We’ve got a handful of new horses going public in the weeks ahead.

You may or may not have access to all of them just yet…

But we’re going to rate them as they come forward.

Today, we’ll take a look at MRH’s latest yearling offering, Mae Never No ‘24.

This is a well-bred colt by the exciting new sire, Life Is Good.

MRH plucked him out of the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga sale for $750,000 this summer.

He’s the most expensive yearling in MRH history.

Read more

We sit. We watch. We wait for a glimpse of greatness.

Each flash feeds the same dream.

And the same questions…

Will we make it to the Breeders’ Cup? To the Derby?

Who w…

Read more

Buying unraced yearlings or two-year-olds is inherently risky.

Huge upside, yes.

But huge downside, too.

Across our five year study…

These horses have lost money 91% of the time.

But when MRH or Commonwealth offers a proven racing prospect?

We sit up and take notice.

Buying a proven runner eliminates a lot of uncertainty.

But just because a horse is a stakes winner doesn’t mean they’re a smart buy.

Like La Rascasse a couple weeks ago…

She was ridiculously over valued.

So, what would have happened if you only bought proven racing prospects?

Well, clearly, you’d have a lot more “action” in stakes races…

With runners from Chasing Liberty to Simply Joking and Bacio.

According to our database… 29% of these horses were profitable for investors.

But it’s a small sample size, which only includes Country Grammer and Parenting — both of which ran for Commonwealth.

By the numbers, MRH has never once offered a stakes winner to the public which turned out to be profitable for investors. (I’m not including Bacio only because his racing career is not complete. Odds are, he will turn out to be a profitable investment — but we can’t tell for sure!)

That includes Derby winner Authentic — because investors didn’t make a penny in profits.

So what about Hedge Ratio?

Last month, MRH picked him up at the Fasig Tipton Horses of Racing Age sale for $500,000.

Read more

MRH has privately purchased a 25% stake in a stakes winning 3-year-old filly, La Rascasse. And she’s being pointed for the Grade I Coaching Club American Oaks.

On the surface, this is an exciting prospect.

And assuming all goes well, she’ll give you guaranteed Grade I action in the next couple weeks.

Read more

And we were surprised to see… it’s another one connected to our favorite bloodstock agent, Ramiro Restrepo.

MRH’s newest offering: Rose’ to Blame ‘24, a son of City of …

Read more

And we were reminded of what makes people — and America — great.

Friction.

Nothing that comes easy is worth having…

And no one who wants life to be “easy” is worth knowing.

Greatness is forged through sacrifice…

Risk taking…

Attempting what most folks think is “insane.”

How else can you describe these early Americans?

104 men and boys sailed from England to Jamestown, Virginia… to do the impossible:

Forge the first permanent settlement… across the sea… cut from a vast, new wilderness.

There’s no doubt…

These guys were half crazy…

400 years later, America has changed quite a bit.

Technology has made life easier…

It’s reduced friction and struggle to a point that would shock early Americans.

We doubt they would recognize our country today.

They would gape at our modern conveniences… and marvel at our petty complaints.

In fact, the ONLY thing they might find familiar is what brought us to New Kent, Virginia… watching a horse race.

And not just any horse…

Caldera.

A horse who traces back to Bulle Rock — a stallion imported to Virginia in 1730.

A $500,000 colt carrying his own colony of owners…

150 strong, who ventured here to cheer him on.

Our journey was not much of a sacrifice.

No cases of scurvy… or dysentery were reported.

One lady I met drove down from Indiana…

Another guy made the trip from Baltimore…

We were all a bit saddle sore in the modern context… sitting in traffic for hours…

But all day long, we couldn’t stop smiling.

How could you NOT smile when you own a horse like this?

Caldera broke his maiden last year, at Oaklawn… going away by 5-1/2 lengths.

Then, for a few precious months, he took us down the Triple Crown Trail.

He ventured to the desert of New Mexico and got nosed out by a Baffert horse (Getaway Car) in the Sunland Park Derby.

Then he hit the “Big Easy” for a run in the Louisiana Derby.

A win or even second place finish would have made him a top contender.

We flew down to show our support…

And walked the streets of the ancient, haunted city, face powdered with sugar from a deep-fried beignet.

Horses take you to the most unusual places.

We soaked up the jazz that wafted from one bar to the next…

And partied with the My Racehorse Crew.

The next morning, we jumped in an Uber and headed for the Fair Grounds.

Dreaming of another Triple Crown run…

To even get this far felt like a gift.

But Caldera stumbled badly out of the starting gate… and that was that. His jockey, Tyler Gaffalione didn’t even ask him to run… and he eased him into the stretch. By the time he loped across the wire, he was 36 lengths back.

Luckily he was OK… and we had one final chance.

Lukas sent him back to Oaklawn for the Bathhouse Row Stakes. (The winner would get an automatic berth in the Kentucky Derby.)

But Caldera came up just short to multiple stakes winner Instant Replay — beaten 3/4 of a length.

That was that…

Caldera didn’t have enough points to make the Derby.

But even if he had qualified? It wasn’t meant to be…

First, Wayne Lukas retired…

Then, in April, his assistant trainer sent Caldera to Rood & Riddle clinic.

Bas Nicholl was not satisfied with how he was moving. The verdict: bone bruising. Not serious. But enough to sideline him for close to a year.

Ever since… we’ve been wondering…

What could have been?

With a little luck, we’ll soon find out.

Yesterday, Caldera demolished a field of hard knocking allowance horses at Colonial Downs. He went the mile in 1:33-1/5 and set a new course record. His jockey, Nik Juarez, barely moved a muscle… and didn’t tap him once — just a few congratulatory pats as he crossed the wire.

Next week, he ships to Saratoga.

And so…

Our Derby Dream has given way to something new.

Now a 4-year-old, Caldera and trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr. have set their sights on the older handicap division.

In two starts this year, he’s not been tested.

We can only look on and wonder…

Will he compete with White Abarrio? With Sovereignty?

Will the late D. Wayne Lukas bless us with one more champion?

All we know for certain is…

We have yet to see Caldera’s best effort.

One thing is for sure…

His roving band of owners will follow him wherever he goes… hoping to catch a glimpse of greatness in the making.

Patrick Bove,
Founder of Micro Share Maven

P.S. If only we had access to our system back in 2024… we would have gone even BIGGER on Caldera. He’s one of just 10 horses who have rated a “strong buy” in the past five years.

Today, there’s just one strong buy available.

And here’s why it matters…

In our 5-year study — 9 out of 10 “strong buys” went on to become stakes winners. Four of them Grade I winners! And our system would have kept you out of the bottom 90% of horses - who were flagged as “Pass” or “Run Away.” Just ONE of them fooled us… Straight No Chaser. The rest didn’t win a single stakes race and lost investors money.

We still have charter memberships available at $100 per year or $10 per month. And we’re honoring this special price until we reach 100 members. To join us on the adventure, enter your email below and hit the “subscribe” button.

Today we’ll take a look and see how they’re doing.

First…

I want to point out two updates to our portfolio.

We have a new col…

Read more

We have one colt in our Derby Dream stable so far — Deep Trouble ‘24.

Today, we’re adding one more…

MRH’s newest offering…

Read more

We are thinking about rolling it out to the MicroShare Maven members this summer.

I would love to hear what you think!

Watch the video and let me know in the comments below.

Patrick Bove
Founder, Micro Share Maven

Commonwealth and My Racehorse.

What’s the difference?

After tracking 75+ horses across five years of micro-share investing...

I’ve got a clear picture of how these platforms stack up.

Let’s start with My Racehorse.

