw that and thought if I can get involved with this in any capacity, sign me up,” said Smith.

From there he met a neighbor who happened to be a trainer and went on to purchase a handful of yearlings, also claiming and buying racehorses along the way, before eventually launching his own Rocket Ship Racing in 2021. In the last few years, he has also partnered with Coolmore on a handful of horses, including champion and multiple Grade I winner Sierra Leone (Gun Runner) and graded stakes winner Hall of Fame (Gun Runner).

“It's insane. I'm so humbled by all of it. It's beyond exciting to be a part of it. Just the conversations with the folks that are here, this is the spirit of this stuff. These horses only run for a minute or two here and there but it's truly the industry, the history, the backside [that makes it],” said Smith.

Born and raised in Springfield, Ill., former major league outfielder Werth is known for his MLB career that spanned from 2002 to 2017, highlighted by his key role in helping the Phillies defeat the Tampa Bay Rays to win the 2008 World Series.

It wasn't until the former MLB All-Star retired and settled in the Tampa Bay, Fla. area, and started golfing with friends who also owned racehorses that his interest in the sport was piqued.

“I thought, 'This seems like fun, let's grab a leg of a horse.' Then we'd go out to Tampa Bay Downs on a Tuesday for an $8,000 claiming race. We're in the paddock and suddenly I'm sweating, my skin doesn't feel right. Then the gates open and all of a sudden, it's like I'm back on the field. I compare it to a big game, when you're in the dugout. Bases are loaded; you're down to two outs in the ninth. I'm thinking, 'Oh my god, this is incredible.' I'm filling a void I didn't even know I had, right?” Werth recollected.

From there his involvement only increased as he found success with horses he partnered on, racing under the banner of Two Eight Racing, before hitting the height of the industry's experience when buying a 10% interest in a Good Magic colt that would go on to become GI Belmont Stakes winner Dornoch.

“It was an amazing summer. Now here I am, after that whole thing, and we've started a racing syndicate. I'm going to be bringing new people into the game, bringing new owners, because I believe in the sport on a level [that I feel] it can change your life. Dornoch was a life-changing experience,” said Werth. “I played at the top of the sport and when I retired, I thought, 'Okay, well I guess that's it.' Then all of a sudden, horse racing gives you that and so much more.”

While Smith and Werth dipped their toes in and slowly built up their investment in the Thoroughbred industry, Stewart took the opposite approach as he boldly dove right in.

A native of Jamestown, Ky., Stewart worked his way up from line work to executive roles during his 18 years at Toyota before making the switch to private equity in 2007. He co-founded MiddleGround Capital, based in Lexington, in 2018. But it was in the fall of 2023, a year after the purchase of his first racehorse–Shiloh's Mistress (Vino Rosso)–that he boldly introduced himself to the industry by spending over $25 million at public auction in less than 10 weeks. He now owns an ever-growing farm in Midway, Ky., the home base for his Resolute Racing.

“I can see how [the industry can be] intimidating to people. So, when I got in, I wanted to be more transparent with people, positive or negative. [My goal was] to try to pull the barriers back for people to see what it's like to get involved in racing and try to help people get involved in the game,” said Stewart.

Despite their varied backgrounds, the panelists all agreed that the future of horse racing ownership relies on the industry coming together to open more doors in terms of access, both financial and physical; experience; transparency, from the farms to the track; and entertainment.

“I want to try to make it more appealing to the every-day person to get in. I want people to experience owning stakes-level performing horses. You can show up at a meet like Keeneland, have three or four runners, and feel that excitement. Maybe then they'll want to work their way back to breeding and owning horses. I want to give them a positive experience,” said Stewart.

For Smith, who has been part of a variety of partnerships that have taken him to the highest levels of the sport, the future lies in expanding partnership and micro-share opportunities, like those offered by MyRacehorse.

“I think this sport has always been built on partnership and syndicates. It's a great way to spread the risk with diversity in numbers. When you have a partner, it's great when you win, but it's even better when you don't, right? So, you share that,” said Smith. “I actually have three horses that I contributed to MyRacehorse. I think that what they do is important to the industry. They bring people in at $100-$150 increments that are a part of these big races and they've had some incredible wins.

“I think a lot of [MyRacehorse founder and CEO] Michael [Behrens]. He's passionate about the sport, he really is trying to do things the right way. He's a man on an island right now but I think it's one of those things that will take shape, securitizing the horses like stock.”

Werth sees the sport's entertainment value as the ultimate key to bring new people into the game.

“Dornoch to us was like a family pet. I've never loved an animal so much in my life. This guy became a mainstay [for us],” he said. “What I tell people [is that] it's like buying season tickets to your favorite sports franchise or taking the family to Disney World. You can take a trip anywhere in the world, or you can own horses and take your vacations at the track and have this great experience.

“I describe winning the Belmont like winning the World Series. It really has that type of feel to it. But winning any race is like that. This sport can be super cool and you only need a little piece of a horse to make that dream come true.”

Though all three panelists have had horses face off with one another on the track, they spoke of the sense of comradery and community within the industry despite the competitive aspect of the sport itself.

“There are more people willing to help you than not. That's why I hate the negative rhetoric online, it makes it sound like everyone in the industry hates each other and that's not true,” said Stewart. “Most of these people in this industry want you to be successful.”

“Horse racing is unique in the fact that there's not duality. There aren't these big rivalries,” added Werth. “My goal would be that people go from our syndicate to go off and be a horse owner themselves. Obviously, we want to retain them as clients, but if they go out and do their own thing because they love the sport so much, that's kind of my goal.”

Outside of ownership, Smith, Stewart and Werth acknowledged the importance of supporting the next generation to guarantee there is a future for the sport.

“We need young people to be passionate about this industry. We need young people out there as owners. We don't just need young people out there mucking stalls or being assistants,” said Stewart. “It's like any other industry, there's lots of opportunity. The people here, you guys that cared to come tonight, that's the future of this industry.”

“I think curation is important. You need someone that can be the translator, especially with young people. This is a sport and an industry that's been around a long time. There's a lot of history here and you need someone that can describe it,” expressed Smith. “There's a culture, community, a backside. You have to have someone that can translate that and make it inviting to come in.”

Though their opinions varied on the paths the industry should take in ensuring a strong foundation to move forward upon, the panelists all stood strong in their consensus that horse racing is on the right track and old stigmas have given way to positive and innovative changes.

“When you have success, people will follow success. And I think that's where we need to take a risk and we need to do things that are different. By sharing those things that are successful with everybody else, the sport gets better over time,” said Stewart.

“I think that reform is a thankless kind of thing but I think the industry has hit it head-on and I feel that there have been some great results,” said Smith.

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