#Soundbites - Which other trainer do you most admire on the backstretch, and why?
/Article by Bill Heller
Bret Calhoun
Brendan Walsh
Wayne Lukas never ceases to amaze me. He’s out there every morning. He’s at the sales and still competing at the highest level. He’s a guy that amazes me.
Brendan Walsh
There are a lot of trainers on the backstretch that I admire for different things. Some are good with stakes horses. Some of them are good with young horses. There’s almost too many to mention. I don’t really want to name one.
Todd Fincher
The ones I admire the most are the ones who started in the grass roots and worked their way up and became successful. Most of those guys have a true love of horse racing. It’s not an easy profession. It’s an unending job. Those guys that fought through adversity are the ones that I admire most.
Peter Miller
There are a lot of them I admire. Here in Southern California, I admire Richard Mandella and John Sheriffs because they limit the number of horses they take. I can’t do that. I’m a horse junkie. I admire Brad Cox and Steve Asmussen because they run such a huge operation with success at all levels. That shows a lot of organizational skills as well as horsemen skills. They also know how to delegate. I don’t even know how they do it. You can also throw in Todd Pletcher and Chad Brown. I’m at 80 horses, and I’m at my wit’s end!
Gary Contessa
That is a no-brainer: Wayne Lukas. He revolutionized the entire racing industry, and people took his lead. He came to the East Coast, and he showed us how to talk to clients; showed us how to develop young horses; and showed us what a barn should be like. Look at the history. What trainer in America has developed more good trainers than he has? Nobody. He’s developed horses and people.
Ron Moquett
There’s a lot of people you admire for different reasons. Probably the older guys like Bernie Flint, Jinks Fires and Wayne Lukas. They’re forever evolving. To be involved in this business for so many years and compete at a high level, it’s impressive. They do it year after year.
Larry Rivelli
Larry Rivelli
Wesley Ward—because he’s one of the very few jockeys that have become successful trainers. A lot of them tried and failed. He didn’t. He’s at an elite level.