I’ll Have Another Off to Japan

Recent Triple Crown hopeful racehorse I’ll Have Another was sold to the Japanese farm, Big Red Farm, for $10 million according to a report on bloodhorse.com.

The horse’s owner J. Paul Reddam, wrote a 1,500 word post on bloodhorse.com as a response to the reactions from his original blog to Steve Haskin. Haskin is the The Blood Horse’s senior correspondent. Reddam shared the decision making process that led to the retirement of I’ll Have Another and why he made the sale to a Japanese stud farm in the post.

As a quick background, the successful stallion, I’ll Have Another, had won the Santa Anita Derby, Kentucky Derby, and the Preakness Stakes, which are all Grade 1 races. Yet having run six races and taken home $2 million from just the Kentucky Derby and Preakness, his career was considered very short lived. He is the 12th horse in the last 34 years, since Affirmed won the Triple Crown in 1978, to win the first two legs but not the Belmont.

Reddam received two written offers from American farms, one of which was for $3 million and another for $2.5 million for half rights plus nine lifetime breeding rights, which was valued by Reddam at $5 million.

Reddam was then approached by Big Red Farm located in Niikkap on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, owned by Shigeyuki Okada. They offered $10 million, and Reddam said another Japanese farm offered just under that amount.

Big Red’s offer was clearly the most lucrative and won out. Reddam also felt his colt would have a better selection of mares available in Japan.

The American stud fee projected out to between $17,500 and $20,000, wrote Reddam in the blog. “That means he wouldn’t get the best mares or be given the best chance to succeed. He will get a much better book of mares in Japan and a higher chance to succeed.”

Reddam’s future plans include possibly buying a few mares in foal to I’ll Have Another and shipping them back to California to foal.

The way the decision to sell I’ll Have Another abroad “saddened and surprised” him, he stated in the post. However, he is sure I’ll Have Another will receive “top-quality care in Japan.” In the future if I’ll Have Another is available for sale he confirmed he’d buy back the horse.

In closing, Reddam ended speculation about exactly what caused I’ll Have Another to be scratched from the Belmont Stakes, as many thought it was tendonitis. Reddam though said the injury was diagnosed as a tendon tear instead. The decision to retire I’ll Have Another was then made in less than a minute. “It was the right and dignified thing to do,” said Reddam.

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