They were the first big player in the micro share game.

And no one — to my knowledge — takes more horses public.

Roughly 20 per year…

Including yearlings, two-year-olds, and the occasional proven runner.

Commonwealth is a smaller operation.

And it’s much more selective.

They offer up to 10 horses per year.

You could say they’re competitors…

But behind the scenes, they are poles apart.

Today I’m going to break each down by a few different factors.

• Ownership experience

• Payouts

• Hit Rate and Horse Selection

• Deal structure

The Owner Experience: Winner, MRH

If you want to FEEL like a racehorse owner... MRH wins by a mile.

• You get all your horse updates on a single newsfeed…

• With frequent photos, videos, commentary, etc.

• Each time your horse races, you can enter a “lottery” to win a paddock pass. (You get one entry for every share you own.)

• And they host dozens of events each year… from farm tours to back-stretch meet ups… to parties before a big race… to racetrack experiences.

What about Commonwealth?

Their website and app are slow and clunky.

And they don’t issue frequent updates.

So, you might go a few days to a couple weeks feeling like you’re “in the dark.”

Instead, Commonwealth offers a race day text feature. SMS updates, pictures and brief video interviews.

And a few times a year, they host town hall-style Zoom calls… with trainers and bloodstock agents and majority partners.

OK but what about the money?

The Payout Experience: Winner, MRH

If you want to get paid fast…

Then you’ll like My Racehorse.

Before each race, they tell you how much you’ll receive (per share) if the horse runs first, second or third.

They typically make distributions within 48 hours — assuming the horse’s reserve is topped off. (The reserve is a fund to pay for travel and training expenses. When it runs low, all purse winnings are diverted into it until it reaches a certain level.)

With Commonwealth?

Payouts can take weeks. Sometimes months. (They don’t always pay out after each race. But frankly, no one is getting rich on per-race earnings.)

And they don’t allow you to roll your earnings into new horses.

You’ve first got to withdraw cash from your wallet to a bank account.

But they make up for it in the best way possible…

Hit Rate & Horse Selection:
Winner, Commonwealth

If you want to play at the highest level of the game…

You can’t ignore Commonwealth.

The percent of their horses who go on to win or compete in stakes is MUCH higher than MRH.

Commonwealth: 40% stakes horses.

MRH: 16% stakes horses.

Why?

Because 65% of Commonwealth offerings have some kind of track record.

Meaning they’ve raced at least once or twice. And in some cases, they’re ALREADY proven at the graded stakes level.

Some of their proven runners include:

• Country Grammer (pictured above), who was already a Grade I winner when he was taken public. He went on to become one of the richest earners of all time.

• Simply Joking was offered just before she ran in the 2026 Kentucky Oaks. And although she failed to fire at Churchill… she went on to win a Grade III at Santa Anita and seems to have plenty of run left.

• Italian Soiree was a Grade III winner at the time of her offering. She gave us a thrill running second in the Intercontinental Stakes (Gr. II) last Thursday at the Spa.

• And Neat (Gr. II) and Chasing Liberty (listed) were both offered as proven stakes winners.

So with Commonwealth, you can own a horse that’s already “made it.”

Then sit back and watch them build on their established career.

MRH is more of a gamble…

• 47% of its offerings are yearlings

• 49% are unraced two-year-olds

• And just 4% are active racehorses

Occasionally they’ll take a proven runner public.

Like they did with Authentic (pictured below) in 2020. He turned out to be a Kentucky Derby winner and 3-year-old champion. Or more recently, Bacio, who has shown immense talent in the turf sprint division.

But active racehorses are not their forte.

Deal Structure… And Why It Matters

If you’re in this for the fun…

Maybe you don’t care about how the platforms work.

But for those who do – I’ll break it down.

MRH charges a 15% Management and Due Diligence Fee.

Plus a 12.5% Organizational and Experiential Fee.

And a 1% Brokerage Fee.

All before the horse takes a single step on the track.

That’s 29 cents of every dollar you invest — gone before the starting gate opens.

Then, when the horse actually earns money, MRH takes another cut. A 10% bonus on stakes earnings. And 5% of its ultimate sale price if the horse is worth less than it was at the time of offering… and 20% if it’s gained value.

Every horse they offer — win or lose — generates big upfront revenue for their platform.

Which may explain why MRH takes more horses public than anyone else.

More offerings equal higher earnings for their company. And they can’t lose.

Commonwealth does the same thing, with a radically different structure.

They take just 19 cents of every dollar you invest in guaranteed fees.

That’s lower than MRH’s 29 cents. But they make up for it with additional fees.

They take 10% of all net earnings until investors recoup their capital.

Then 20% of everything after that.

I know I just hit you with a lot of numbers…

So what does it mean?

Commonwealth only gets paid BIG when they find us a superior horse.

If a runner doesn’t work out — they kiss their 20% commission goodbye.

So that explains why they’re more selective. Commonwealth is incentivized to avoid lottery tickets and focus on proven runners. Although they do offer a handful of yearlings and 2-year-olds as well.

Commonwealth vs. MRH – On the Track

Alright…

So how do these two different platforms perform, side by side?

Both have syndicated some serious racehorses.

My RaceHorse:

• Seize the Grey — Multiple Gr. I-winner and Sire — +533% Investor Return

• Straight No Chaser —Gr. I winner and Champion Sprinter — +481% Investor Return

• Seismic Beauty — Gr. I winner and $2.5M broodmare — +62% Investor Return

Commonwealth:

• Country Grammer — Multiple Gr. I winner and Sire — +1,900% Investor Return

• Mage — Grade I winner and Sire — +466% Investor Return

• Parenting — Listed Stakes Winner — +44% Investor Return

How did MRH and Commonwealth compare across the board?

Well, this is horse racing.

Perhaps the riskiest investment on earth.

Altogether the outcome was dreadful…

There have only been SIX profitable investments out of 53 closed positions. (Meaning horses that have concluded their racing career… or were sold or claimed away.)

If you bought one share of every horse these platforms offered?

You would have lost 71% of your money.

So why bother? Other than simply having fun and squeezing into a winner’s circle now and then…

The Winner’s Edge

We believe we can do a LOT better than average.

That’s why we launched Micro Share Maven.

After tracking 75+ horses across three platforms, we built a scoring system that evaluates every new offering.

Each horse gets a final score out of 80.

Anything above 55? That’s a Strong Buy. (We take a full position.)

45-54? That’s a Buy. (We take a half position.)

35-44? Pass. (We might make the occasional exception and nibble on one of these horses. But it’s unlikely.)

Below 35? Run Away. (Self explanatory!)

Does it work?

Well that’s why we’re here!

Besides the fact that we LOVE sharing this game with friends and family.

We’re convinced the system we built can be successful…

Because it’s achieved something that should be impossible.

Every horse that rated a Strong Buy was profitable.

Five for five.

If you could have bought the horses the system rated a Buy or better (45+), you would have been successful 100% of the time.

And if you avoided horses the system rated “Run Away?”

You would have eliminated 98% of the slowest horses in the bunch.

Only ONE of them fooled the system and turned out to be a big winner. (Straight No Chaser, the Eclipse Award champion sprinter.)

And here’s what blew us away...

So while the overall asset class lost 71%.

Our system could have returned nearly 600% gains.

The BIG question is…

How will it perform looking forward?

We can’t promise you any kind of return.

And even if we are just as successful?

That 600% gain was inflated by one key horse, Country Grammer who made his shareholders almost 20-times their money.

But if we do even one-tenth as well?

We’re going to have a heck of a lot of fun. And we’ll have a shot at making some serious money.

