John Stewart Sells 25% of Yearling Full Brother to Mage, Dornoch to MyRacehorse

[Wandering Eyes]

Resolute Racing's John Stewart has sold 25% of the yearling full-brother to Mage (Good Magic) and Dornoch, and half-brother to Saturday's Kentucky Derby starter Baeza (McKinzie) to MyRacehorse, he told the TDN Friday evening.

Stewart bought the dam of all three of those colts, Puca, as a post-sale purchase at the 2023 Keeneland November sale for $2.9 million in foal with this colt. At Resolute Racing, they refer to the yearling as “Preaky,” a reference to the fact that Mage won the Derby, Dornoch won the Belmont Stakes, and the only Triple Crown race that Puca's offspring are lacking is the Preakness Stakes.

“I wanted to do this because most of the time–well all of the time–there's no way the everyday fan would ever have a chance of owning a horse like this because he's just such a special horse,” said Stewart. “And so I wanted to do something to partner with fans. And I think My Racehorse is a good solution.”

Interested investors will pay $98 for a microshare in the colt, with the promise of having their money returned if he does not ever go into training. With Baeza's expected Saturday start, Puca's offspring will have been starters in the Triple Crown races the past three years. The figure puts the colt at a $4.5 million valuation.

“I think the people that pay $98 for a share of Puca '24 understand that that's a microshare,” said Stewart. “And so they're kind of sharing in that opportunity. And so just for me, it's less about the money, more about the chance to engage with the fans.”

Stewart has always been clear that he feels the yearling is a special individual. “When he was born, he was over 150 pounds and he came out and he's like a perfect physical specimen. And we've had every stallion farm come and visit him already,” said Stewart. “So there's just that quality about the horse. He's got a perfect conformation, and these special horses they kind of breathe different air when you're around him. And he's had that attitude. He poses in the field when people take pictures. He's just kind of just been full of himself from the beginning. And of course we were hoping that Baeza was going to make it into the Derby, and so we timed it so that we could pick up with the excitement of this so that fans can be a part of this going forward.”

Stewart said that Chad Brown has already been chosen to be trainer of the horse. “He's my main trainer,” said Stewart. “I use a variety of trainers, but I like the way Chad trains and with an investment of this quality, we agree that he is in really good hands with Chad.” Brown trained the sire of the three colts, Good Magic.

Stewart has recently opened his farm up to Horse Country tours, and said that fan engagement was not only crucial for the industry, but important to him personally.

“I started as a fan, a horse player, and I think people drive by the horse farms and they see the gates and it feels like, `don't come in,'” said Stewart. “And we did the Brunch with the Babies. We did a farm party last fall. I have fans here right now from Australia and Japan that we invited, paid their way to go to Kentucky Derby this year. I'm just trying to include people in everything. And what I want people to understand is, is that the barrier that people may see that there is to being a participant in the industry really doesn't exist. And I thought that way for a long time, even with my resources, I didn't think that it was something that was achievable. And by and large, the community has embraced us and they're welcomed to them. And so I'm just trying to help others have that same experience to help to grow the game.”

 

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