The Factor had a lot going for him as a stallion prospect when he went to stud. He was fast, was a Grade 1 winner, and had a nice pedigree. One of the unknowns was his sire, War Front, because The Factor was from that sire’s first crop, and at the time it was not known if War Front would be a good sire, or, more importantly, be a good sire of sires.

One of the hottest sires at yearling sales in 2017 was Violence, whose first foals had just reached the races, and some people questioned if the unabashed love for his progeny was warranted. At sales in 2017, yearlings by Violence sold for an average of $123,840, or 8.3 times his $15,000 stud fee, a very high multiple for the commercial market.

As it turns out, the answer was in the affirmative, and those who believed in him early are reaping the rewards.

In recent decades, America’s Thoroughbred breeding industry has been contracting – with fewer racetracks, smaller foal crops, and a declining number of active stallions. The decline in active stallions has been especially notable: Since 1991 the number of stallions used for breeding has dropped some 79 percent nationally.

In recent years, the Hoosier State has bucked a downward national trend with its on-the-rise Thoroughbred industry. Whereas other regional racing and breeding centers struggle for any number of reasons, Indiana flourishes. Why? The passage of legislation in 2007 legalizing on-track gaming and the subsequent advent of casinos at the state’s two racetracks has infused vital lifeblood into a once anemic business. Industry interests have since benefited to the tune of more than $500 million and counting, with big bucks pouring annually into purses and incentives for breed development.

Numbers talk, but sometimes the message they send can be mixed. Despite a racing program that has witnessed steady growth in purse distribution and average purse per race, and offers a respectable incentive program, Iowa’s breeding end of the business has trended in a different direction.

Maximus Mischief notched the top Beyer Speed Figure for a 2-year-old of 2018, recording a 98 for an allowance win at Parx, which preceded his score in the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes to cap an unbeaten campaign.

Cowtown Cat began his stud career in Florida and established himself among the leading stallions there, siring horses such as Canadian champion Calgary Cat. He moved to Mapleton Thoroughbred Farm in Polk, Ohio, beginning with the 2015 season and has made himself right at home in the Midwest region. Represented by his first locally sired runners, Cowtown Cat reigns as Ohio’s leading general sire for 2018.

As War Front’s stallion career has developed, his handlers have prioritized quality over quantity – and the market has responded.

On Jan. 27, 2018, it seemed a fait accompli that Candy Ride would be the leading general sire of the season, as his son Gun Runner stormed to a win in the $16 million Pegasus World Cup, taking home the winner’s share of $7 million in his career finale.

Steuart Pittman, founder of the Retired Racehorse Project, and Isabela de Sousa, several times a winner at the event, were honored by the U.S. Equestrian Federation (USEF) at its Pegasus Awards on Jan. 10 in Florida.