Eric Gustavson

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY - By far, the most enthusiastic applause during the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame induction ceremony Friday morning was for a video clip of race that everyone in the audience likely had seen many times. Beholder's (Henny Hughes) career-capping victory by a nose over the previously unbeaten champion Songbird (Medaglia d'Oro) in the 2016 GI Breeder's Cup Distaff was nearly as gripping on the big screen at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion as it was live at Santa Anita Park. For sheer drama it ranks with...

Never mind the champion stallion who emulated his own rags-to-riches rise: every yard of paddock rail, every coat of paint, every blade of grass at Spendthrift Farm commemorates the man whose arrival here transformed the commercial breeding landscape. But it's not just the fact that it will formally preserve his name that makes an especially apt memorial of a new visitor center, opening later this year. For its very existence attests to the unique, restlessly challenging style of the late B. Wayne Hughes, and the determination of those charged with...

In the face of an end run in the Kentucky legislature, The Jockey Club will rescind its 140 mare cap for stallions, the organization announced in a press release Thursday morning. "The Jockey Club announced today that it is rescinding the following italicized language in Rule 14C of The Jockey Club's Principal Rules and Requirements of the American Studbook that addresses limitations to the total number of mares bred per stallion: The total number of broodmares bred per individual stallion whose year of birth is 2020 or thereafter shall not exceed 140...

Spendthrift Farm will discontinue its operations in Australia and put its property there up for sale, it was announced Wednesday. "This has been a very difficult decision for us," said Eric Gustavson, owner of Spendthrift. "We have a wonderful team in Australia and will be working closely with them to help make this as smooth a transition for them as possible. The Thoroughbred industry in Australia is one of the finest in the world, and we have great respect for the job they've done in building it. We've been fortunate...

Urban parks are well-loved destinations in America's most developed and highly-populated cities. Of course Central Park is the first that comes to mind, as well as perhaps Lincoln Park in Chicago or Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. These beautifully-designed pieces of landscape architecture serve as gathering places for the city's community and are often stopping points for those visiting a bustling metropolis. In a few years Lexington, Kentucky--with a population of less than 400,000--will get a state-of-the-art park of its own in the heart of downtown. Ground is set...

Spendthift Farm has broken ground on what is to be an 8000 square-foot tourism facility that will be named the B. Wayne Hughes Visitors' Center in honor of the farm's late founder. "We take it on as our responsibility now to continue to build on the vision Wayne had for Spendthrift and the sport of horse racing," said Eric Gustavson, owner of Spendthrift and son-and-law to the late B. Wayne Hughes. "It's only fitting to name the new visitors' center after him because it largely represents his love for the...

Spendthrift's Eric Gustavson talks on the reign of Into Mischief, the influence the mare cap will have at the upcoming yearling sales and the future of the farm's partnership with MyRacehorse on the TDN Writer's Room podcast.

Following the tragic loss of Coolmore's cornerstone stallion Galileo, champion sire Into Mischief has suddenly found himself at center stage as the top stallion in the world in just about every category. On this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland, the crew sat down with Eric Gustavson of Spendthrift Farm, a new sponsor of the show, to talk about their rise of success with the son of Harlan's Holiday. "For us to have Into Mischief is the classic case of how a rising tide lifts all boats," said...

The election results for the Breeders' Cup Board of Directors have been announced. William S. Farish, Jr. (Lane's End Farm), Eric Gustavson (Spendthrift Farm), and Alex Solis, II (Solis/Litt Bloodstock) were each elected to serve a four-year term. Farish and Solis were re-elected as Directors. Gustavson, who joined Spendthrift in 2006, has overseen the farm's extensive growth rising from one homebred stallion to currently having the largest roster in North America. Gustavson also has led the team that brought the "Share the Upside Program" and making racehorse ownership available to...

As many people in the United States and around the world question their personal views on diversity and racial inclusion, we decided to look inwardly on our industry, and we found it wanting. So we asked a tough question to several industry members: How do we make racing at its highest level more diverse? ERIC GUSTAVSON, President of Spendthrift Farm As we all know, diversity comes in many shapes and sizes. And the question, 'how do we make racing at its highest level more diverse?' is locked and loaded for...