New York Breeding Runs Deep for McMahon

Joe and Anne McMahon met on the backstretch at Saratoga Race Course more than 40 years ago, and together they've built their farm on Fitch Road in Saratoga Springs to be one of the most recognized names in Thoroughbred breeding. 2003 Kentucky Derby (G1) and Preakness Stakes (G1) winner Funny Cide was born there, and McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds offers breeding, foaling, bloodstock, foal preparation, and consignment services. The McMahons have also been active in bringing stallions to New York, including graded stakes winner Central Banker, by Speightstown. Joe took time to speak with BloodHorse MarketWatch on what he sees on the horizon for the New York breeding program. MarketWatch: How's the New York stallion market? Joe McMahon: Central Banker has been having a pretty good run, and he's brought us a lot of business. He bred over 100 mares this year, and he's the leading stallion by earnings in New York again this year. He's the second-highest U.S. fourth-crop sire by dirt earnings. His 2-year-olds have been selling well at the sales, and we've been selling a lot of seasons to him. We've had some inquiries about moving him from New York. After his first 2-year-olds ran, I turned down $3 million from an overseas buyer. It obviously would been a huge financial deal for us, but I didn't do it because New York needs stallions. We really, really do. New York Racing Association had just created that program with high purses for Stallion Series races, and I just decided not to sell him. I still own enough of the horse to control that, and I consulted with the people who own multiple shares in him. Inquiries have started coming in again this year, but I think he will probably stay here. Solomini, by Curlin is in his third year at stud, and he's doing OK for a third-year horse; he bred about 70 mares. This year, his yearlings look really good, and I'm very excited for him because I think his foals will sell well. Redesdale, by Speightstown has bred 25 or 30 mares. MW: Would you be interested in bringing another stallion to New York? JM: I'm always looking for another stallion, but it's challenging. There's a lot of competition for them, and it's hard for small breeders to compete against the big farms with deep pockets. There was a well-bred, 4-year-old horse with a Hall of Fame trainer that I inquired about when I saw him run in Florida, and I found out that his breeding rights had already been secured by one of the big farms. MW: What are your thoughts heading into this summer's sales? JM: If things continue as they've been going, if they follow the trend of the 2-year-old sales, they're going to be very strong. Is the overall economy, in general, going to be a factor? Nobody knows that at this point. All things being equal, racing is pretty healthy. Purses are high, and there are a lot of opportunities to run. I believe both Saratoga sales, the Select Sale and the New York-bred, will be pretty strong. MW: Your farm is always well represented at the sales. Do you ever breed to race, or do you strictly breed to sell? JM: We pretty much send them all to auction. For the most part, all of our population gets offered for sale one way or another. Sometimes they have vet issues, and sometimes they don't bring enough money, so we'll keep them and put them through a 2-year-old sale. I don't mind owning a few horses; the racing and purses are good enough that you can keep them. It can be profitable if you manage them properly, run them where they should run, and keep your expenses under control. It's an excellent time to own racehorses. MW: Lately, some entities in the state have targeted the casino revenue that goes to racing and breeding. Are you worried? JM: I've been following it pretty closely. There have been articles questioning whether the VLT revenue (a percentage from the video lottery terminals at the Resorts World Casino New York City at Aqueduct Racetrack) should continue to go to racing. It would be devastating if the industry lost that revenue because the purse structure heavily depends on it. But the budget passed last month, and it protected racing. Still, people must remember that that money is compensation for NYRA's handing over the deeds to the property that Aqueduct, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course sit on to the state. And with three full casinos coming to the New York City area, we're also guaranteed that we won't lose casino revenue if a casino opens at Aqueduct. MW: All signs point to Aqueduct being closed in the not-too-distant future, with winter racing moving to Belmont Park. JM: I think it's probably inevitable. I don't think it's a good thing, as I was at Belmont last week and there were no people there. I don't see as many people there as I see at Aqueduct. I was at Aqueduct five times this winter, and the first-floor betting area was constantly mobbed with people. There's a large population in New York City that enjoys going to Aqueduct in the winter. MW: How would you assess the state of New York racing and breeding? JM: I think we're in good shape, though I would like to see more financial incentives for stallions in New York. We're working all the time to change that. As a horse person, I am concerned about the rising purses in other parts of the country. Kentucky, for instance, is going to have $120,000 maiden races—Instant Racing is propelling a lot of money into the purse structure. I'm concerned that that could siphon off the horse population from New York. I want the New York Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund to look at incentives to encourage more breeding in the state so that there are horses to fill cards here. I want to see a significant enough population of New York-sired horses that NYRA can write races for them. That's our big challenge in the future. Two years ago, we implemented a program in which mares that cost more than $50,000 and foaled in New York didn't have to breed back to a New York stallion, which used to be the case. Now, the mare only has to come back to New York to foal. The stallion people gave up a lot for that, and in return, now every New York-sired winner at an NYRA track will get a $5,000 bonus, retroactive to November 2021. I'd love to see that expanded, and I'd love to see breeders' awards for New York-sired horses. If we can work on those two things, more racing opportunities for New York-sired horses and more money for New York owners, I think that we can keep up with the loss of horses that we'll face from other states with massive purses.