Our paid readers receive our proprietary ratings on EVERY My Racehorse and Commonwealth offering.

So... Which Platform is Right for You?

When it comes to choosing between My Racehorse and Commonwealth…

The truth is, you don’t have to!

I happily invest through both.

If you want more action and you can stomach a higher “miss” rate... MRH gives you way more offerings to choose from. And based on their deal structure…

If you find a big winner, you’ll keep more of the upside. Plus the overall experience is better — the app, the events, the fast payouts.

If you want to own more stakes-quality horses and you’re OK sacrificing some upside… and can put up with slightly “clunky” tech? You’ll love Commonwealth.

They don’t offer a proven racehorse unless they believe it can profit. (Because they take a 20% cut of all profits.)

They also offer a handful of more speculative unraced yearlings and 2-year-olds throughout the year.

But whatever you do…

Don’t just buy blindly on either platform!

That’s all for today.

And I’ll see you in the Winner’s Circle.

Patrick Bove,
Founder of Micro Share Maven

Subscribe now

Being the first to do something.

We are the world’s first independent rating service for Micro Shares.

Which has a nice ring to it.

But if I only told you about the things we got right?

I’d be lying to you.

The truth is, we learn more from our mistakes than our wins.

And recently, we made a BIG assumption that turned out to be dead wrong.

Here’s what happened.

Last week, I posted a story called Sire Power: How We Separate the Duds from the Studs.

It detailed three key measures of stallion potency…

1.) Stud Fees
2.) Average Earning Index (AEI)
3.) Stakes Winner Percentage (SWP)

And it turns out, I was incorrect!

Not about these stats…

They are real. They matter.

And they might be useful to billionaire breeding operations.

But they mean NOTHING for Micro Share Investing.

Shortly after I published this article, I was attacked… or should I say challenged? Maybe a bit of both.

To make a long story short…

I shared my article on Facebook.

And a guy came in, guns blazing.

He told me three of my assumptions were incorrect. (To put it kindly.)

So after quietly cursing him under my breath, I dug into the numbers.

I assumed a rising stud fee meant a stallion was going the right way. And it’s true.

If a stud fee is moving higher, that indicates rising demand.

And demand can ONLY be driven by performance in the auction ring and on the track.

But this guy told me there’s no connection between stud fee and performance when it comes to My Racehorse or Commonwealth. Interesting!

I also assumed industry standards like AEI (Average Earning Index) and Stakes Winner Percentage were vital.

How could they NOT be?

I mean… if a sire’s average runner earns 2x... 4x… or 5x more than average and wins more stakes races — it should translate to better performance across the board.

But this guy told me, “Nope. Run the numbers and you’ll see.”

So I did.

And lo and behold my critic was right.

Stats like Stud Fees and the Average Earnings Index matter — but only to a point.

There’s a huge drop off when you get to the elite level.

In plain English, I mean, TOP sires do not generate TOP outcomes for Micro Share Platforms.

They fall short of where they theoretically should be.

To say I was confused would be an understatement.

Then I dug even deeper and the answer emerged.

When we’re dealing with top sires — ones like Into Mischief or Gun Runner — standing for $150,000… $200,000 a year or more?

My Racehorse and Commonwealth can’t compete with the “big guns.”

Top breeders almost NEVER offer their best horses for sale.

And top bidders — guys who spend $10 million a year or more at auction — hoover up the best prospects for themselves.

Which means…

Any stat which tracks the WHOLE population of horses would only make sense if all those horses were available to us.

They’re clearly not!

And Micro Share owners often settle for the scraps.

Take a look…

All the above horses were by super-star sires. And all were a complete bust on the track. The only exceptions were Seismic Beauty (by Uncle Mo) and Parenting (by Justify).

But when it comes to mid-level sires, standing for $45,000 or $50,000…

Their offspring don’t attract nearly as much attention at the sales. Which means Micro Share platforms can afford to buy their highest potential offspring.

Horses like:

The numbers are shocking.

But in hindsight, it makes sense.

So what does this mean for our ratings system?

Based on this insight…

I made a change to our algorithm.

Then I re-ran our entire 5-year study.

I had no idea what would happen.

And I was pleasantly surprised by the result!

It had NO effect on our Strong Buys.

Any horse listed as “Strong Buy” is still at that level.

But here’s what’s interesting…

It moved Schoolyardsuperman (above) from “Buy” to “Strong Buy.”

He’s no longer available for purchase. But I was thrilled to see this, since he’s one of the fastest 3-year-olds in the country. With a 100 Beyer Speed Figure to his credit.

At the same time…

It bumped some of the worst, most over-hyped horses down a notch or two.

But not enough to change our recommendation.

In short, the algorithm got stronger.

And I learned something new… which is why I’m sharing this with you. (Not sweeping it under the rug.)

I thought official industry stats mattered.

They do — sometimes.

But NOT when it comes to investing in Micro Shares.

And that’s the beauty of our system.

It’s not static.

It’s alive.

As strong as it is… and as well as it seems to work?

It can still be improved.

My promise to you is — when we make a change to the algorithm, we’ll alert you.

And if we make a mistake, we’ll quickly address it and move on.

I’m psyched to have figured this out…

And while my critic went over the top with his attack… he did us all a great service.

Because he forced me to look deeper into an assumption which turned out to be wrong.

And by facing this mistake, we now have a better chance of helping you find the right horses.

I’ll be standing by ready to roll as soon as they drop on My Racehorse or Commonwealth.

See you in the winner’s circle!

Patrick Bove
Founder, Micro Share Maven

Or hip deep…

You’ve probably noticed…

My Racehorse and Commonwealth offer different types of investments.

On the surface, these horses may look the same.

There’s a pedigree chart. Trainer bio. A few photos. A price per share.

But as I’ll show you — these offerings can be vastly different.

So let me walk you through the four different kinds of deals you’ll find…

Share the basics of how they work…

And how our system performed with each category. Warts and all.

Offering Type #1: Yearlings

This is the purest gamble in micro share ownership. You’re buying a horse that has never breezed and maybe never even set foot on a racetrack.

All we have to go by is conformation photos, maybe a walk video, and a brochure that reads like an Ancestry.com ad.

“Great Grandma did this… Grandpa did that.”

Without a shred of proof the horse can run.

So what should you do?

Invest by gut feeling…

Or buy a share of every horse?

Over the past five years…

We have seen 24 yearlings taken public. And the Micro Share Maven scoring system flagged 4 as a “Buy” or “Strong Buy.”

Two of the four were home runs:

• Seismic Beauty (Grade I winning filly, sold for $2.5M)

• Seize the Grey (Multiple Grade I winner of the Preakness and Pennsylvania Derby)

The remaining two are still up in the air:

• Mistrial showed talent but is winless in three starts, (3) 0-1-1. She’s sidelined with a minor injury.

• Munny Problem got rave reviews from his trainer, the late D. Wayne Lukas – but has also failed to break his maiden in three starts, (3) 0-1-0. He was recently gelded. Let’s hope the ultimate equipment change turns him around!

But guess what?

The 20 yearlings our system rejected?

They were complete bombs…

If you invested in them – you would have lost most of your money.

This is why I launched this Substack. To help keep us OUT of the offerings most likely drain your bank account… and put us IN to the ones most likely to succeed.

Which brings us to…

Offering Type #2: Two-Year-Olds in Training

These horses are one BIG step closer to racing.

Most have entered a professional training program. So you might see gallop reports, and deeper trainer commentary.

But they haven’t gone through a formal under-tack sale where each breeze is timed and filmed and compared to hundreds of other horses.

