Rail Talk Episode 119: Racing Off to Stud

This week on Rail Talk! Joe Bianca and Jon Green take on several industry-wide issues, starting with the sudden retirement of recent Malibu Stakes winner Goal Oriented, and what it says about the breed-to-sell approach overwhelming the breed-to-race philosophy. Is the infatuation with sexy first-crop sires sustainable, or does the business need a major course correction? The boys then react to John Sikura’s criticism of the Breeders’ Cup sitting on an endowment of nearly $100 million. How could that money be put to better use in an industry with so many holes, and what’s the Breeders’ Cup’s responsibility, if any, to spend it? Joe and Jon then touch on Tiffany Case—dam of presumptive champion Nitrogen—selling for $3.2 million, look forward to the first 20-point Kentucky Derby prep of the year in Saturday’s Lecomte, and take stock of what looks like another strong 3-year-old class.