Mark Roberts, general manager of Adena Springs South and a key member of the Frank Stronach team that has earned 30 Eclipse or Sovereign Awards, has left his position with the operation and returned to breaking and training Thoroughbreds.
A native of Florida and an alumnus of Eastern Kentucky University, Roberts is also a founding partner of Central Kentucky-based Hidden Brook Farm, under whose banner he will form his breaking and training operation at Adena Springs South, according to a July 22 release from Hidden Brook.
Roberts has been with Frank Stronach's operation for 18 years at Adena Springs South in Florida, where he oversaw the breaking and training of up to 175 Adena Springs horses annually, the farm said. During that time, Adena Springs earned 16 Eclipse Awards as outstanding owner or breeder, and amassed more than $200-million in on-track earnings, primarily with horses broken and trained under Roberts' watch.
"My years at Adena Springs have been like attending grad school at Harvard," Roberts said in a statement. "To have had a part in the formative careers of Hall of Famers Ghostzapper and Awesome Again , Breeders' Cup winners Macho Uno and Perfect Sting, grade I-winning millionaires Wild Rush and Golden Missile , and the many other top horses that came through this program, made my years with Frank a very rewarding experience.
"I am extremely grateful to Mr. Stronach and his family for providing me with access to such world-class horses and facilities, but the truth is, I have really found myself missing the action and camaraderie of the racetrack. That is where I began my Thoroughbred career, and that is where I would like to be 10, 20, even 30 years from now."