With these offerings…

We know more than we do with a yearling. But we’re still buying with limited information.

So far, we’ve only rated three horses in this category. And they each came back “Pass.”

Investors would have lost money on ALL of them.

Which takes us to…

Offering Type #3: Two-Year-Olds Purchased at an Under-Tack Sale

These horses have breezed publicly, typically an eighth of a mile.

And they were timed and filmed in the days leading up to a major sale — like OBS in Florida…

[Some sales have moved away from timed workouts. But the data filters through to us from third party clockers.]

Bottom line…

With these horses, we have a REAL athletic performance to evaluate. Not just how fast they went an 1/8^th of a mile. But HOW they worked. Their stride length. Their gallop out. Whether they were pushed to give their best… or did it easily.

Our system ranked 28 horses in this category.

Just six scored a “buy” or “strong buy.”

And all but ONE turned out to be runners.

Including:

• Mage (2023 Kentucky Derby winner)

• Caldera (Stakes placed, still racing)

• Reputation (Grade III placed, still racing)

• Mystical Belle (Stakes placed, still racing)

• Love Like Lucy (Stakes placed, still racing)

The remaining 23 were rated “pass” or “run away.”

And all but one of them brought huge losses for investors.

The exception was Breeders’ Cup Sprint winner, Straight No Chaser. Our system rated him “Run Away” but he went on to become a champion.

That hurts! But not as much as buying 29 duds just to own him.

Which brings us to our last category of offering.

Offering Type #4: Active Racehorses

When you buy into a horse with a few starts under its belt… you have WAY more data to go on.

But just because a horse has a race record – or even a few wins – doesn’t mean it’s a smart “buy.”

In the past few years, we’ve seen young colts with a handful of starts that showed real ability – like Bacio.

He won his debut and placed in stakes before My Racehorse took him public. Our system would have ranked him a “Buy.” (He’s clearly a stakes horse and if he stays healthy will make a lot of noise in the turf sprint division.)

Then there’s Adaay in Asia. She was a seven-time winner in England. And even took down a listed stakes at Ascot. But despite these wins – our system ranked her “run away.” And it would have been the right call. She never won another stakes race again. (Her last two wins were in a $16,000 claimer and a starter allowance.)

We’ve even seen a few stakes winners offered for sale.

Country Grammer was a Grade 1 champ when Commonwealth took him public, back in 2020. He would have ranked a “Strong buy” and wound up making investors almost 20-times their money.

On the flip side…

My Racehorse offered Blue Devil as a graded-stakes-placed gelding, with nearly half a million in career earnings. Our system would have rated him a “pass.” And that turned out to be right. He won a minor stakes for My Racehorse but cost investors the bulk of their money.

What about Authentic? I don’t have all the data. But he was offered as a 3-year old in 2020. He went on to win the Kentucky Derby that fall… and somehow his backers didn’t make any money. It’s a wild story. And thankfully, My Racehorse learned from the experience and never structured a deal like that again.

Looking back five years, we rated 13 of these horses.

Seven of them would have been “Buys” or “Strong Buys”…

Including:

• Country Grammer (Investors made nearly 20x returns)

• Parenting (44% return)

• Schoolyardsuperman (Still racing, pointing for Pegasus Stakes)

• Bacio (Still racing, pointing toward Stakes in UK)

• Simply Joking (Still racing, Gr. III winner)

• Chasing Liberty (Still racing, multiple stakes winner)

• Neat (Still racing, Gr. II winner)

While six were rated “Pass” or “Run Away.”

None of them worked out – and investors would have lost money.

The key takeaway here is… if you want a chance to profit from this game, it’s not just about finding the right colt or filly.

It’s about finding the right DEALS.

Structure matters because you could easily wind up owning a top runner – but never see a penny in profit if their valuation is too high.

Or if there’s a hidden “kicker” clause paying out millions to a majority owner.

Or if the platform’s slice of equity is so small, you need a magnifying glass to find it – as is the case when they only offer 10% or 20% of a horse.

And it goes without saying, a top-rated horse, dripping with talent, could get injured and never get to express its full potential. That’s just part of the game and no rating system can account for it.

The Takeaway

A yearling is a lottery ticket — 85% of them in our dataset were rejected by the system, and each one of those “pass” or “run away” rankings was correct.

A two-year-old from an under-tack sale gives you an athletic demonstration to work with. That’s where we found Mage, Caldera, Reputation, Mystical Belle and Love Like Lucy.

While active racehorses can give you the most information and the best historical outcomes. They’ve been battle tested. But they’re not automatic buys! We only want to own them when the deal structure makes sense. There’s a LOT lurking in the fine print.

If you want instant access to our current and future ratings, you can get started for less than it costs to buy a single micro share of most offerings.

Paid-up members – keep your eyes open for our next buy recommendation. We’ll be rating a handful of new horses in June and July.

Until then, I’ll see you in the winner’s circle.

Patrick Bove
Founder, Micro Share Maven

NVIDIA is NVDA.

Google is GOOGL.

Coca-Cola’s is KO.

Each “ticker symbol” tracks the price of a company’s shares, over time.

In horse racing, we have something similar…

It’s called a Stud Fee.

That’s the price it costs to breed to a stallion.

Typically, a stallion’s stud fee changes once a year.

It happens each fall…

That’s when farms announce the price for the following season.

Just like a stock price moves based on how investors feel…

A stud fee moves based on how breeders feel.

And most of the time, it’s driven by hard data.

How many “runners” is a stallion throwing?

And by runners, I mean legit winners… and stakes horses.

When we score a micro-share offering, the sire’s stud fee is one of three paternal data points that get factored in.

We also look at:

AEI (Average Earnings Index), which measures how offspring earnings compare to the breed average.

Here’s how it works…

Top sire, Gun Runner, has an AEI of 2.69.

That means, his offspring earn 169% more than average.

Authentic has an AEI of .95.

That means his offspring are 5% BELOW average. (An AEI of 1.0)

We also look at something called Stakes-winner Percentage (SWP) — which shows the percent of a stallion’s starters that excel at the highest level.

Let’s compare Gun Runner and Authentic once more.

Gun Runner has a SWP (Stakes-winner Percentage) of 11.7%.

That means 11.7% of his runners turn out to be stakes winners.

While Authentic comes in at just 3.87%.

In other words…

If you own a Gun Runner colt or filly…

It’s almost 3-times MORE likely to become a stakes winner!

If these numbers are high or rising – it means a stallion is sought after.

If these numbers are low or falling – look out! They’re going the wrong way.

What Happens When a Stud Fee Falls Off a Cliff?

Back to Authentic, for a second. (2020 Horse of the Year)

He won the Kentucky Derby and the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

And his pedigree was hot-hot-hot. (By top sire, Into Mischief.)

When Authentic retired – there was plenty of demand.

His opening stud fee at Spendthrift Farm was $75,000.

But look what happened next!

Within five years…

His fee collapsed by 80%!

Now why did that happen?

Simple. His early runners were underwhelming.

The same goes for another sire, Essential Quality.

He was a two-time Eclipse Champion and Belmont Stakes winner. Then he took down the Travers.

Essential Quality retired with a stud fee of $75,000.

Today, he’s standing for $25,000.

What went wrong?

His first crop produced a few decent runners but no graded stakes winners.

We see this pattern all the time.

Sometimes it hits before a sire even has a CHANCE to prove himself.

Take Mo Donegal – a regally-bred son of Uncle Mo.

He won the Wood Memorial and Belmont Stakes in 2022.

In his first season, he stood for $20,000.

But look what happened next:

By 2026, his stud fee was reduced to $5,000.

Why?

