Thousands of under 35's sign up to Thoroughbred Racing!

[Chief Stipe]

How three brothers are attracting thousands of under 35s to racing

Cold Brew in action for the Hay Brothers and Alpha Blokes. Picture: Getty Imageshttps://bitofayarn.com

 

By Jett Hatton
02:38pm • 03 December 2025

0https://bitofayarn.com

Capturing the younger generation is something the racing world in Australia has struggled with for years, but a group of brothers are revolutionising the game.

Cameron, Tom and Michael Hay are all 30 or younger and have teamed up with two of the biggest podcasts in the country – Alpha Blokes Podcast and Hello Sport – to bring horse ownership to their communities.

On Spotify charts, Alpha Blokes are the fourth best comedy podcast in the country while Hello Sport are at third in sport.

The brothers' business, MustR Racing, originally started out as a traditional syndication but the trio quickly discovered the reach and demand of the respective communities was perfect for micro shares.

"We got in touch with Alpha Blokes about buying a horse called Yabby Pump and we'd only done that with conventional syndication," Cameron Hay said.https://bitofayarn.com

"About 11,000 people tried to buy in but only 50 could get a share.

"We then bought Cold Brew and switched to micro shares and there was so much demand, it broke our computer system for three hours.

"About 30,000 people were trying to get in on the horse and it blew our minds.https://bitofayarn.com

"It just shows the reach these podcasting communities have and it brings so much of the younger generation into racing that previously wouldn't have any chance of affording it.

"It works with these podcasting communities because they're looking to engage their audience and they're looking for something to create content with throughout a few years, so it's been a big hit.

"The big thing was trying to bridge the gap between people that love a punt on the weekend but can't afford to buy a horse."

The connection with Hello Sport was a flow-on effect from the success with Alpha Blokes and the two made the trip across the ditch to the Ready To Run Sale in New Zealand.https://bitofayarn.com

In partnership with Richard and Will Freedman, they secured a Derryn x Mifflin gelding and micro shares in the galloper are set to be up for sale shortly.

Hay said the selection of the Freedman stable was a calculated one, with Will Freedman the perfect match for the younger racing audience.

Cold Brew. Picture: Bradley Photoshttps://bitofayarn.com

"He just gets it," Hay said.

"He's young himself, he's very charismatic and he loves to have a good time, so it's just a perfect fit.

"You've got your trainer there who is honest and trains your horse through the week but then on the other end, he's someone you can have a beer and a party trackside with.

"I'm not sure many other trainers would be able to appeal to that audience like Will does.

"Hello Sport reached out to us after seeing what we did with the Alpha Blokes and we recently went over the New Zealand at the Ready To Run sale and bought one."

The Hay brothers also run race day events with hundreds of owners and are set to host one this Sunday at Rosehill with Yabby Pump set to go around.

Hay admitted there's been a few hiccups in preparation for the latest event after the meeting got shifted to Sunday and their stable getting downgraded from two to one.https://bitofayarn.com

"Yabby Pump is racing on Sunday and we were supposed to have Cold Brew there as well, but unfortunately, he pulled up a bit sore on Tuesday morning.

"Getting moved to Sunday is tricky with most of the owners flying down from Queensland, but we still expect it to be a cracking day out."

 

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Jett Hatton

[Huey]

Apart from the obvious promo this provides for the sport , it would be interesting to know how many go on from here into real ownership opportunities/activities in the sport. 

Most of these Frac ownership models have about as much ownership as having a punt on a horse every time it starts.

[Freda]

Even if only a few develop a real interest it has to be good value.   Great idea IMO.

[Chief Stipe]

6 minutes ago, Freda said:

Even if only a few develop a real interest it has to be good value.   Great idea IMO.

Yes and the reality is that it will only take a small percentage of those "Fract'ers" to spend more to help racing.  The only reservation I have is that some of the syndications are creaming a huge margin and you can't fool people for too long!

The thousands of enquiries is a promising sign though.  

[Huey]

45 minutes ago, Freda said:

Even if only a few develop a real interest it has to be good value.   Great idea IMO.

Can't agree on that one, it gives them a distorted view of real ownership . You then end up with owners who have no ownership skills , jump in and out of horses, struggle to deal with having a slow one etc. See BGP for example.

Not to mention the difference in how they are treated to existing owners, many of whom put $1000s into the sport.

Best they stick to @Chief Stipe disco model for those ones.

[Chief Stipe]

21 minutes ago, Huey said:

You then end up with owners who have no ownership skills , jump in and out of horses, struggle to deal with having a slow one etc.

So what are these "ownership skills"?  I guess you have had a few slow ones.  I think you underestimate the younger generation.  They know enough to have a small share in many than a large share in one.  

22 minutes ago, Huey said:

Not to mention the difference in how they are treated to existing owners, many of whom put $1000s into the sport.

What difference?  They actually get less privileges as there is a limit on the number of ownership "freebies".  Generally the same for all very large syndicates.

As for those that put $1,000's into the sport - yes a lot of owners do but they spread their risk over a number of horses.  The way you write it is as if you are promoting the OBC/Mafia or at the very least an elite privileged ownership model.  Which would seem to indicate that you are part of the problem.

[Chief Stipe]

@Huey In the past year I've talked 4 friends into buying a share in horses.  They showed an interest and I gave them the hard honest truth and they still were keen.  

I told them:

1. There are no guarantees;
2. Spread your risk - if you can buy a small share in more than one horse (not micro-shares) - if not this year then buy another next year;
3. Buy into a syndicate that has less than 25 shares;
4. Choose a well-bred filly as it is more likely to give you a residual return than a colt or gelding;
5. Only invest what you are willing to lose i.e. consider the up front cost GONE;
6. Budget for your monthly expenses - consider that gone;
7. Include in your budget money to pay for your travel to the races - being on course introduces you to the process that can be fun and gives you a better understanding of the challenge.  If you win you will have considerable fun (budget for the long session in the bar);
8. It's cheaper per year than golf or six pairs of fashion shoes.  Regarding the latter you only need one comfortable to go to the races and the people that own horses don't notice you are wearing the same dress or shoes (they have short memories!).

How many have you talked into a share in a horse?  I imagine you've talked a dozen out of it and I need to work harder to keep the industry at the status quo.