Owner-breeder John Fradkin gives advice to small breeders
Raced Classic winner Rombauer
By Sid Fernando
John Fradkin with wife Diane Fradkin bred and raced Rombauer, a son of Twirling Candy who won the G1 Preakness Stakes in 2021 and earned more than a million dollars. The Fradkins are small owner-breeders and Rombauer’s Classic triumph was a win for the dwindling “mom and pop” operations that once were part of the foundation of the sport.
Rombauer will stand at stud this spring for $6,000 live foal at War Horse Place in Lexington and is great value. He’s out of the unraced Cowboy Cal mare Cashmere, a half-sister to the multiple graded winner and millionaire California Flag. Notably, he’s bred like Horse of the Year and electric young sire Gun Runner, who’s by Candy Ride from a Giant’s Causeway mare. Rombauer is by a top son of Candy Ride, and his broodmare sire is son of Giant’s Causeway.
There are are two other Grade 1 winners bred this way aside from Gun Runner and Rombauer. New Coolmore America sire Gunite, who is extremely popular, is by Gun Runner from a Cowboy Cal mare; and Walmac’s Pinehurst, also new for 2024, is by Twirling Candy from a Giant’s Causeway mare.
The other day on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, Fradkin dispensed some sound advice for small owner-breeders that’s well worth reading. I’m reproducing his series of posts below:
Route stallions who certainly would have made great sprinters: Hard Spun and Curlin.
Shackleford and Tizway would have madd great sprinters.