It all comes back to performance.

In his case – there was little to no demand for his yearlings.

In fact, they were so poorly received – his stud fee crashed before a single baby hit the track.

The market for stallions is merciless that way.

What This Means for Micro-Share Investors

You’ve probably noticed…

When Micro Share platforms take a horse public, they spill a lot of ink telling you about the sire’s racing career. Its Grade I wins. Its Eclipse Awards.

What the brochure won’t tell you is that the stud fee has been in free fall for years. That breeders have already voted with their wallets. And the verdict is: “Meh, not good.”

Our system catches this.

And it’s one of dozens of factors that go into each official rating.

Bottom line:

If you’re buying micro-shares in an unraced horse… by a sire whose fee is collapsing… the data is telling you something is not right.

And the odds are not in your favor.

Could a single colt or filly be the exception to the rule? Sure.

But if our goal is to profitably invest in racehorses, we can’t ignore the data.

OK so we just went over a few stallions that started out with high expectations – then collapsed.

What about the opposite situation?

The Rare Exception: When the Stud Fee Comes Roaring Back

Turns out, a few stallions have pulled off something remarkable — a V-shaped recovery where their stud fee crashed, then their offspring started winning, and breeders did the walk of shame back to his shed row.

Take, Vekoma, for example.

He’s a son of Candy Ride who won the Met Mile and the Carter Handicap.

When he first went to stud, he stood for $20,000.

By his third year, his stud fee slid to $15,000.

Then it happened…

His first 2-year-olds hit the track and he was champion freshman sire.

His 3-year-olds dominated the following year.

And his stud fee jumped to $35,000 in 2025, then $100,000 in 2026 — a five-fold increase in two years.

He’s now Spendthrift’s second-most-expensive stallion behind Into Mischief.

We saw the same pattern with Good Magic.

His stud fee fell from $35,000 to $30,000 in his third and fourth year at stud.

Today he’s standing for $125,000 after producing back to back classic winners in Mage (Kentucky Derby) and Dornoch (Belmont Stakes).

When you see a move like that…

From $35,000 to $30,000… then $125,000?

That’s the market admitting it was wrong and scrambling to catch up.

But these V-Bottom moves are rare.

For every Vekoma, there are a half-dozen Authentics… whose fees just keep falling.

Why Picking New Stallions is Tricky

There’s a pattern in the data few in the breeding industry will acknowledge… and it’s this:

Sons of great sires often struggle at stud.

Take Into Mischief.

He’s the dominant sire of this generation. A seven-time leading sire. And he stands for a cool $250,000.

But at the ripe old age of 21, he has only produced one worthy successor…

Practical Joke, whose stud fee has climbed from $30,000 to $75,000.

Maybe Life Is Good will follow in his footsteps. It’s too early to tell. (So far, his fee has fallen from $100,000 to $60,000.)

Meanwhile…

Authentic is a borderline failure, standing for $15,000.

While Into Mischief’s other sons, Goldencents and Maximus Mischief are luke-warm at best. Standing for $10,000 and $20,000.

So, here’s the key takeaway…

When a micro-share platform offers you a horse by a son of Into Mischief, or a son of ANY dominant sire, the brochure is going to lean hard on the grandfather’s name.

Don’t let it sway you. Check the actual sire’s fee and performance.

Notice if it’s rising or falling.

A grandfather’s greatness doesn’t mean much of anything.

Sure, it makes for a great story…

Like if your great grandpappy was Cornelius Vanderbilt. He died as the richest man in America in 1877…

But fast forward and what happened?

The entire family decayed – frittering his fortune away.

In 2019, his great-great-granddaughter, Gloria Vanderbilt died…

And all she left her son, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper, was $1.5 million.

Cornelius didn’t pass on a lick of his brilliance… ruthlessness… or business competence.

And it’s often the same with horses…

A brilliant grandfather is nothing more than myth and legend. With little to no bearing on the success of his family.

So, when a micro-share platform sends you a glossy brochure about the grandson of a champion…

Now you know what to look for.

Check the sire’s stud fee… his AEI… and his stakes-winner percentage.

Those three numbers will tell you more than any brochure ever will.

But what I shared with you today is just one piece of the puzzle.

The sire score is one of 40+ datapoints in our rating system.

Paid members get access to every score, every buy or pass rating, and every update… before offerings close.

If you want to see the full system in action, click the button, below.

For a limited time, we are offering charter memberships at 50% off the usual rate. You can get started for just $10 a month or take the annual option and save an additional 16%.

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In Part I, Ramiro Restrepo shared a handful of secrets – worth their weight in gold.

But most of us don’t have the money to hit the sales and buy our own horses.

Which begs the question…

What would a guy like Restrepo do, if he was in our shoes?

I asked him:

“If you had all your skills, all your instincts, everything you’ve learned — but you could only pick horses through a micro-share platform. You can’t go to the sale. You can’t vet the horse yourself. You just have the pedigree page, and whatever data the platform gives you.

What would you do?”

He didn’t hesitate:

“I Would Only Buy Fillies”

And here’s why…

It’s true. I owned a piece of We the People (by Constitution).

He won the Grade III Peter Pan by 10+ lengths and was the morning line favorite in the 2022 Belmont.

Today, he’s standing in Peru.

And despite his talent, he was worth just $75,000 at the end of his career.

The issue with colts is…

You have one, skinny path to success: find a top stallion prospect.

And to do that, you need to win a Grade I.

But even then, there are no guarantees.

As Ramiro told me…

Fillies are different.

If they score just a smidge of black type they can have significant broodmare value.

That’s why he says:

First, Check on Grandma

I pushed him further. Fillies only — fine. But which ones?

His answer surprised me.

He didn’t start with the horse. He started with its grandmother.

The key is to look one generation deeper.

He cited Secretariat as the classic example.

“Secretariat’s colts were pretty average. But Secretariat’s daughters produced a lot of runners. We only saw his value as a broodmare sire.”

So don’t panic if the first dam hasn’t produced anything.

Look one generation back.

If the second dam is loaded with graded stakes winners, you’ve got a shot.

But if you see two blank generations in a row? Walk away.

But I told him – there’s just one problem.

The Flaw in the “Fillies Only” Strategy

Micro Share platforms offer well-bred fillies, every year.

But they struggle to hold onto them.

Most of the time, there’s a “fire sale” at the end of their career. And if they don’t have any black-type, we take a big loss.

I hit him with a few examples…

Who Runs the World (by Quality Road). MyRaceHorse paid $600,000. She broke her maiden and earned $20,000.

She had all the pedigree in the world… out of a Grade 2 winning mare.

But when her racing career ended, they sold her for $75,000.

Balletic (by Into Mischief). They bought her for $450,000. Sent her to Pletcher. Then, she earned about $64,000 before an injury ended her career.

Her second dam produced a Grade 3 winner. Her fourth dam was Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner, One Dreamer.

But at the end of her career, they sold her — in foal to Mage — for $80,000.

Then there was Catalyst (by Gun Runner).

She set My Racehorse back $525,000. And she barely managed to break her maiden. When she retired, they sold her as a broodmare for $220,000.

Each of these fillies had the kind of pedigree Ramiro described.

But micro share investors lost almost everything.

And if you’re wondering… yes… I HAVE asked the My Racehorse Team:

The answer is complicated… because they’d have to build in YEARS of training and breeding expenses up-front.

So the share price of these fillies would have to double or triple. (I would take that option in a heartbeat.)

As it turns out…

Ramiro has a client doing just what I’ve proposed.

And they’re all going to top stallions.

