Josh Pons Author/Farm Owner

Los Angeles, CA:
What is up with Sheik Mohammad retiring all these brilliant horses at such a young age? Why would a breeder retire great horses in hope of producing another once in a lifetime horse? I don't understand this logic and as a breeder can you enlighten the rest of us real racing fans on what is going on?

Pons:
The most exciting racehorse in my lifetime was Secretariat. I was 19 years old when he won the Triple Crown, and I remember watching Mrs. Tweedy before the Belmont Stakes. She was eating Rollaids like they were mints. And he was retired after the end of his 3-year-old season. So was Man o' War. It's not really a new thing in racing. There's that old saying, 'If you keep leading them over there, eventually they'll get beat.' Sometimes a horse has proven himself beyond doubt.

The second most exciting racehorse in my lifetime was Cigar. He ran until he was six years old. Billy Mott led him over for 16 straight wins, and his popularity soared with every victory. What a horse for the sport! Allen Paulson owned and bred Cigar, and he inscribed the fine book that Jay Hovdey wrote about the horse. Mr. Paulson scribbled: 'Cigar. What a champion!' It's almost poetry, it's so indisputable.

Yorba Linda, CA:
Do you believe over-breeding is a problem in the horse industry? By some estimates 40,000 foals are born each year. A great many of these never race. Many end up eventually going to slaughter.

Pons:
There are a lot of four-horse fields at tracks around the country. I'm not sure we're overbreeding racehorses as much as under-breeding racehorse owners.

To read the complete transcript of this chat, along with many others, check out Best of Talkin’ Horses.

Best of Talkin’ Horses features provocative “chats” with some of Thoroughbred racing’s most prominent names. Adapted from “Talkin’ Horses,” the popular weekly online chat series hosted by Bloodhorse.com, this edited collection provides additional insights by Ron Mitchell, editor and moderator of “Talkin’ Horses."