WinStar Farm president and CEO Doug Cauthen, who has been with the operation since its inception in 2000 and was a key member of the WinStar team that won both this year’s Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) with homebred Super Saver and the Belmont Stakes (gr. I) with Drosselmeyer, is leaving the farm to create his own independent consulting service.
Cauthen’s decision comes on the heels of Kenny Troutt buying out the interest of former partner Bill Casner in the WinStar operation and Super Saver being retired to stud at WinStar for the 2011 breeding season.
As the internal discussions regarding the future of the farm continued to evolve, Cauthen determined that now was the appropriate time to step down from his WinStar post to pursue new opportunities within the industry. Elliott Walden, previously the vice president and racing manager for WinStar, will take over as president and CEO.
“Helping WinStar grow and succeed on all levels has been my number one mission for the past decade,” Cauthen said in a release. “WinStar gave me the experience of a lifetime, which only a limited number of horseman will ever know. Kenny and Bill afforded me the opportunity to know what makes a great racehorse, what makes a great stallion, and what makes a great farm. From having the experience of recruiting and developing a world class stallion roster to being involved with winning two legs of the Triple Crown this year, I wouldn’t trade the last 10 years for anything in the world. It has been an invaluable experience. But life always changes, and it’s time to look toward the future to find new opportunities. I can imagine that my future might include helping new clients navigate this great industry—it would be wonderful for the whole industry if more people found greater levels of success.”
Cauthen continued, “Kenny and I have had several discussions regarding the consolidation of the farm and his vision of the future. Now seems like the appropriate time to offer my services to a wider group of people. I feel fortunate to have been part of such a superb team, and I have learned a great deal by working for Kenny. He has a tremendous intellect and is a great motivator, and has been a huge influence in my life. Bill Casner deserves equally high praise as well. I owe them both a debt of gratitude for letting me further sharpen my skills as part of the WinStar team. The farm has an amazing group of broodmares, weanlings, yearlings, and 2-year-olds in the pipeline, not to mention the older horses like Drosselmeyer and Endorsement that will be racing next year. I will be watching them closely, and rooting for their continued success.”
Effective immediately, Cauthen will become an independent program management consultant. He said he will use his experience to help operations large or small improve their "strike rate" for breeding or buying successful racehorses.
"Doug has had a huge impact on WinStar and its development into a leading commercial and stallion farm," Troutt said. "He has negotiated big deals for the purchase and sale of bloodstock, screened all the mares submitted to our stallions, constantly evaluated our bloodstock in the fields, handled a lot of responsibility at the sales, and on and on… He has a special mix of horsemanship and business acumen that have and always will serve him well. I wish all the best to Doug, who has been nothing short of stellar in every respect. He and his entire family are the epitome of class in this industry. He has agreed to continue on with the farm in a consulting role during the transition, and will most likely be an independent sounding board for WinStar for a long time in the future. ”
In addition to its Triple Crown success this year, during Cauthen's tenure WinStar has built a stallion roster that now includes 2010 leading sire Distorted Humor , as well as Speightstown and Tiznow among the top 20 stallions in North America.