That’s the difference between running a business – where you have higher risk but more control – and dabbling in micro shares, where your risk is limited to the price you pay for a share… but you don’t make any key decisions.

From there, we flipped from fillies – to the high rolling quest to find the next great stallion. How does that work, exactly?

I’ve been fortunate to be part of two major stallion deals for Mage and Seize the Grey. (Our system would have identified Mage as a “Strong Buy” and Seize the Grey as a “Buy”)

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But I’ve always wondered how the high rollers operate. Ramiro gave us a vivid example.

How Billionaires Hunt for Stallions

There’s a group called SF Bloodstock, that takes what he calls “the Avengers approach.”

Ten to fifteen millionaires and billionaires band together.

Each puts up one, two, five million dollars.

And they hunt for stallion prospects.

All in the hopes of landing a stud deal worth eight figures.

Their greatest hits include Triple Crown winner, Justify… Derby winner, Authentic and top sire, Good Magic.

But some years? They’ll go zero for twenty and get nothing back.

If you’re curious how it works… Ramiro recommends a book that details the high-end of horse racing, breeding and sales:

Horse Trader by Patrick Robinson. It follows Robert Sangster, the founding member of Coolmore, and chronicles how Coolmore and Godolphin started battling in the sales ring for stallion prospects in the 1980s.

To wrap up our call…

We zoomed out to answer the question:

Why do we do this?

Why do people like you – me – Restrepo even bother to play this game?

Knowing full well, the odds are stacked against us.

The Return That Doesn’t Show Up on a Spreadsheet

He told me:

He’s right. I lived it.

When Mage won the Derby, a local station reached out for an interview.

And I told them the same thing… It wasn’t about the money.

As Ramiro put it:

People spend all kinds of cash on stuff without expecting a return.

Like a country club membership they barely use.

Or gym they sign up for in January and never visit.

Or a boat that sits in a slip 90% of the time, rotting away.

But that said, “You still have got to go into this sport, with your eyes open.”

No One Bats 1,000

Picking a winner isn’t easy…

I’ve built an algorithm to help us score dozens of micro share offerings. Looking back over five years, it would have been wildly successful. (You can check out our five-year study, here.)

Ramiro Restrepo uses his eyes and his gut – honed over decades of experience.

And he has achieved incredible success of his own — with Mage, The Puma, Ewing, Structure and the My Racehorse filly, Reputation.

But no matter if you have decades of experience… or a technological edge…

No one is going to right 100% of the time.

In the months ahead… I’ll keep scoring every offering that goes live.

Ramiro will keep walking the barns.

And somewhere between my spreadsheet and his gut, the next great horse will make itself known.

My goal is for you and I to be on board for the ride.

In case you’re wondering: Our system has one “strong buy” right now… and another “buy” recommendation that could take us to the top next year.

For the moment, they’re both available through My Racehorse. But only paid-up members get access to our proprietary ratings.

The price is laughably cheap: just $10 a month or $100 a year until we hit 100 members. That’s less than you’d typically pay for just ONE share of any given runner. But when we reach 100 paid members, the cost will double.

I’d like to thank Ramiro Restrepo for giving us an hour of his time.

Oh and by the way, he recently bought ANOTHER horse that will be going public on a major Micro Share platform. Will it rank as a “Buy”? Our paid-up members will be the first to find out.

If you missed Part I — where Ramiro talks about how he spotted Mage before anyone else knew his name — you can read it here.

We were there to watch Mage in his final Florida workout before the Kentucky Derby.

I knew we had a serious horse.

Mage broke his maiden on Pegasus Day…

He ran a respectable 4^th in the Fountain of Youth.

Then he almost beat Forte in the Florida Derby.

At that point, I was excited… nervous… hopeful.

And wanted to get as close to Mage as possible.

So we got up early and headed south to Hallandale Beach, Florida.

In the stands we found Gustavo Delgado, Mage’s trainer. And his son, Gustavo, Junior. They were kind, quiet, focused.

Then there was Ramiro Restrepo – the bloodstock agent who plucked Mage from a 2-year-old sale the previous spring.

This guy popped out in 3D.

He was gracious, animated, and impossible not to like.

And we got to know each other… as Mage blitzed through 6 furlongs in 1:14 and 3/5 seconds.

Above: Mage trots down the stretch after working 6 furlongs at Gulfstream Park. (April 23, 2023)

A few weeks later, we were reunited in the Derby winner’s circle.

That was three years ago…

And I’ve been wanting to talk to Ramiro ever since.

Not just about Mage — about how he thinks. And how a guy operating on a limited budget keeps finding runners… year after year.

Last week, we got a chance to catch up.

What follows is part one of our interview.

We started off talking about how Ramiro approaches the 2-year-old sales.

The kind where he bought Mage.

Good Magic – Mage’s sire – was a bit of a risk in 2022. As a first-crop stallion, his foals weren’t proven.

But it turns out, these are precisely the type of stallions Ramiro likes to focus on.

How Do You Avoid Billionaires? Shop in the “Bargain Basement”

Ramiro didn’t start buying first-crop sires because he had a theory. He started because he was strapped for cash.

That’s why he focused on unproven stallions.

Now I had to stop him there…

Because our system flags first-crop sires as risky.

By the numbers, I can prove it’s true.

Ramiro agreed…

But then he made a point I never considered.

Top farms send their best mares to first-crop stallions in “year one.”

Why? Because they want them to succeed.

It’s almost like giving them a “head start.”

But this “boost” only lasts for one season…

In a sire’s second or third crop – they have to stand on their own merit.

So paying customers – breeders – dictate the quality of mares sent their way.

Interesting!

So the RISK of buying fillies or colts from a first-crop sire is offset by the QUALITY of mares they are bred to.

It makes total sense! And our system does NOT account for it. So I’m going to consider a slight adjustment. First-crop sires paired with mares who produced at least one stakes winner might get a “boost” in Micro Share Maven ratings.

Next up I asked him…

How do you decide WHICH new sires to focus on, each year?

Ramiro told me, simply, “You take a swing on a stallion that you believe in.”

That was a horse named Structure. The only superior runner by Palace Malice. He bought him as a yearling for $160,000 and sold him the next year for $850,000.

Then came Mage. The Good Magic colt that won the Kentucky Derby.

Followed by The Puma, from the first crop of Essential Quality. Restrepo picked him out for just $150,000 and he became a leading contender on the 2026 Triple Crown trail.

And Ewing, by Knicks Go — another first crop sire. He won the Grade II Saratoga Special as a 2-year-old.

But no matter how good you are in this game – you’re going to lose more than you win.

“Brother, you bat .400, you’re Ted Williams. You still struck out six times.”

So how does Ramiro decide WHICH sires to follow… and which babies to focus on at a sale?

A Racing Historian, Not a Data Analyst

When there is little data to crunch… he goes with his gut.

There is an art and science to selecting first-crop sires.

And half of it is just gut feelings. The kind based on decades of experience.

Often he’ll look at one stallion… and something in his gut will tell him to stay far away.

Like Drain the Clock. When I asked Ramiro about this young sire getting a lot of buzz, his answer was telling.

The Brutal Truth about Finding Talent

I shared my backtest data with Ramiro. Eighty-two horses across three micro-share platforms. A 72% loss rate if you bought everything.

He wasn’t surprised.

Looking back – our system would have given us a MUCH bigger edge. So far, every horse ranked Strong Buy has turned out to be a winner.

But HOW do you define “winning?”

It depends on how much you’re willing to invest.

Back to Ramiro…

The challenge with most Micro Share offerings is… the big platforms don’t find many bargains.

They often wind up spending $200,000… $400,000 or more on a horse.

Last week I talked to My Racehorse CEO Michael Behrens about this. He pointed out it’s getting harder and harder to find bargains at the sales. With declining foal crops and new money pouring in – prices are inflated across the board. (But that’s not going to stop him from trying.)

A $10,000 horse that earns $50,000 in claiming races is a home run.

A $500,000 horse that breaks her maiden and earns $80,000 is a catastrophe.

Once you start breaking the $200,000 barrier, you have to hope for some black type.

Your bullseye shrinks as the price goes up.

By Ramiro’s math, most horses offered on Micro Share platforms need to win a graded stakes for a chance to break even. And he’s right.

We’ve only seen ONE profitable outcome from a horse that failed to win a Graded Stakes.

That was Parenting – who went 3 for 3 and was injured shortly after Commonwealth sold him privately. If we kept him, we probably would have lost money.

Next, I asked Ramiro what makes him stop and linger on an individual horse. Does he have any red flags?

I Gotta Love the Horse

His answer was simpler than I expected.

Then he said something few bloodstock agents will likely admit.

“You can study an encyclopedia on pedigrees until you’re blue in the face. You can look at the horse’s anatomy — what the book says the most successful horses should have. And after all that, they still don’t run.”

He compared it to day trading. To real estate. To surgery. To music. Where professionals make judgment calls based on something they can’t fully explain.

I’ve built an 80-point scoring system that evaluates micro-share offerings across six categories. I also listen my gut. But I trust the data. That’s the whole point behind our system.

But whether you’re a top bloodstock agent or owner armed with a prophetic algorithm… no one gets it right EVERY time.

We missed Straight No Chaser, the Breeders’ Cup Sprint champion. Our system scored him a 28 and told us to pass.

Whatever made that horse special was invisible to most people.

Winning in this sport comes down to a bunch of things…

It’s part art… part science… and part luck.

Ramiro’s “Mage Moment” — Revealed

Take Mage, for example…

Ramiro went to the sale with roughly $200,000 earmarked. That was it. But when the bidding climbed past his limit, he kept going.

He couldn’t explain it logically.

He just knew he’d find the money. He wasn’t sure how. But he wasn’t leaving the ring without that colt.

Mage sold for $290,000. Ninety thousand dollars past what Ramiro had budgeted.

I thank my lucky stars each day — because he turned to Commonwealth to help fill the gap. And I snapped up shares which sold out in less than a week.

Five months later, Mage crossed the wire first at Churchill Downs to become the 149th winner of the Kentucky Derby.

Ramiro’s $90,000 gamble turned out to be the best professional move of his life.

A Top Bloodstock Agent’s Tips for Micro Share Owners

Next, we turned to a question I’d been pondering for years.

If Ramiro Restrepo — with a Kentucky Derby winner on his resume — could only pick horses through a micro-share platform, what would he do?

His answer was immediate, specific, and not what I expected.

To find out, click here to read Part II.

And for instant access to the rating system that would have identified EVERY top performer of the past 5 years — with just one miss — become a paid member.

It’s just $10 a month for full access to Micro Share Maven. Or $100 per year. For less than you’d pay for a single share (or two) you can make an informed decision and join us in the winner’s circle.

A colt or filly goes “live.”

You see it’s going to a “top trainer.”

So you get excited…

And in minutes, you’re the proud owner of a new horse.

Then, you sit back…

You dream…

You wait for their first start.

When it comes, you’re filled with anticipation.

Then…

It all falls apart.

We playfully call these horses “duds” because they failed to fire.

But in all fairness?

Some trainers are duds, too.

And when you see WHO they are?

I think you’ll be shocked.

First, let me back up for a second…

Almost every horse that goes “live” is marketed the same way.

Looks… workouts… pedigrees… and connections.

Today we’re going to focus on the trainer.

Again…

When you own a 2-year-old headed to a top barn?

It’s hard NOT to get excited.

That’s why My Racehorse sent 13 horses to Todd Pletcher and Steve Asmussen. (Commonwealth, a smaller operation sent 1 to Pletcher.)

The platforms have a clear incentive to do this because it boosts each horse’s “story appeal.”

Hall of Fame trainers are a selling point. They make it seem like your horse has been vetted by someone who knows what they’re doing.

And of course, they believe they are making the right decision.

But the data shows otherwise…

Because Pletcher and Asmussen’s combined record so far is…

0-for-14

Two of the winningest trainers in history…

Couldn’t produce a single graded stakes winner…

In 14 tries.

To make matters worse?

They didn’t produce a SINGLE profitable outcome for shareholders.

And to be clear…

These results didn’t come from training “cheap” horses.

Each was sent a battalion of buys that cost $200,000… $400,000… $500,000 or more.

Now does this mean Pletcher and Asmussen will NEVER take us to the top?

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Well…

If MRH keeps sending them horses, one will eventually break through.

But how long will it take? And how much money will shareholders lose in the meantime?

And why is this happening?

Numbers don’t tell the whole story.

But they leave clues…

Let’s start with the basics.

Asmussen and Pletcher will accept any warm body to fill a stall and generate income.

Take a look…

In the past three years, Asmussen trained a mind-boggling 1,812 horses.

Pletcher took on about half as many… 909.

By comparison… Bob Baffert managed just 573.

He has been far more selective.

Which helps explain his much higher win rate.

Baffert - 29.3%
Pletcher - 18.17%
Asmussen - 16.6%

And look at his stats for Graded Stakes winners!

26.9% of Baffert horses reach the highest levels of racing and win.

Pletcher hits at 7.4%.

While Asmussen limps across the finish line at 2.4%.

I’m not saying Asmussen or Pletcher aren’t good trainers.

That would be absurd.

But both have failed in their mission to take us to the next level.

Racing fans have a love/hate relationship with Baffert.

But the data is clear.

Elite Academy vs. Factory

Pletcher and Asmussen run “horse factories.”

Volume-based operations.

While Baffert runs an elite “academy.”

And it’s paid off…

The white-haired wonder trained the two highest-rated horses in our 5-year study:

Plus this undefeated colt, whose career was cut short…

That’s two legitimate stars and one in the making.

From FIVE horses to hit the track.

Compare that to Asmussen and Pletcher.

They’ve had 14 chances. And have NEVER come within a furlong of success.

What’s that old saying?

That’s why we will NEVER take a serious position in any horse trained by either of these guys. It’s nothing personal. We’re just following the data. If the data changes, we’ll re-assess.

Beyond Baffert…

Two trainers have shown incredible promise.

Saffie Joseph, Jr. and Gustavo Delgado.

These men are a case in opposites.

Delgado started just 93 horses over the past few years. Including two for Micro Share owners.

Saffie Joseph, Jr. runs a massive operation, with 875 unique starters over the past few years. Yet he operates with the care of a boutique trainer.

He currently has three stakes placed runners - all for MRH. (We’ve got to credit D. Wayne Lukas for giving Caldera his start. But Saffie has done a great job with him, ever since.)

Patrick Bove
Founder, Micro Share Maven

P.S. If you’re wondering why MRH’s latest offering, Ali Blue ‘24, didn’t make the cut… Asmussen is a key reason. Does it make me a little nervous to pass on this strapping McKinzie colt? Yes. He’s pointing to an early debut at Saratoga. And I’d like nothing more than a reason to head to the Spa and cheer him on.

I’m aware that Asmussen won the Grade I Hopeful stakes THREE years in a row with Basin (2019), Jackie’s Warrior (2020) and Gunite (2021).

Maybe he’ll do it again? But if so, he’ll be heading to the winner’s circle without me. I only bought 1 share for tracking purposes. (You’re welcome.)

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P.P.S. To the numbers nerds out there: I know what you’re thinking! What if MRH sent all its “duds” to Baffert. And all its winners to Asmussen? Would the result be any different? We’ll never know. All I can say is… 0-for-14 is a slump for the ages. A five-year trail of tears paid for by you and me.

Also… given how difficult it is to find a legit graded stakes winner… I realize there’s a risk of nitpicking. We could easily say, chestnut horses don’t work out. Or trainers with two “S’s” in their name have failed. Because MOST horses fail. And it would still seem true. But not very useful.

The key is to understand what sets the winners apart from the losers. And that’s what Micro Share Maven is all about.

Our paid readers get exclusive access to our proprietary buy and “pass” scores on every horse offered by MRH and Commonwealth. All for just $10 a month.

Happy hunting…

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Last week, I posted our full portfolio.

One thing I DIDN’T include was our “pass” list.

These are horses the system is saying “don’t buy.”

Thanks to alert reader, TJ, for pointing this out.

Here’s the official “don’t buy” list.

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After all, they have “residual value.”

I mean, that’s what the sales platforms tell us.

And they’re not lying.

EVERY well-bred filly has some residual value.

Just like a $10,000 table from Restoration Hardware.

You know, the one listed on Facebook Marketplace for $1,000.

You can’t say the same for colts…

Even Grade II-winning males are cast aside or shipped off to South America to stand in obscurity for a decade.

Well-bred fillies have it easy in this regard.

Even if they never make a single start… they are treasured.

But the major platforms don’t seem to care.

Their business model has a lot in common with buying $10,000 furniture… selling it for $1,000… and trying to make it up in volume.

I can’t understand why they do this.

To me, if you’re willing to spend $300,000… $400,000… or half a million on an unraced filly? You should be willing to retain her as a broodmare. Sell her colts. Keep the fillies. Rinse and repeat.

But Micro Share platforms almost never do this. Because they’re generally NOT about breeding partnerships.

They just cycle through high-priced fillies and then, if they don’t work out? They sell them off for pennies on the dollar.

Let me show you what I mean…

In our five year study, we tracked every single Micro Share offering across My Racehorse and Commonwealth.

And when I saw the data - my “filly fantasy” fell apart.

What I found instead was a trail of tears.

A whole mess of regally-bred females - who amounted to nothing on the track… then sold for a massive loss.

Most of them were by top sires…

• Liam’s Map

• Nyquist

• Constitution

• Quality Road

• Into Mischief

And they hailed from strong female families…

ALL but ONE had solid black type on their pedigree page.

But it didn’t matter.

The Micro Share platforms sold them off like unwanted furniture.

And investors lost anywhere from 55% to 99% of their money!

It might seem like I’m exaggerating. But take a look:

Here’s the Kicker (by Liam’s Map)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $375,000
Race Record: (9) 2-2-0
Earnings: $97,080
Pedigree: Second dam was multiple Gr. III winner. 4th dam was 1/2 to a Gr. II winner.

ROI: 89% Loss (Sold as broodmare for $77,000)

Simply Enchanting (by Nyquist)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $475,000
Race Record: (8) 1-2-2
Earnings: $119,629 (Listed Stakes Placed)
Pedigree: 3/4 sister to a Gr. II winner.

ROI: 77% Loss (Sold as broodmare in foal to Curlin for $450,000)

Appellate (by Constitution)

Platform: Commonwealth
Purchase Price: $651,666
Race Record: (11) 1-3-0
Earnings: $140,284
Pedigree: Dam was multiple Graded Stakes winner / Champion filly in Canada.

ROI: 65% Loss (Sold as broodmare for $80,000)

Who Runs the World (by Quality Road)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $600,000
Race Record: (5) 1-0-2
Earnings: $19,840
Pedigree: Dam was a Gr. II winner.

ROI: 90% Loss (Sold as a broodmare for $35,000)

I Got a Gal (by Pioneer of the Nile)

Platform: Commonwealth
Purchase Price: $175,913
Race Record: (8) 1-2-1
Earnings: $79,155
Pedigree: Dam was half to Gr. I winner. 3rd Dam was Beautiful Pleasure (Gr. I winner)

ROI: 55% Loss (Sold as a broodmare for $20,000)

Balletic (by Into Mischief)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $450,000
Race Record: (3) 1-2-0
Earnings: $64,400
Pedigree: Second Dam produced Gr. III winner. (Fourth Dam was Gr. I winner One Dreamer)

ROI: 91% Loss (Sold as a broodmare for $80,000 - in foal to Mage)

Catalyst (by Gun Runner)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $525,000
Race Record: (10) 1-1-2
Earnings: $43,460
Pedigree: Dam had 6 stakes-placed runners. Second Dam produced Gr. I winner, Tapizar.

ROI: 90% Loss (Sold as a broodmare for $220,000)

Sweet Voyage (by Candy Ride)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $160,000
Race Record: (9) 2-1-0
Earnings: $46,603
Pedigree: Dam and second Dam were listed stakes winners.

ROI: 97% Loss (Adopted as pleasure horse)

Moonlit Courage (by Omaha Beach)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $100,000
Race Record: (8) 1-0-1
Earnings: $19,000
Pedigree: Fourth Dam produced Gr. I winner, Devil His Due

ROI: 98% Loss (Claimed for $16,000)

Asean (by Ten Sovereigns)

Platform: Commonwealth
Purchase Price: $344,433
Race Record: (9) 2-1-2
Earnings: $41,566
Pedigree: No notable performers.

ROI: 63% Loss (Sold for $100k as broodmare)

Soldoutshow (by Quality Road)

Platform: Commonwealth
Purchase Price: $240,000
Race Record: (0) 0-0-0
Earnings: $0
Pedigree: Dam was a listed stakes winner and Gr. II-placed.

ROI: 87% Loss (Sold for $11,000 as broodmare)

Stay Fabulous (by Violence)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $150,000
Race Record: (27) 2-3-1
Earnings: $66,780
Pedigree: Dam was a Gr. II winner.

ROI: 99% Loss (Claimed for $30,000)

Lady Blitz (by Audible)

Platform: My Racehorse
Purchase Price: $320,000
Race Record: (5) 0-0-1
Earnings: $16,386
Pedigree: Second dam was Gr. III winner.

ROI: 98% Loss

Kissed by Fire (by Friesan Fire)

Platform: Commonwealth
Purchase Price: $412,532
Race Record: (14) 4-3-0
Earnings: $236,854
Pedigree: Dam was listed stakes-placed.

ROI: 88% Loss (Sold for $40,000 as broodmare)

So what am I saying?

Never buy shares of a well-bred filly?

Actually no…

You see, ALL the above fillies were rated “Pass” or “Run Away” by my AI based system.

While the ONLY two stakes winning fillies in the past five years were rated “Strong Buy.” I’m talking about Grade I winner Seismic Beauty and the stakes winner and Grade III placed Reputation.

Not to mention the stakes-placed Mystical Belle - who rated a “Buy.”

That’s the whole point of Micro Share Maven. I built this newsletter and rating system to help keep us out of the worst offerings and put us into the best.

Right now there’s one filly in our portfolio rated a “Strong Buy.” She’s the highest scoring Micro Share investment of any kind on any platform.

Our ratings are reserved for paid-up readers.

You can get started with as little as $10.

If you sign up for a year, you’ll save $20 off the usual rate.

This offer is only good until we reach our first 100 subscribers. Then the price will double to $20 per month. And folks who get in today will lock in their low rate for the life of their subscription.

And today we have a shot to add a potential monster to our stable.

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